The information in this chapter refers to adopting an open textbook but any OER (assignments, videos, lecture notes, diagrams, et cetera) can be adopted for classroom use (using many of the steps below).

Adopt an open textbook

Using an open textbook for your class

1. Find the right textbook. Search in the repositories listed on our TCC OER Research Guide.
2. Review and evaluate to see if it matches your criteria and based on content, presentation, online accessibility, production options, platform compatibility, delivery options, interactivity, consistency between online and printed versions, and available ancillary material (test banks, PowerPoints, etc.)
3. Decide if you want to use as is or modify it. One of the benefits of open textbooks is flexibility to modify and customize them for specific course designs as much or as little as you desire. If you want to make edits or append content, make sure the Creative Commons license allows for that (every CC license except the non-derivative license allows for modifications).
4. Distribute to your students. There are a number of ways in which you can do this.
   • If you’re using a textbook from Pressbooks, provide the link to the textbook to your students.
   • Alternatively, you can download copies of the book and put them on another site. Some examples of where you could put your own copies of the book files are:
     • Your institutional LMS (Learning Management System). Load the book files into Blackboard and make the books available to your students via the LMS.
     • Use an online file sharing service like Dropbox or Google Docs. Upload a copy of the book files to Dropbox or Google Docs and send your student the link to that copy.
     • If you have a faculty website, put copies of the files on that website and send students to your website to download your copy of the textbook.