Hurix DigitalHurix DigitalHurix DigitalHurix Digital
  • Home
  • What we do
    • Digital Content Solutions
      • eLearning & Training Solutions
      • Higher Education Solutions
      • K-12 Content Solutions
      • Design, Animation & Video Services
    • Digital Content Transformation
      • Production Services
      • Pre Press & Editorial Services
      • Quality As A Service
      • Robotic Process Automation
    • Digital Engineering & Technology
      • Learning Technology Services
      • Managed Cloud Services
      • Custom Software Development
      • E-Commerce Solutions
      • Business Analysis as a service
    • Digital Platforms
      • Kitaboo
      • Kitaboo Insight
      • Kitaboo College
      • Learning Management System
  • Who we are
    • About Us
    • Life at Hurix
    • Careers
  • Who We Serve
    • Higher Education Institutions
    • K-12 Institutions
    • Enterprises
    • Publishers
    • Societies & Nonprofit Associations
  • Resources
    • Blog
    • Case Studies
    • How To Guides
    • Whitepapers
    • Point Of View
    • Awards
    • Press Releases
    • Podcast
  • Contact Us
OER in K-12 Education

Advantages of using OER in K-12 Education

By Hurix | Higher Ed & K-12 Solutions | Comments are Closed | 23 February, 2023 | 2

What Are Open Educational Resources (OER)?

Open educational resources or OER are teaching, research, and learning resources that are available in the public domain for free use. These resources range from textbooks and software to other learning materials such as videos and tutorials that often cover full courses for different subjects across the education spectrum. 

OER carries the GNU or Creative Commons license that permits them to be revised, repurposed, remixed, and redistributed at no cost to the user. These materials can also be adapted, shared, and reused as a user deems fit.

These are in sharp contrast to the copyrighted traditional curriculum textbooks, and thus, viewed as a potent tool to expand access to quality education. The organizations or individuals who author the content of these resources retain none or very limited ownership rights. 

OER comprises a vast segment of education material, ranging from university courses to adaptations of existing curriculum, e-books, interactive lessons, simulations as well as lesson plans, activities, worksheets, and learning materials for the K-12 sector. While it is being embraced at every level of education, its adoption is most rampant in K-12 education. 

More and more district leaders, school administrators, and teachers are embracing this format of learning at the school level as it offers them an opportunity to make education innovative, futuristic, customized, and above all, affordable.

Benefits of OER for K-12 Education

The open and inclusive nature of OER extends multi-pronged benefits to the K-12 education sector. These include: 

Cost Savings

One of the most significant and immediate benefits of open educational resources is the availability of quality learning material to teachers and students in diverse formats at no cost or very little cost. This makes it the perfect alternative to expensive textbooks. Thus, making education more accessible and affordable for students who cannot afford to purchase course materials. 

These resources can mean the difference between students passing or failing an exam or students staying or dropping out of schools. With the right intervention from the teachers, this open course content can be augmented and tweaked to suit the needs of different students. 

Schools as well can cut costs on leasing or purchasing instructional materials. This money can be re-routed for other requirements, such as improvement of infrastructure or bolstering of tech capabilities. 

Improved Quality of Education 

OER not only helps students, schools, and educators save on money, but it also improves the quality of education by giving thousands of teachers access to a vast resource of high-quality instructional material. Teachers can augment these existing materials as per their understanding of the subject and their students’ needs, and then, share it further with the education community. As this process goes on, a collective effort by teachers and education experts can curate high-quality teaching resources. 

These resources can then be implemented in classrooms across the country. For instance, instead of paying $10 for low-quality worksheets, a teacher can download a mix of worksheets with good reviews from OER websites and then fuse them to create a diverse exercise for their students. This customized worksheet can be uploaded on the same website, and accessed by other teachers for free. 

Digitized Learning 

Even though open educational resources aren’t essentially digital resources since many of these programs are designed to be used in the printed format, digital distribution can truly help leverage their optimal potential. Schools have the option to implement digitized learning using these open resource materials in a model of their choice. From BYOD to one-to-one and flipped classrooms, they can choose an online learning model that best fits a school’s and its students’ capabilities and requirements. 

Unlike commercially available digital content for online learning, the material here can be modified and deployed to suit specific requirements. 

Flexible, Customized Learning 

OER also resonates with institutions, teachers, and students across the K-12 education sector for their customizable and flexible nature. The 5 Rs of the OER format – retain, reuse, revise, remix, and redistribute – facilitate greater engagement with the curriculum. Teachers can enhance existing learning materials with the use of videos, infographics, exercises, assignments, or any other tool that they deem fit to drive better student engagement. 

Besides, the scope to revise and remix content gives educators room to decide what part of a particular learning material they want to use and what they want to leave out. This customized content gives students access to pointed, relevant information that they are interested in and can benefit from. 

For instance, an English teacher downloads a series of stories for her Grade 2 students. She then realizes that the language used in the story is too complex for her students’ understanding or that there are words that her students are unfamiliar with. The teacher can rephrase those parts to suit the language proficiency of her pupils. Thus, giving her students access to interesting, engaging stories in a format that they understand. 

Better Retention Rates 

The collaborative nature of OER fosters a pedagogically sound learning experience. What a community creates together is, naturally, far richer and more robust than what a teacher can create individually. This is known to positively impact the students’ retention rate of new information and knowledge. 

Studies have shown that digitized and interactive learning material can elevate students’ learning abilities and success. With access to open educational resources, schools can ensure that their students learn in a modernized, interactive environment without financial duress.

The Takeaway

OER, when used mindfully and effectively by teachers, can transform the learning experience for students in the K-12 education sector. It marries cost-reduction with improved quality of education and promotes easy access to education.

However, the only thing to bear in mind is that a one-size-fits-all approach may not work best here. Teachers have to be willing to go the extra mile and fine-tune the materials to suit the needs of their pupils for the best learning outcomes.

OER, Open Educational Resources

Related Post

  • scenario based learning | Scenario Based Learning to Boost the eLearning Experience & ROI

    8 tips to gain maximum ROI from Learning Management Systems (LMS)

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    Lifelong learning will drive results for the modern workforce. Anyone from 18-80 years of age working as a pizza delivery boy , a CEO, or a retired professional – all of them need to learnRead more

  • How learner personas enhance mobile learning within organizations

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    A large percentage of your workforce is constantly on the move and needs access to vital pieces of information – and they need it immediately, anytime, anywhere. Also, since they have a small window ofRead more

  • Everything You Need to Know About Software Testing Metrics

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    As software projects become more and more complex, it becomes imperative for project leads/managers to track the quality at every stage of the software development cycle to ensure that the end-product is completely error-free. TheyRead more

  • Top Reasons Why Companies Outsource Quality Assurance Services

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    Software development companies are well aware that innovation is the keyword to retain a competitive edge in the market. However, with in-house teams focusing on developing innovative applications, at times, quality takes a back seat.Read more

  • 4 Easy Analytics Hacks for Successful Employee Training

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    Data analytics generates a lot of excitement in the corporate field. The world is talking about how companies are using big data & analytics to know their customer better. The same science, when applied toRead more

  • WCAG – Quick Facts and Guide

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    At a time when digital media has turned into a way of life, be it for businesses, marketers or individuals, conforming to a set of rules that help define how content and design should beRead more

  • Five Industries That Will Drive Virtual Reality in Corporate Training

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    The future of immersive learning is here and now, and it’s virtual. Pegged as the next big L&D trend, virtual reality is predicted to revolutionize corporate training across businesses. As the world gets faster withRead more

  • Web Accessibility Guidelines

    By Hurix | Comments are Closed

    Web Accessibility Guidelines InfographicRead more

More Resources

  • Case Studies
  • Whitepapers
  • How To Guides
  • Point of View
  • Awards
  • Press Release
  • Podcast

Follow Us

Recent Posts

  • 25 March, 2023
    Comments Off on Top X Blended Learning Resources for Workforce Training and Development

    Top X Blended Learning Resources for Workforce Training and Development

  • 25 March, 2023
    Comments Off on What are the Blended Learning Best Practices in 2023?

    What are the Blended Learning Best Practices in 2023?

  • 25 March, 2023
    Comments Off on What is Interactive E-Learning and How to Implement it in Your Organization?

    What is Interactive E-Learning and How to Implement it in Your Organization?

  • 25 March, 2023
    Comments Off on All You Need to Know About Courseware Digitization Process

    All You Need to Know About Courseware Digitization Process

Categories

  • Digital Content Solutions
  • Digital Engineering & Technology
  • Digital Products & Platforms
  • Digital Transformation Services
  • Higher Ed & K-12 Solutions

Services & Solutions

  • Managed Cloud Services
  • Custom Software Development
  • eLearning & Training Solutions
  • Pre Press & Editorial Services
  • Higher Education Solutions

Products and Platforms

  • Kitaboo
  • Kitaboo Insight
  • Kitaboo College
  • Learning Management System
  • ePUB3 Conversion

Resources

  • Blog
  • Case Studies
  • Press Releases
  • How To Guides
  • Whitepapers
  • Point Of View

About Us

  • Our Clients
  • Contact Us
  • Awards
  • CSR Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
Copyright © 2023 Hurix | All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • What we do
    • Digital Content Solutions
      • eLearning & Training Solutions
      • Higher Education Solutions
      • K-12 Content Solutions
      • Design, Animation & Video Services
    • Digital Content Transformation
      • Production Services
      • Pre Press & Editorial Services
      • Quality As A Service
      • Robotic Process Automation
    • Digital Engineering & Technology
      • Learning Technology Services
      • Managed Cloud Services
      • Custom Software Development
      • E-Commerce Solutions
      • Business Analysis as a service
    • Digital Platforms
      • Kitaboo
      • Kitaboo Insight
      • Kitaboo College
      • Learning Management System
  • Who we are
    • About Us
    • Life at Hurix
    • Careers
  • Who We Serve
    • Higher Education Institutions
    • K-12 Institutions
    • Enterprises
    • Publishers
    • Societies & Nonprofit Associations
  • Resources
    • Blog
    • Case Studies
    • How To Guides
    • Whitepapers
    • Point Of View
    • Awards
    • Press Releases
    • Podcast
  • Contact Us
Hurix Digital
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT