Nicole Allen's Textbook Advocacy Slides

The Problem

The Problem Textbooks cost $900 per year for the average student

The Problem
Prices rising
4 times
the rate of inflation
250% 200% 150% 100% 50% 0% 1989 1994 1999 2004 2009 Textbook Prices Textbooks Inflation

The Problem
26% of tuition @ public 4-year
72% of tuition @ comm. college
Textbooks cost HOW much???

The Problem
Campaign started by students at UCI in 2003
Step 1: Research

The Problem 6 th Edition Outrageous Prices $238.95 only

The Problem Unnecessary New Editions used 5th edition $81.78 6 th Edition $224.95

The Problem Costly Bundles $213.95 with CengageNOW Personal Tutor CD, Student Study Guide, InfoTrac 2-Semester Printed Access Card Statistics

The Problem
Withholding price info from professors
Charging far lower prices overseas
Custom and loose leaf editions sabotage resale
“ Cheaper” e-books end up costing more

The Problem Market Failure

The Problem Normal Market Producer Consumer

The Problem Textbooks Market Publisher Professor Students

The Problem Prescription Drugs

The Problem
Substantially reduce costs
Fix the market failure
Making Textbooks Affordable

Open Textbooks

Open Textbooks
1. Like regular texts:
Table of contents, chapters, exercises
Written by experts
Edited and reviewed
Open Textbook Online: Free Print: $26.98

Open Textbooks
2. Except affordable:
Free online to everyone
Downloadable, printable at no additional cost
Hard copies for $20-30

Open Textbooks
3. And flexible:
Instructors can customize by adding, editing, combining
New editions are optional

Open Textbooks
Benefits of open textbooks:
All students have access online
Print copies and other formats are optional and affordably priced

Open Textbooks
Student preferences:
75% Prefer print 25% Prefer digital 94% Comfortable with print 48% Comfortable with digital

Open Textbooks
Benefits of open textbooks:
All students have access online
Print copies and other formats are optional and affordably priced
Empower students as consumers

Open Textbooks Publisher Professor Students Open Textbooks

The Campaign

The Campaign Overall Strategies:
Expose the problem
Organize faculty
3. Price Disclosure
4. Promote alternatives

The Campaign Open Textbooks Project:
Statement of Intent (2,500 faculty)
Student-to-faculty outreach
Media attention
Open textbook catalog

Field Update

Field Update
This year’s activities:
“ Market” to 1000 faculty
30 presentations
100 campuses
3 academic conferences
2 press conferences

Field Update
So far…
40 adoptions and counting
Press conference with Sen. Durbin
500 news articles, incl. 2 from AP
Press event next week

Field Update
General
Observations

Nicole Allen Textbooks Campaign Director The Student PIRGs 401-484-8104 [email_address] www.studentpirgs.org/open-textbooks

Nicole Allen's Textbook Advocacy Slides

by Una Daly

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