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About OpenOCW
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What is OpenOCW?
The idea behind OpenOCW is to make course materials that are used in the teaching of undergraduate and graduate subjects available on the Web, free of charge, to any user anywhere in the world. OpenOCW will advance technology-enhanced education, and will serve as a model for the dissemination of knowledge in the Internet age. This venture continues the tradition of open dissemination of educational materials, philosophy, and modes of thought, and will help lead to fundamental changes in the way colleges and universities utilize the Web as a vehicle for education.
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Why is OpenOCW doing this?
Because technology makes it possible for us to increase the reach of educational opportunity, we have a moral obligation to do so. OpenOCW mission to serve the public through learning, discovery, and engagement, and is true to the guiding principle that academics come first. Entering the 21st century, services like OpenCourseWare enable education to fulfill its mission. OpenOCW contributes to the "shared intellectual commons" in academia, which fosters collaboration across among other scholars across disciplines and around the world.
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How does OpenOCW differ from other types of Web-based education, including distance learning?
OpenOCW differs from other Web-based education offerings in that it is free and open, does not provide university credit, and grants no access to university faculty. OpenOCW is not a distance-learning initiative. Distance learning involves the active exchange of information between faculty and students, with the goal of obtaining some form of a credential. Increasingly, distance learning is also limited to those willing and able to pay for materials or course delivery. OpenOCW is not meant to replace degree-granting higher education or for-credit courses. Rather, the goal is to provide the content that supports an education.
Many individual faculty members already use the Web extensively to make standard course materials available to their students. Some colleges and universities now require a Web site for every class. But, to a large extent, these Web sites are designed for, and access is only provided to, the students enrolled at these institutions. OpenOCW is an unprecedented effort of a much broader magnitude, as the goal is to provide the course materials free and open to the world.
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What are the long-term goals of the Open OCW initiative?
Over time, the goal is for most of the courses offered to be representative of all disciplines. Another goal of OpenOCW is to catalyze the development of groups or communities around the course materials. Individuals participating in these informal groups will coach, mentor, and support each other in their learning, adding significant value to the materials themselves. Finally, we strongly desire to extend the reach and impact of the "opencourseware" concept.
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Will OpenOCW always be free and openly available to anyone in the world?
We are committed to OpenOCW remaining a free and openly available publication of the course materials that support the dynamic classroom interactions of education. Even as we continue to grow and evolve, the materials will always remain free and open to all. Along with this commitment to remaining free and open, OpenOCW is also committed to the idea that it is not a distance-learning, or a degree-granting, initiative, and that there will not be a registration process required for users to view course materials now or in the future. OpenOCW is working hard to publish all course materials of those who wish to participate.
Using OpenOCW Materials
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Do I need to register to use OpenOCW course materials?
Because OpenOCW is not a distance-learning, or a degree-granting, initiative, there is no registration process required for users to view course materials. OpenOCW is a publication of the course materials that support the dynamic classroom interactions taking place in education. OpenOCW is available on the Web, free of charge, to any user anywhere in the world.
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Where are the course materials?
To find what courses are available at this time, view the complete course list. Once you have accessed a particular course site, the left-hand navigation bar of each course homepage will detail what materials are available for that individual course.
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How do I find what courses are available?
You can utilize the Search function that can be found in the right-hand corner of every page on the OpenOCW site. You can search for specific text, such as certain academic discipline area, across all courses or within just one course. Or to perform a detailed search, use our Advanced Search.
Or, to see what courses are available click on Courses in the top navigation bar on every page of the OpenOCW Web site. This will allow you to view the list of courses available at this time.
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How can I use OpenOCW course materials?
OpenOCW can be considered a large-scale, Web-based publication of the course materials. Educators are encouraged to utilize the materials for curriculum development, students can augment their current learning by making use of the materials offered, and self-learners are encouraged to draw upon the OpenOCW for self-study or supplementary use. Course materials offered on the OpenOCW Web site may be used within the license associated with the content, course or overall Open OCW site as applicable.
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What are the prerequisites to use Open OCW materials?
Because OpenOCW is not a distance-learning, or a degree-granting, initiative, there is no registration process required for users to view course materials. There are also no prerequisites for users who utilize OpenOCW course materials in their own learning. However, each course site indicates the prerequisites and corequisites that are required of students.
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Does OpenOCW offer discounts on textbooks or software applications utilized in the course materials?
OpenOCW does not sell, offer vendor discounts for, or represent any vendor who may sell the software, books, or other materials that users of OpenOCW may require to understand the course materials offered on the OpenOCW Web site.
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How do I get a copy of the course pack for a particular OpenOCW course?
The course-pack materials that accompany most OpenOCW courses often contain proprietary information and copyrighted materials that course authors only use in their classroom interactions with students. These materials are not available, nor will they be in the future, to Open OCW users.
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I have seen (or I am/represent) an individual, organization, or institution that offers to teach OpenOCW courses or tutor students based on OpenOCW materials. Does OpenOCW approve or recognize such individuals or organizations?
No, OpenOCW has no relationship with, grants no special permission to, and does not approve, endorse, or certify any organizations, teachers, tutors, or other service providers who use educational materials available on the OpenOCW Web site in connection with their services. OpenOCW does not authorize the granting of any kind of degree, certificate, or other recognition for participation in or completion of any course of study based on or using published its course materials.
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Can I/my organization state on our Web site or in our literature that we make use of OpenOCW course materials?
To reference OpenOCW you must comply with the terms of the license associated with OpenOCW and/or the specific course materials. Typically you must you must give credit to OpenOCW and the faculty author of the course materials anytime you use OpenOCW materials. For your convenience, each OpenOCW page includes a citation appropriate for the page at the bottom of the content. However, any reference to OpenOCW (including the OpenOCW name in any of its forms or OpenOCW seals or logos) that deliberately or inadvertently claims, suggests, or in OpenOCW's sole judgment gives the appearance or impression of a relationship with or endorsement by OpenOCW, is prohibited.
[See also Intellectual Property]
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Can I link to the OpenOCW Web site from my Web site?
Links to OpenOCW or to courses or pages within the OpenOCW Web site are permitted so long as the use of the materials associated with the link is permitted under the terms of the license associated with the course materials or particular content. Typically course materials are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license 2.5, however individual course materials may have a separate license. Please check the bottom of the page to view the applicable license for any particular item. For your convenience, each OpenOCW page includes a citation appropriate for the page at the bottom of the content.
In addition to meeting the terms of the license, links to OpenOCW are permitted as long as the link is freely accessible (e.g., no restrictions or fee for access); and there is no claim, appearance, or implication of an affiliation with or endorsement by OpenOCW. OpenOCW cannot guarantee the persistence of any specific link other than those to the OpenOCW homepage.
[See also Intellectual Property]
Content
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Why is there such variation in the breadth and depth of content presented on individual OpenOCW course Web sites?
Each OpenOCW course Web site is developed individually with the participating faculty and instructors. It includes as much of the faculty member's course materials as is available in a digital format, or can be cost-effectively prepared; and is free of intellectual property and copyright restrictions. Faculty and instructors participate voluntarily, and publish only as much content as they are comfortable having on a Web site that is freely accessible worldwide.
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Why do some OpenOCW course sites lack solutions to assignments, quizzes, and exams?
In some cases, solutions to homework assignments, quizzes, and exams are only discussed and presented in the classroom, and not made available in print or electronic format to the students--or to the worldwide community of visitors to the OpenOCW Web site. In other cases, the instructors plan to re-use in the classroom the assignments, quizzes, and exams, and so they do not wish to widely publish their solutions.
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Why doesn't every OpenOCW course offer video lectures?
Although video lectures are useful for students, there are many reasons that OpenOCW does not include video lectures in every course. First is the issue of bandwidth. We are very much focused on making OpenOCW's courses materials as accessible as possible to users all over the world, including the developing world. If we were to start depending on the video component as THE key element of every OpenOCW course, we would be excluding a large portion of the OpenOCW audience who are not using high-speed Internet connections. They would never be able to download the videos and we are very sensitive to that fact.
Another key concern about video is cost. The technology for compressing and storing video becomes more and more affordable by the day, but it is still not affordable, or feasible from a production standpoint, for us to be compressing 20 video lectures for all of our courses. OpenOCW does not have that kind of storage capacity, at this time.
A key OpenOCW audience is educators, and for them, we are hoping that by providing the syllabus, reading lists and lecture notes, we are offering a chance for them to jump-start their own pedagogy and improve the way they teach their chosen discipline. While video lectures are very easy for people with fast Internet connections to watch, they do not really fulfill the mission of OpenOCW.
Intellectual Property
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Who owns the intellectual property published on the OpenOCW Web site?
Prior to making any course materials publicly available, the Open OCW team has reviewed all material extensively to determine the correct ownership of the material and obtain the appropriate licenses to make the material openly available on the Web. We will promptly remove any material that is determined to be infringing on the rights of others [See also What do I do if I believe a portion of Open OCW material infringes my copyright?].
The intellectual property policies created for OpenOCW are clear and consistent with other policies for scholarly materials used in education. Faculty retain ownership of materials prepared for OpenOCW. If student course work is placed on the OpenOCW site, then copyright in the work remains with the student.
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What are the Terms of Use for OpenOCW users?
See the Terms of Use for more information.
If you would like to use OpenOCW course materials, but you are unsure whether your intended use qualifies as non-commercial use, please contact us using the feedback page or email .
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What are the Terms of Use for the discussion software?
See the Terms of Use for more information.
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How does OpenOCW define non-commercial use?
A commercial use would involve the assessment of a direct or indirect fee for use of the OpenOCW materials, or any derivation or modification of the OpenOCW material, or any other commercial exploitation of OpenOCW materials. All uses, reuse, and distribution of OpenOCW material, including works derived from OpenOCW material, must be attributed to OpenOCW and to the original authors where identified on the OpenOCW materials you distribute. If you would like to use OpenOCW course materials, but you are unsure whether your intended use qualifies as non-commercial use, please contact us using the feedback link at the top of the page.
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How do I properly cite my reuse of Open OCW materials?
To reuse or repost materials from OpenOCW, confirm that the license allows for the use you intend. If the license permits reuse, you must give proper attribution to the original faculty author(s).
For your convenience, at the bottom of each page, we provide a citation in APA format, a copyright statement and a license for that page.
Or you may chose to cite the resource in the following manner: "This material was created by or adapted from material created by faculty member, (Name), (Title), (Year). Copyright © (Year), (Faculty Member's Name)."
As an example, the citation for "Understanding Online Interaction" taught by Utah State University Professor David Wiley would read, "This material was created or adapted from material created by Utah State University faculty member David Wiley, Associate Professor. Copyright © 2004, David Wiley."
If you want to use the course materials on your Web site, and the materials are licensed using a Creative Commons license, you must also include a copy of the Creative Commons license, or clear and reasonable link to its URL (for example, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/), with every copy of the materials or the derivative work(s) you create from it. [We should probably update the license to by-nc-sa 3.0 -- I think that's the latest license]
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How can I contribute my own educational materials to OpenOCW?
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It is recommended that you browse the current selection of courses to better understand the composition of an OpenOCW course. In particular, this will allow you to determine the appropriate division for your course. The next step is to thoroughly analyze your course material for any possible copyright violations. If you find any copyright violations, this content must be replaced or not included in OpenOCW. When you are ready to add your course, click on the "Register" link found on the home page. Once registered, you may begin adding your own course to OpenOCW.
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What do I do if I believe a portion of OpenOCW material infringes my copyright?
[OpenOCW asks that each course author carefully avoid copyright infringement. Before publishing a course, course authors are required to acknowledge that each object (file, page, image, etc.) of the course does not infringe on copyright laws. Despite OpenOCW's efforts to educate course authors, infringing content may appear from time to time. OpenOCW is committed to complying with copyright law and will promptly remove any material that is determined to be infringing on the rights of others. If you believe that a portion of OpenOCW material infringes on your copyright, please contact contact us using the feedback page or email.
To file the notification, you must be either the copyright owner of the work or an individual authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner. Your notification must include:
- Identification of the copyrighted work, or, in the case of multiple works at the same location, a representative list of such works at that site.
- Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity. You must include sufficient information, such as a specific URL or other specific identification, for us to locate the material.
- Information for us to be able to contact the claimant (e.g., email address, phone number).
- A statement that the claimant believes that the use of the material has not been authorized by the copyright owner or an authorized agent.
- A statement that the information in the notification is accurate and that the claimant is, or is authorized to act on behalf of, the copyright owner.
If you do not include an electronic signature with your claim, you may be asked to send or fax a follow-up copy with a signature.]
TopOpenOCW Course Authors
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Are any faculty required to participate in OpenOCW?
Participation in OpenOCW is completely voluntary.
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How do I contact a specific author of a course?
OpenOCW is intended as a publication of course materials on the Web, and not as an interactive experience with course authors. It provides the content of, but is not a substitute for, an education at a degree-granting institution. OpenOCW gives course authors the option of posting their e-mail on the front page of the course. Inquiries about course materials may be sent to that e-mail address. Due to the tremendous volume of email inquiries received, it is unlikely he or she will answer all emails.
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Will inquiries to OpenOCW be answered?
Yes, inquiries will be answered. OpenOCW encourages users to provide feedback on the site and the published course materials. The comments and constructive criticism of users will help the OpenOCW staff improve the site and published course materials as we continue to evolve.
Translations
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Can I translate the course materials in OpenOCW?
You may translate course materials in OpenOCW if permitted by the license of the course materials you wish to translate. We ask that any OpenOCW materials translated into other languages from the original language must be accompanied by the proper attribution of the original materials and include the following disclaimer:
"These OpenOCW course materials have been translated into [YOUR LANGUAGE] by [YOUR INSTITUTION] and Open OpenCourseWare makes no representations or warranties of any kind concerning the materials, express or implied, including, without limitation, warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, or the absence of errors, whether or not discoverable. OpenOCW bears no responsibility for any inaccuracies in translation. Any inaccuracies or other defects contained in this material, due to inaccuracies in language translation, are the sole responsibility of [YOUR INSTITUTION] and not OpenOCW."
[See Also How do I properly cite my reuse of OpenOCW materials]
Usability
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What are the technical requirements for viewing OpenOCW course materials?
The majority of OpenOCW course sites work in modern Web browsers on both the Macintosh and Windows platforms. Although higher-speed connections are preferable, slower connections, such as modems, should allow users to view most materials on the sites (however, downloading or accessing materials may take somewhat longer).
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What is metadata and why is it important to OpenOCW?
Metadata is, literally, "data about data." Metadata can be better understood as information that describes other information. For example, this Web page of FAQs for OpenOCW has an author, a title, a date of creation, and a unique Internet address; this information constitutes the metadata about this page. Metadata enables sophisticated, powerful, and accurate searches across OpenOCW course materials.
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How do I change the font-size on the OpenOCW Web site?
The fonts and style of the OpenOCW Web site have been specifically selected to meet certain design and accessibility standards. The Open OCW Team has tested the site and these standards across a wide variety of browsers and platform. However, some users may still find that their browser configurations continue to display the text too small. You can change the displayed font size using your browser's View menu. In Netscape 7, there is a "VIEW - Text-Zoom" selection (try 120%). In Netscape 4.x, there is a "VIEW - Increase Font" selection. In Internet Explorer, you can select "VIEW - Text-Size - Larger or Largest." We hope this helps you to more comfortably view the OpenOCW course materials.
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Will the OpenOCW Web site be compliant with W3C standards and accessibility requirements?
All course materials published on the OpenOCW site are checked to see if they are valid XHTML and meet Section 508 and WAI-AA guidelines as part of the authoring process. We require all images to contain ALT attributes and all links to contain TITLE tags. [Tom, is this true in OpenOCW?]
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Why does this PDF not open correctly in copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader?
A small percentage of the PDF documents offered on the OpenOCW Web site may be compatible only with newer versions of Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you would like to view such a file, we recommend downloading the latest version of the Acrobat Reader from the Adobe Web site at http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.html.
Privacy and Data Collection
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What information does OpenOCW collect from visitors to the Web site?
The information we learn from visitors helps us improve the OpenOCW site, and assists our foundation sponsors in evaluation of usage, access, and impact of OpenOCW on the worldwide educational community. OpenOCW collects the following information from visitors:
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Information You Provide: We receive and store any information you enter on our Web site or give us in any other way. You provide most such information when you submit feedback on the site, contact us by email, or agree to participate in a visitor survey. This information may include your name and email address, your academic status, your institution, your geographic region, how you are using OpenOCW, and what you think of OpenOCW. In all cases, any information you provide is strictly optional and voluntary and you may choose to use the OpenOCW site without ever providing this information. If you voluntarily provide your email address or other contact information, we will not share personal information with anyone without first requesting your explicit permission to do so.
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Automatic Information: We receive and store certain types of information whenever you interact with the OpenOCW Web site. Examples of the information we collect and analyze include the Internet protocol (IP) address used to connect your computer to the OpenOCW site; computer and connection information such as browser type and version, operating system, and platform, and; content you viewed or searched for during your visit to OpenOCW. During some visits we may use software tools to measure and collect session information, including page response times, download errors, and length of visits to certain pages. However, none of this information is personally identifiable or linked back to you individually.
[See Also Privacy Policy]
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What are "cookies," and does OpenOCW make use of cookies on its Web site?
OpenOCW uses "cookies" in a limited way. Cookies are alphanumeric identifiers that this Web site transfers to your computer's hard drive through your Web browser to enable our systems to recognize your browser when you make return trips to the site. This allows us to track your use of the site (anonymously), and to analyze patterns in site use, such as repeat visits, length of visits, and breadth of content used, for example). Cookies also allow us to conduct periodic, online, voluntary user surveys where we can gain more insight into what type of people are actually using the site, how they are using the site, and what the educational impact of the site is on these users.
OpenOCW's use of cookies is designed to be unobtrusive, and we do not collect personally identifiable information through their use. However, if you do not wish to accept cookies, the "Help" portion of the toolbar on most Web browsers will tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. Disabling cookies will in no way affect your access to content on the OpenOCW site. If you leave cookies enabled on your Web browser, you may be asked to complete a brief questionnaire that will help us gain a better understanding of the use and impact of OpenOCW.
[See Also Privacy Policy]
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Does OpenOCW share the information it receives?
Information about our site visitors is an important part of understanding and extending the impact of OpenOCW in the worldwide academic community. Individual personally identifiable information about users (name, email address, etc) will not be made available to third parties except as outlined below, nor will it ever be used for commercial purposes. We share user information only as described below.
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Agents: We employ companies and individuals to perform functions on our behalf. Examples include compiling and categorizing user feedback, analyzing survey data or data about your use of the site, and providing customer support. These agents have access to user information needed to perform their functions, for example, but may not use this information for any other purposes. These agents are bound by non-disclosure agreements.
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OpenOCW Sponsors: We work closely with philanthropic organizations that provide the funding that makes OpenOCW possible. These sponsors are interested in evaluating access, use, and impact of the OpenOCW Web site in order to determine if OpenOCW is achieving its objectives. We will provide information on a regular basis to these sponsors for evaluation purposes. We will not share any personally identifiable information such as name or email address unless you have given us explicit permission to do so.
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Institutions interested in the "opencourseware movement": Part of OpenOCW's mission as an organization is to encourage other educational institutions to openly share their course materials with the world. In order to accomplish this objective, we are committed to sharing what we learn in public forums, at educational conferences, and with other educational institutions. This may include aggregate data about usage of the site, feedback we have received, and the impact of OpenOCW on people throughout the world. However, in no case will we share any personally identifiable information, such as name or email address, unless you have given us explicit permission to do so.
[See Also Privacy Policy]
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Technology
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What technology is used to publish the OpenOCW Web site?
OpenOCW runs on the open source eduCommons software. The current technical solution has been in use since January 2005 with a small technical team managing all aspects of this infrastructure at the Center for Open and Sustainable Learning (http://cosl.usu.edu/) at Utah State University.
The planning tools used by the OpenOCW team to assist faculty in publishing their course materials include a portion of the workflow in eduCommons, and several checklists and documents. For creating and managing content, we use several desktop tools (file conversion tools) as well as eduCommons, that together fully support our publishing process. Our content delivery infrastructure includes a production cluster and a content staging cluster.
For more information on eduCommons, please contact The Center for Open and Sustainable Learning (http://cosl.usu.edu/).
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Is OpenOCW an open source project?
OpenOCW is firmly committed to open systems and will share its approach and the open source eduCommons software with those who may want to launch similar efforts. eduCommons has a dedicated team of developers focused on extending the platform, features and functions to meet OpenOCW's needs.
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What is RSS?
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) and an aggregator allow you to subscribe to discussion forums, blogs and other websites in order to receive timely, organized updates of posts, news, and other information you care about.
Other Questions
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How can I support OpenOCW with a financial donation?
It is particularly generous of you to offer a financial contribution to support OpenOCW. This is a wonderful endorsement of what we hope to achieve. If you wish to make such a donation, you may do so online, following the online donation guide.
This material was created or adapted from material created by MIT OCW, Copyright © 2005 MIT in accordance with the MIT OCW Terms of Use, http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/Global/terms-of-use.htm.
