Skip to Main Content

OER Faculty Guide: Finding & Using OER

Introduction: @ Your Library

Skyline College Library provides a gateway to open access materials in digital format through its OneSearch discovery service. Faculty can also search or browse specific streaming film databases by subject or discipline. On this page we provide additional information for finding and using these digital resources when creating or adopting OER or building a ZTC designated course.

  • Open Access Journals
  • Open Access Multimedia
  • Streaming Media (Video databases)
  • OER Textbooks: Course Reserves

@ Your Library: Open Access & Creative Commons Licensed Resources

Open Access Journals & Streaming Media @ Skyline College Library 

Skyline College Library subscribes to digital resources that may be used as ZTC or LTC course material. These include eBooks, journal articles, audio, video and other media, which may be linked or embedded in your Canvas course shell or handed out in print format, all included in the Library's catalog.

Note: Unless a digital resource is marked with an Open Access tag , it cannot be incorporated into the OER you author or adapt. 

Instructions for finding digital media
  1. Visit the Library's homepage at https://skylinecollege.edu/library/
  2. Perform a keyword search using OneSearch. 
  3. In your search results, all digital resources will be marked as Available Online. 
Digital resources additionally marked as Open Access (OA) in OneSearch are teaching, learning and research materials that are free of charge and free of most copyright and licensing restrictions.  
Open Access (OA) resources may be incorporated into the OER you create; however, they may not be revised, remixed or redistributed. (Visit the Creative Commons & Other Licenses tab for more information).
The majority of OA digital resources you'll find in OneSearch are eBooks and peer reviewed journal articles. (You will not be asked to sign in to retrieve OA resources).

 

Instructions for finding Open Access resources at Skyline College:
  1. Visit the Library's homepage at skylinecollege.edu/library
  2. Perform a keyword search using OneSearch.
  3. Viewing your results, on the left side menu, select the "Open Access" filter box.
  4. Select Apply Filters to retrieve only Open Access resources.
  5. Make sure any resource you select to include in your OER displays the Open Access icon.

 

For example: 

 

@ Your Library: OER Textbooks in Course Reserves

From Course Reserves on the Skyline College Library website, type "Open educational resources" to retrieve OER textbooks in the Library's Collection.

For example: 

@ Your Library: Streaming Media

Streaming Video

As we know, including high quality film/video can be extremely beneficial for our visual learners. Videos from Skyline College Library's streaming video databases contain copyrighted films you can screen in class or embed in Canvas for students to view online.

However, these streaming videos cannot be used in OER you author or adapt.

  1. Academic Video Online. Alternative Name(s) & Keywords: Alexander Street

    Streaming video database featuring the PBS Video Collection and more.

  2. Films On Demand. Streaming video database including over 28,000 documentary video titles

  3. Kanopy streaming service. Skyline College subscribes to selected titles to support specific classes.

Additional databases that include video include: Newsbank, Gale, etc. 

Instructions for adding Streaming Videos from Library Databases to your Canvas Course
  1. Log in to one of the three video databases above using your OneLogin credentials.
  2. Browse for your topic of interest by keyword or by subject/discipline.
  3. Found what you need? Skip to step 5 for a quick instructional video about how to embed streaming media. 
  4. Need help finding a particticular film or films on a specific topic? Use the Ask A Librarian service to get support from a Skyline College librarian in real time during open hours. (Otherwise, a librarian will respond to your message when the Library reopens).  

5. Ready to include the video in Canvas?

Watch a brief tutorial by Skyline College Professor Christopher Collins (CTTL) (6 minutes)

Note: When you embed a film directly from one of the Library's streaming video services, copyright information (attribution) is automatically included beneath your video.