Open CourseWare, or OCW, is a term applied to course materials created by universities and shared freely with the world via the internet. The OCW movement began at MIT with the launch of MIT OpenCourseWare in October 2002. Since then, a number of universities have created OCW projects.

According to the website of the OCW Consortium, an OCW project

• is a free and open digital publication of high-quality educational materials, organized as courses. 
• is available for use and adaptation under an open license 
• and does not typically provide certification or access to instructors.