This resource explains how Open Educational Resources (OERs) can support anti-racism and provides links to NorQuest Resources on how to adopt or create OERs.
Instructor resources
How do I choose OERs for my classroom?
Check out the OER Libguide: Getting Started with OER at NorQuest College
Want more information on OERs at NQ, and how to create an OER at NorQuest, including accessing funding? See the OER Curriculum Development page, and/or email the OER Steering Committee: OER@norquest.ca
Goals
- Understand how OERs can support anti-racism and anti-oppressive teaching practices.
- Building awareness around NorQuest College sources of additional tools to adopt, adapt and create OERs.
Background
OERs can support anti-racism, decolonialization, and inclusion in many aspects, including:
Reducing economic inequity
OERs provide cost-free materials for learners, making resources affordable and more accessible. Many NorQuest learners do not purchase textbooks due to cost, and racialized students are among those affected by this affordability barrier.
Promoting social justice and representation
OERs allow the adoption and customization of materials to suit learners. These materials can often be drawn from a large pool of resources that include works by racialized authors. As such, learners can see themselves represented in the material in various ways such as in images, case studies, and geographical contexts, among others. This provides a great advantage over traditional published materials that tend to have a generalized, colonized, and western representation.
Empowering co-creation of knowledge
OERs can empower all learners to be creators, not just consumers of educational materials. This helps learners to feel more agency in their learning. The instructor also has greater agency in selecting or coselecting course learning materials that can benefit racialized students too. Using OERs also shifts the power dynamic when the instructor becomes a collaborator/facilitator with the students, which in turn promotes greater equity in the classroom.
A cautionary note: In our selection and application of OERs, we should be mindful to check for authors’ bias and ensure the use of representative reading lists and resources (including those produced by members of racialized, underrepresented groups) to avoid reproducing racism and coloniality during learning.
Resources
Tools
Check out the OER Libguide: Getting Started with OER at NorQuest College
Want more information on OERs at NQ, and how to create an OER at NorQuest, including accessing funding? See the OER Curriculum Development page, and/or email the OER Steering Committee: OER@norquest.ca
References
Elder, A. (2019). Centering Diversity and Inclusion. In The OER Starter Kit. Iowa State University Digital Press.
Berdahl, L. & Ross, H. (2023, July 17). Why you should start using open educational resources in your teaching. University Affairs.
Authors
Written by: Dawn Witherspoon (Manager, Program Development), Rebecca Bock-Freeman (Manager, Academic Strategy)
Review and edited by: Benjamin Denga (Anti-Racism Advisor, Reimagine Higher Education).