Call for Applications (Open)

The OER Development Program is now accepting new proposals. 

Date of application form opening: November 5, 2024. 

Date of closing: January 31, 2025

Questions? Contact the Teaching & Learning Centre at TLC@upei.ca.

The Open Educational Resource (OER) Development Program provides funds for the creation, adaptation, adoption, and review of open education resources through 3 types of grants:

•  Open Educational Resource or Textbook Grant: up to $7000 (increased for 2024!)
  • This grant supports the development of a new open educational resource or textbook on a topic that is currently not covered by an existing open textbook. Works with major adaptations (such as adding a large amount of new content to an existing resource, or compilation of existing resources, or having to overall an adaptation) can fall under this grant category.
• Open Textbook Adaptation Grant: up to $4,500 (increased for 2024!)
  • the adaptation of one or more open educational resources or textbooks to create a new version or edition of an open textbook (i.e. a Canadian edition of an existing open textbook);
• Supplementary Resources Grant: up to $2,500 (increased for 2024!)
  • This grant supports the creation of ancillary materials for existing open textbooks, including, but not limited to test banks, slide decks, or interactive media, etc. for an open textbook or other open education resource. This grant could also include bringing a Public Domain book (not previously available on an open platform) onto the pressbooks platform with the inclusion of ancillary materals like an introduction, annotation, h5p activities, or more.

Applications that support first-year courses will be given priority as they reach the largest number of students, but all applications will be reviewed and considered. 

Application & Forms

• OER Development Grant Application Form [Microsoft Form]
• Budget Template [Excel File]
  • Faculty conference fees (registration, travel, etc.) are not eligible budget expenses.
  • Student conference fees (registration and per diem) are eligible budget expenses.
• Timeline Template [Excel File]
• Final Report Form [Excel File]

Eligibility

• Anyone providing instruction in a credit bearing course at UPEI may apply.
  • Team members may be from multiple institutions, but at least one team member must be a UPEI instructor at any level. 
• Applicants may apply as an individual or jointly as a course team.
• Applicants who are not tenured or on probationary contracts are eligible as sole applicants for grants that are proposed for completion during their current period of employment, and are eligible to be part of team grants where at least one member of the team holds a contract that at least meets the duration of the project.

Requirements

• Agreement to release the final product, including source materials, with a Creative Commons license (CC-BY would be preferred which lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation).
  • Indigenous authors or works using Indigenous content can request an exemption from this agreement.
• A commitment to use the product in a credit-bearing course to be offered at UPEI.
• Follow best practices for accessibility of content by a diverse student population.
• Submit a final report after completion of the grant (form provided above).

Selection Process

Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• The extent to which applicants include curation and customization of open textbooks that will be freely and openly shared throughout and beyond UPEI;
• Their potential impact on student experience in the form of high-quality materials, maximum access, open and innovative pedagogy, and cost savings to students;
• Projects that impact the most students, either with larger class size or multiple sections. The intent of the program is to distribute funds to maximize direct benefit to a wide range of student learners and inquiry across a diversity of disciplines;
• The inclusion of plans to re-use open educational resources in courses in subsequent semesters;
• Description of how you will measure success (e.g. improved access to curriculum, new partnerships, number of adoptions, estimate of money saved by students as a result, etc.);
• Development of a coherent project plan and timeline; and
• Accessible in the Library’s Pressbook site or on another open platform. 

What types of content can be created as an OER?

There are a variety of resources that could be a successful OER. Some examples include:

• Textbooks
• Lab manuals
• Other course materials (slides, h5p, videos, etc)

What might the grant be used for?

Grants could be used for:

• Hiring a student to help assemble, write, and/or copy-edit an OER
• Purchasing a tool/software needed to help develop content
• Image or video creation
• An honouraria for elders or knowledge keepers
• Lab consumables needed for image or video creation
• Funding professional development around creating an OER

This is not an exhaustive list of uses for the grant.

Past Grant Recipients and Projects

Some open textbooks are available on UPEI's Pressbooks platform. They can be viewed at https://pressbooks.library.upei.ca/catalog/.