Awareness, Availability, Accessibility and Utilisation of Open Educational Resources (OERS) among National Open University of Nigeria Learners in Nigeria

Unrestricted access to lifelong learning, self-directed learning and continuous education is made possible by Open Educational Resources (OERs), the indispensable software that facilitates the creation, utilisation, reuse and delivery of educational materials. OERs are not being fully investigated by students at the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN), according to reports. Thus, this study looked into how OERs were used, available, accessible and known among NOUN students in southwestern Nigeria.

The design of the descriptive survey was chosen. Every centre in Ekiti, Ondo, Osun, Oyo and Ogun was counted, and three of the four centres in Lagos were chosen at random. Two departments that consistently use open educational resources (OERs) were purposefully chosen in each of the four faculties—education, science, agriculture and the arts—that were chosen from each centre. From all the centres (Ekiti-140, Ondo-158, Osun-133, Oyo-137, Ogun-132, Lagos-181), a total of 881 students were chosen at random. Scales measuring OERs awareness, (r=0.80), accessibility (r=0.81), and utilisation (r=0.83) were the instruments used. At the 0.05 level of significance, the quantitative data were analysed using linear correlation and descriptive statistics.

The awareness of (x̄=2.85) and access to (x̄=2.85) the OERs were high against a 2.30 threshold. OERs utilisation was (x̄=2.30). The OERs' awareness (r=0.49) and availability (r=0.47) correlated significantly with utilisation. Learners’ awareness, availability and attitude influenced the utilisation of open educational resources in the National Open University of Nigeria.