Peer Review of Open Educational Resource Textbooks

This article presents an investigation of the state of peer review for Open Educational Resource (OER) Textbooks, which denotes the variability of peer review practices across OER platforms. The environ-mental scan highlights the critical finding that the perception of quality between OER textbooks and commercially published or traditional textbooks is often linked to the presence or absence of a formal, pre-publication peer review process. Findings emphasized a strong preference on behalf of adopters and potential authors of OER textbooks to have a standardized process or guidance for pursuing pre-publication peer review. Thus, there is potential for future researchers, platforms, and practitioners to develop standardized OER peer-review options or OER platforms. This new infrastructure would be valuable for those looking for a pre-publication peer review and may help address perceptions of quality and bolster the adoption of OER textbooks and integration into higher education curriculum.