All Guides: Finding Open Educational Resources (OER): Creating & Modifying OER

In This Guide

UAA Textbook Affordability Links

Related Guides

Creating and Modifying

If you don't find OER that is useful for you, you might consider modifying a current OER to meet your needs or authoring a completely new work. The resources below may help.

After you have created a new work or modified a work or works substantially, be sure to submit it to Scholarworks@UA, our institutional repository, and let D'Arcy Hutchings know so it can be added to the Textbook Affordability Heroes page.

Note that UAA Information Technology Services or Faculty Development & Instructional Support (for UAA faculty) may be able to help provide some of the technical support you may need to modify various OER files.

Guides for Creating OER

The Rebus Guide to Publishing Open Textbooks (So Far)
A living repository of collective knowledge, written to equip all those who want to publish open textbooks with the resources they need.
BC Open Textbook Self-Publishing Guide
Guide to writing and self-publishing an open textbook. Provides details on the preparation, planning, writing, publication, and maintenance of an open textbook. Copyright, open-copyright licences, and the differences between citation and attribution are discussed as well as the importance of copy editing and proofreading. Checklists and templates are also provided.
Authoring Open Textbooks
For faculty authors, librarians, project managers, and others involved in the production of open textbooks in higher education and K-12. Includes a checklist for getting started, publishing program case studies, textbook organization and elements, writing resources and an overview of useful tools.
A Guide to Making Open Textbooks With Students
For faculty interested in practicing open pedagogy by involving students in the making of open textbooks, ancillary materials, or other Open Educational Resources.
OERPUB
A github page with open source tools for publishing and adapting open education resources.
BC Open Textbook Accessibility Toolkit
Aids each content creator, instructional designer, educational technologist, librarian, administrator, teaching assistant, etc. in creating an ADA-accessible textbook.
UBC Open Text Publishing Guide
Helps authors navigate the process of creating a textbook; provides templates and workflows.

Guides for Modifying OER

Modifying an Open Textbook
Five-step guide for faculty, and those who support faculty, who want to modify an open textbook. Step-by-step instructions for importing and editing common open textbook file and platform types are included.
BCOpen Textbook Adaptation Guide
Though meant as a guide to adapting or revising open textbooks using the PressBooks platform, most of the information is helpful for adapting any OER.
OERPUB
A github page with open source tools for publishing and adapting open education resources.

Tools for Creating and Modifying OER

There are many tools you might use to create or revise your textbook or other course materials. Common ones include Pressbooks, Manifold, and LibreTexts. Which tool should you use? Consider referring to this tool comparison table or this comparison page (note that neither of these include LibreTexts).

Tool: Pressbooks
UAA currently has a subscription (until summer 2025; unknown whether funding will be available to extend it). If Pressbooks is discontinued in the future, projects can be exported as EPUB files. Contact D'Arcy Hutchings (see the Contact Me box on this page) to set up an account.
Pressbooks User Guide
A guide to using the Pressbooks tool for modifying or creating course materials.
Pressbooks Trainings
Attend webinars and trainings on Pressbooks.
Pressbooks FAQ
Pressbooks' knowledge base.
Tool: Manifold via OEN
UAA currently has access through our Open Education Network membership (pilot through March 2025; OEN will continue to offer Manifold to members if 10 member institutions are using it by Jan 2025; UAA's OEN membership may be extended if funding can be secured). If access to Manifold ends, projects can be exported as EPUB files.
Manifold: Brief Guide and Request an Account
Read about Manifold and request free access to the tool (locate the Request Manifold Access button).
Manifold Workshop Slides
Step-by-step guide to creating.
Tool: LibreTexts Libraries
LibreTexts' Libraries platform contains their custom authoring and remixing tools. These tools are free to use and created texts are hosted for free as well.
About LibreTexts
More information about the tool.
LibreTexts Textbook Construction Guide
A guide to creating or adapting a textbook using LibreTexts.

Contact Me

D'Arcy Hutchings

Email Me

Contact:

Instructional Design & Open Education Librarian,
Associate Professor
dlhutchings@alaska.edu

907.786.1982

Creative Commons License

This work by D'Arcy Hutchings is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

You may reproduce, reuse, or remix any part of it for noncommercial purposes as long as credit is included. We encourage you to license your derivative works under Creative Commons as well to encourage sharing and reuse of educational materials. Note that linked content is covered by its own licenses.