Open Educational Resources (OER)
"Open Educational Resources (OERs) are any type of educational materials that are in the public domain or introduced with an open license. The nature of these open materials means that anyone can legally and freely copy, use, adapt and re-share them. OERs range from textbooks to curricula, syllabi, lecture notes, assignments, tests, projects, audio, video and animation." - UNESCO
As the definition above illustrates, OER are not limited to only open textbooks; however, textbook affordability is a central issue for many OER initiatives.
Textbook Alternatives and Library/Licensed Educational Resources (LER)
Kaufman Library purchases and subscribes to a wide variety of resources that can be used to replace a traditional textbook. These library/licensed educational resources (LER) are not considered OER because they are only available to GGC students and faculty and they often are restricted in how you can reuse them; however, they can still be a valuable asset when considering alternatives to traditional textbooks.
If you'd like to learn more about OER, the sites below are excellent resources.