KOTA KINABALU: Educational materials such as textbooks are now available for free online through Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS), following the institution's launch of the Openbook@UMS platform recently.

This online application, which was made publicly accessible from Tuesday (Aug 27), aims to assist families and students from the B40 category.

UMS is collaborating on the platform with the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) under a memorandum of understanding signed on Sept 8 last year.

UMS board of directors chairman Datuk Seri Abdul Rahman Dahlan said Openbook@UMS can help bridge the digital gap by offering digitalised revision materials that are accessible using basic mobile devices.

“This platform not only provides quality educational materials but also supports the government’s objective in ensuring inclusive and fair education opportunities for all,” he said during the launch on Tuesday.

Previously, UMS vice-chancellor Prof Datul Dr Kasim Mansor said this user-friendly and innovative platform would also inspire lecturers to develop interactive multimedia materials.

This way, the quality of course lecture materials would be improved and demonstrate further that UMS is globally innovative and competitive, he said.

UMS elearning centre director Prof Dr Fong Soon Fook said this is part of a global initiative to expand the use of open learning sources to provide accessible education materials to students and educators worldwide.

“This initiative is supported by the Higher Learning Institute and the Malaysian Public Universities eLearning Council (Meipta),” he said.

Licensed under Creative Commons, Openbook@UMS aims to be a model and example for other public universities in the country and at the same time, promote more collaborations among higher education institutions nationwide, he added.

Those who wish to learn more about this platform and initiative may write to cel@ums.edu.my or visit https://openbook.ums.edu.my/.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/08/28/ums-broadens-education-access-for-b40-group-with-new-online-platform