Q. Are open textbooks the same quality as traditional textbooks?
A. Yes. They are written by academics and subject specialists, and many are peer-reviewed.

Q. How do I make an open textbook available to my students?
A. We can put open e-textbooks in the library's e-reserves system under your course name and number, and students can view them online, or download them in a variety of formats (PDF, ePub), depending on the e-textbook.

Q. Doesn't sharing digital copies of textbooks violate copyright?
A. Not if they are open textbooks, like in the collections listed here. Open textbooks are created to be freely shared and accessed.

Linney is Memorial's learning object repository containing collections of reusable digital learning objects, and open education resources that you can use or repurpose for teaching and learning, including images.

Open textbooks are textbooks that have been funded, published, and licensed to be freely used, adapted, and distributed. Open textbooks can be downloaded for free or for a lower cost than traditional textbooks.

Many open textbooks are licensed to allow modifications. You can add, remove or alter the content to fit your course's needs providing instructors greater flexibility in their teaching.

All the open textbooks in this guide have been reviewed by faculty from different universities, are being used at universities, or are affiliated with an institution, scholarly society, or professional organization.

Fraser, Erin E., Alexander Silvis, R. Mark Brigham, and Zenon J. Czenze, eds. (2020). Bat Echolocation Research: A Handbook for Planning and Conducting Acoustic Studies, 2nd ed.

Tulett, David M. (2021). Decision Modelling.

Have you created an open textbook? We'd love to include yours! Please email Crystal Rose to be added to this guide.

Atlantic OER
A service that supports the hosting and creation of open educational resources by educators and students in the Atlantic provinces, including Pressbooks from institutions across Atlantic Canada..

Athabasca University Press
Free scholarly ebooks mainly for the social sciences, including indigenous studies.

BCCampus Open Ed
Funded by the BC Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training, over 300 free etextbooks covering the social sciences, science and technology, and some health science topics.

eCampusOntario Open Library
Funded by the Government of Ontario, over 250 free etextbooks covering the social sciences, science and technology, and some health science topics.

OEA Open Education Alberta
Open etextbooks funded by the University of Alberta.

Open Ed Manitoba
Campus Manitoba (consortium of Manitoba's public post-secondary institutions) collection of over 300 open textbooks by faculty in the province.

University of Regina
Open etextbooks on Indigenous topics and nursing.

Ready to create or adapt an open textbook or materials for your course? Memorial University Instructors now have access to Pressbooks. You can request your free Pressbooks account to get started.

Learn more

Directory of OA Books
Scholarly, peer-reviewed OA books browsable by subject area.

Lyryx
Canadian publisher with small collection for business, economics, math and statistics.

Merlot Collection
From California State University, thousands of free e-textbooks, including visual arts, art history and theatre.

National Science Digital Library
Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics e-textbooks from a non-profit, educational organization.

OpenStax
Peer-reviewed, free e-textbooks for math, science, and some social sciences.

Open Textbook Library
From the University of Minnesota, over 700 free e-textbooks for the social sciences, science and technology, health sciences, and fine arts.