Category Archives: oa.textbooks

Library resources save students $165,000 in course materials costs

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“Among the strategies to reduce the cost of textbooks and course materials for students, University Libraries encourages instructors to consider assigning online content purchased by the Libraries as course materials.  When students access their course materials through library-licensed e-books, journal articles, and streaming videos, the cost avoidance may significantly lower their total cost of college.

 
This fall the Libraries collected anonymous usage data indicating the number of times students (in aggregate) clicked links to library electronic resources from courses in the Blackboard learning management system.  When multiplied by an average cost for online e-books, videos, and journal articles, the total calculated savings for students during the 2023 fiscal year was approximately $165,000….

The Libraries have several faculty partnership initiatives to provide access to affordable course materials,  promote open educational resources and open textbooks, and streamline their syllabi using library resources.  For more information about these affordable learning initiatives, contact your subject or regional campus librarian….”

A Bibliometric Study of Open Educational Resources, Open Textbooks, and Academic Librarianship | Journal of Open Educational Resources in Higher Education

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Abstract:  Open Educational Resources (OER) play a key role in reducing the financial burden and increasing the accessibility of learning for students in higher education. OER can be considered an important field of research for academic librarians and supports the democratic mission of academic libraries. This study aimed to track the publication of scholarly literature about OER and higher education from 2002 to 2022 using a bibliometric research methodology. In addition, this research sought to assess the productivity of Library and Information Science (LIS) scholarship on this topic and investigate research trends, like open textbooks. Web of Science (WOS) was searched for publications and the search results were mapped to determine publication productivity, core authors, core journals, and research topics in the scholarly literature about OER and higher education. Research on OER has been steadily increasing since 2002, and this study indicates that research has increased significantly on the topic in the last six years. The data in this study support that most productivity in research on this topic is in the field of Education, but also found a presence of scholarship on the topic in the field of LIS.

Open Textbook Pilot Grantees Share Vision for Innovative Projects Across the U.S. – SPARC

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“The U.S. Department of Education has named six new recipients of federal Open Textbook Pilot grants for FY23. Project leaders across the country are gearing up to use the nearly $12 million in awards to expand the use of Open Educational Resources (OER).

This latest investment brings the total investment in the pilot program (since its inception in 2018) to $47 million. The funding is aimed at saving students money, improving college success, and making higher education more accessible through open textbooks.

As SPARC continues to advocate for FY24 renewal of funding, here’s a snapshot of the most recent round of grants….”

African Open Access Textbook and Journal Publishing Gains Traction – SPARC

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“In 2016, the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa launched the Continental Platform to enable the African research community to take ownership of creating and sharing its own scholarly content. The service provides a free outlet for African researchers to publish their scholarly work and provide access to knowledge for all without restriction….”

Supporting an Inclusive and Equitable Classroom: Student Perspectives on a Textbook Affordability Initiative

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Abstract: As academic librarians become aware of the challenges expensive textbooks pose to student success, they increasingly collaborate to provide zero-cost access to required course materials. Librarians at Illinois State University initiated a program to license e-books assigned in courses, surveying students and faculty in participating courses regarding their perspectives on textbook affordability and their experiences with the provided e-books. Student participants reported overwhelmingly positive responses and identified several ways in which the e-books enhanced their experience in the course. The findings suggest that providing assigned materials as e-books contributes to students’ engagement as learners and their academic success within courses.

Provost Directs Additional Funding To Curb Textbook Costs – Texas A&M Today

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“The affordability of attending college, especially when it comes to paying for high-priced textbooks, is squarely in the sights of Texas A&M University Provost Dr. Alan Sams. In one of his first acts as provost, Sams directed $500,000 in grant funding to support Open Educational Resources (OER) and underwrite the costs of developing free books, notes and other educational resources or revising courses to fit existing, openly available materials. The program is expected to reduce or eliminate textbook costs in 19 courses—saving Aggie students more than $1 million in just the first year.

“Open” textbooks are openly-licensed, digital textbooks that can be read, downloaded and printed online at no or low cost, for anyone to use and share freely.

Past university OER development grants for faculty and library staff have saved Aggies more than $1.5 million in textbook costs, and the latest grants aim to save students another $1 million each year.

Course professors in biology, business, computer science and computer engineering, ecology and conservation biology, history, mathematics, nursing and statistics have been working since the summer to develop free resources for students. Organic chemistry faculty are also working on OER books and notes as part of course redesign efforts….”

Aktiv Chemistry + McMurry Organic Chemistry 10e: Comprehensive homework platform for your organic chemistry course

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“We’re excited to announce that Aktiv Chemistry, an OpenStax partner, is releasing a homework platform for McMurry’s Organic Chemistry: A Tenth Edition. Aktiv Chemistry’s low-cost platform will help students practice and experience the material in new and productive ways through a molecule drawing system, integrated practice problems and exercises, and more. From in-class active learning, homework assignments, and now secure online quizzes and exams, Aktiv Chemistry’s all-in-one platform provides a comprehensive set of features for formative and summative assessments — increasing student engagement and improving student outcomes along the way.”

Off to the Printer! – OER + ScholComm

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“Folks, this is a big moment! We’ve been working towards an open textbook about scholarly communication librarianship for a long time. It was the core of our initial collaboration, which goes all the way back to 2016. A lot has happened (ahem) in the interim. Last fall we submitted the complete manuscript of Scholarly Communication Librarianship and Open Knowledge to ACRL. In May, we got the copyedited manuscript back and spent most of the summer working through changes. Recently, we reviewed two rounds of proofs, shared cover ideas with our designer and gave design feedback. Last week the formatted book went to the printer! Yesterday, we were in the September issue of The Syllabus from ACRL newsletter, and on Monday, we shared the beautiful cover, which we’re thrilled with.”

Off to the Printer! – OER + ScholComm

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“Folks, this is a big moment! We’ve been working towards an open textbook about scholarly communication librarianship for a long time. It was the core of our initial collaboration, which goes all the way back to 2016. A lot has happened (ahem) in the interim. Last fall we submitted the complete manuscript of Scholarly Communication Librarianship and Open Knowledge to ACRL. In May, we got the copyedited manuscript back and spent most of the summer working through changes. Recently, we reviewed two rounds of proofs, shared cover ideas with our designer and gave design feedback. Last week the formatted book went to the printer! Yesterday, we were in the September issue of The Syllabus from ACRL newsletter, and on Monday, we shared the beautiful cover, which we’re thrilled with.”

The Bookseller – News – Academic publishers file copyright suit against LibGen citing ‘staggering’ infringement

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“Five textbook publishers have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against pirate site Library Genesis (LibGen) seeking for the operation to be shut down and the site’s domain names blocked.

LibGen is a pirate website that gives users free access to copyrighted works such as academic journal articles that would otherwise be paywalled or not digitised elsewhere. According to the complaint, the site attracts in excess of nine million visitors per month on average from the US alone. Its operators are anonymous….”

Education for All: OpenStax’s Journey and Impact

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“At OpenStax, we are driven by a clear and powerful mission: to improve educational access and learning for everyone. Rooted in the belief that education is a public good, we strive to offer products, innovative research, and services that benefit educators and learners worldwide. Our approach is simple but impactful—we listen to the needs of the educational community, secure philanthropic support and community donations for funding, and embark on a rigorous development process.

Since our inception, OpenStax has grown to offer an impressive range of 65 textbooks, a testament to our commitment to providing comprehensive learning materials. Since our first textbook launch in 2012, we’ve already saved more than 36 million students an astounding $2.9 billion. This past school year, more than 7 million students utilized OpenStax materials….”

“Most notorious” illegal shadow library sued by textbook publishers [Updated] | Ars Technica

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“Yesterday, some of the biggest textbook publishers sued Library Genesis, an illegal shadow library that publishers accused of “extensive violations of federal copyright law.”

Publishers suing include Cengage Learning, Macmillan Learning, McGraw Hill, and Pearson Education. They claimed that Library Genesis (aka Libgen) is operated by unknown individuals based outside the United States, who know that the shadow library is “one of the largest, most notorious, and far-reaching infringement operations in the world” and intentionally violate copyright laws with “absolutely no legal justification for what they do.”

According to publishers, Libgen offers free downloads for over 20,000 books that the publishers never authorized Libgen to distribute. They claimed that Libgen is “a massive piracy effort” and noted that their complaint may be updated if more infringed works are found. This vast infringement is causing publishers and authors serious financial and creative harm, publishers alleged….

 

 

This is not the first lawsuit to go after Libgen, and if history repeats, it likely won’t be the last. TorrentFreak reported that after the publisher Elsevier sued Libgen in 2015, a court ordered Libgen to shut down. But after briefly disappearing, Libgen popped back up and has been online ever since, operating in defiance of that order—as well as court orders “in several countries, including Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and the United Kingdom,” publishers’ complaint filed yesterday said. Those countries even tried ordering “Internet service providers to block access to Libgen Sites as a result of infringement actions,” publishers said, all seemingly to no avail….”

Digitally Established: Educational Resources in U.S. Higher Education, 2023

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“The key takeaways from this year’s survey are: • The return to classroom and in-person instruction post pandemic continues, though a small group of faculty report they only teach blended or online courses. • Faculty regularly incorporate a number student- and instructor-focused tools in their teaching. Every course is different however, as only textbooks, lecture slides, and online homework systems are used by more than half of faculty. • The overall reported use of inclusive access remained steady yearover-year; approximately 25% of respondents report using inclusive access at their institutions. We suspect there may be growing confusion about what inclusive access products are, as levels of awareness decreased in the same period. • There was a slight decline in belief amongst faculty that digital materials are as good of a learning option for students as print materials, and a strong belief that digital offers more flexibility; concerns about the cost of education for students remain high for both faculty and administrators. • OER awareness and use grew to the highest levels ever reported, continuing the trend: in 2022-23, 2 in 3 faculty were aware of OER, and 1 in 3 faculty required OER materials in at least one course …”

More faculty are aware of and using open educational resources

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“As the shift toward a more digital classroom continues post-pandemic, faculty members and students alike are finding themselves more aware of and reliant on open educational resources.

Bay View Analytics, with support from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, conducts an annual survey focused on open educational resources, or OER. They are teaching and learning materials that are openly licensed, adaptable and freely available online. This year’s survey found that both usage and awareness of OER are at an all-time high, with nearly a third of instructors, 29 percent, requiring OER in their classrooms.

There was also a high awareness of OER, with 72 percent of faculty members stating they were “aware” or “very aware” of the resources….”

Free textbooks and other open educational resources gain popularity | Physics Today | AIP Publishing

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“Given a choice between paying $200 for a textbook or taking an equivalent course with a free textbook, what would you do?

The prices of college textbooks have skyrocketed: From 2011 to 2018, they went up by 40.6% in the US, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. That can add up to as much as $1000 for a single semester. So it’s no surprise that freely available, openly licensed textbooks, lectures, simulations, problem sets, and more—known collectively as open educational resources (OERs)—are having a moment.

Last year, for the first time, more than half of US college faculty reported “some level of awareness” of OERs, finds Bay View Analytics, a company that conducts research at the intersection of technology and education….

Free, open textbooks have “taken off much faster than I expected,” says Baraniuk. He estimates that to date, students have saved nearly $2 billion by using OpenStax books instead of buying comparable traditional textbooks. And being free is not the only selling point for open textbooks and OERs more broadly: In the past few years, says Lauren Woolsey, who teaches physics and astronomy at Grand Rapids Community College in Michigan, “the messaging has shifted to the role they can play for social justice and equity.” …”