---
title: 'A Spectrum of Openness'
url: 'https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education/a-spectrum-of-openness'
markdown: 'https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education/a-spectrum-of-openness.md'
date: '2026-10-05'
description: "Open education isn't all-or-nothing. You can start by making one module of your course openly accessible, or by publishing your syllabus as a public Markdown file. Every step toward openness makes your content more durable and more useful to others. Open Educational Resource (OER) Any teaching, le…"
taxonomy:
  archives_month:
    - oct_2026
  archives_year:
    - '2026'
---

Section 1

# A Spectrum of Openness

Open education isn't all-or-nothing. You can start by making one module of your course openly accessible, or by publishing your syllabus as a public Markdown file. Every step toward openness makes your content more durable and more useful to others.

 Open Educational Resource (OER)

Any teaching, learning, or research material that is released under an open license permitting free use, adaptation, and redistribution. OER can be a single image, a lesson plan, a full textbook, or an entire course – what makes it open is the license, not the format or scope.

## Starting Small

The most common barrier to open education is the belief that going "open" means publishing everything at once. In practice, most educators begin with a single resource:

- A reading list made publicly accessible
- A lab manual published under a CC license
- A course outline shared as a GitHub repository

Each of these is a complete act of openness – no further steps required unless you choose to take them.

## The 5Rs in Practice

The [5Rs framework](https://opencontent.org/definition/) provides a useful checklist. For any resource you create, ask:

| Permission | Question |
|---|---|
| Retain | Can others keep a permanent copy? |
| Reuse | Can others use it in their own context? |
| Revise | Can others adapt or translate it? |
| Remix | Can others combine it with other materials? |
| Redistribute | Can others share copies freely? |

A CC BY license grants all five. A CC BY-NC license grants all five with a non-commercial restriction.

This work by [Your Name](#) is licensed under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

- Open Education
- [What is Open Education?](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education)
- [A Spectrum of Openness](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education/a-spectrum-of-openness)
- [Creative Commons Licenses](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education/creative-commons-licenses)
- [Getting Started with OER](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education/getting-started-with-oer)

- [Tools for Open Course Design](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/tools-for-open-course-design)
- [Getting Started with Open Authoring](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/getting-started-with-open-authoring)
- Publishing with This Site
- [Growing Your Guide](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/growing-your-guide)

---

## Navigation

- Parent: [What is Open Education?](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education.md)
- Next: [Creative Commons Licenses](https://demo.hibbittsdesign.org/grav-open-publishing-quark2/open-education-essentials/what-is-open-education/creative-commons-licenses.md)