Open access (OA) means scholarly work that is free to read online, with no paywall — and usually free to reuse under a licence like Creative Commons. Directories such as the DOAJ let you find quality-checked open journals in one place.

For a long time, the best research sat behind expensive paywalls — a real barrier for anyone without a wealthy institution behind them. Open access exists to undo that. For a platform like FRELIP, built for African scholarship and the wider world, it isn’t a nice extra; it’s the whole point.

Free to read — and often free to use

• Free to read means no paywall, no subscription, no login.
• Open licence (e.g. Creative Commons) often means you may reuse it — quote at length, translate, even adapt — as long as you credit the author.
• Always check the specific licence: “free to read” and “free to reuse” are not always the same thing.

A quick word of care

Open access opened the door to everyone — including a few predatory journals that will publish anything for a fee. The defence is simple: prefer titles listed in a vetted directory like DOAJ, and apply the same source-evaluation habits you already have.

🔗 A friendly free guide: DOAJ — Directory of Open Access Journals

You can now find, save, and reuse digital material well. Let’s close the course by pulling these habits into a way of working online that stays sharp and responsible. On to Digital Literacy Best Practices.

© FRELIP, released under CC BY 4.0. Linked resources remain under their own licences. Curated by the FRELIP Open Courseware editorial team.