OPEN TEXTBOOKSOpportunities in transformative learning and student success 

Sarah Faye Cohen@thesheckUniversity of Northern Iowa

I have a dream…

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The cost barrier kept

2.4 millionlow and moderate-income college-qualified high school graduates from completing college in the previous decade.

The Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED529499.pdf

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$2,000

$3,000

$4,000

$5,000

$6,000

$7,000

$8,000

$9,000

US Higher Education Funding - $/FTE

State Funding Tuition Revenue

http://www.sheeo.org

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$2,000

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$7,000

$8,000

$9,000

$10,000

$11,000

Iowa Higher Education Funding - $/FTE

State Funding Tuition Revenue

http://www.sheeo.org

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR STUDENTS?

The average borrower owes more than

$29,400

in student loans (class of 2012).

Institute for College Access and Success http://projectonstudentdebt.org/files/pub/Student_Debt_and_the_Class_of_2012_NR.pdf

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$400

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$1,000

$1,100

$1,200

$1,300

US Debt

Consumer Revolving Credit Student Loan Debt

$ Bi

llion

s

Federal Reserve http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/Current/

Factors of the cost of higher education:

• Tuition and Fees

• Room and Board

• Books and Supplies

• Personal Expenses

• Transportation

Factors of the cost of higher education:

• Tuition and Fees

• Room and Board

• Books and Supplies

• Personal Expenses

• Transportation

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0%

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Increase in Textbook Prices

Textbooks CPI

% In

crea

se

Bureau of Labor Statistics http://www.bls.gov/cpi/

The average student can expect to pay

$1,225 - $1,328on textbooks and course materials in 2014-15.

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/college-costs/quick-guide-college-costs

WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE FOR STUDENTS?

#textbookbroke

#textbookbroke

#textbookbroke

TheAcademic Impact:

•Purchase an older edition of the textbook

•Delay purchasing the textbook

•Never purchase the textbook

•Share the textbook•Pirate the textbook

“I figured French hadn’t changed that much.”- UMN student

63.6% Not purchase the required textbook

49.2% Take fewer courses

45.1% Not register for a specific course

33.9% Earn a poor grade

26.7% Drop a course

17.0% Fail a course

http://www.openaccesstextbooks.org/pdf/2012_Florida_Student_Textbook_Survey.pdf

In your academic career, has the cost of required textbooks caused you to:

“The hardest part of college shouldn’t be paying for it.”

-Hilary Clinton, Oct. 13, 2015

WE ARE TRYING TO DEAL WITH THIS ISSUE IN MANY WAYS

Alternative textbook projects

Digital Course Packs

Textbooks available through the library

Textbooks available through the library

Self paced and informal learning to supplement course content.

There is an alternative that…….is built to drive curriculum and is ready to use from day one.

There is an alternative that…….is built to drive curriculum and is ready to use from day one.

….allows every student in your class access to the textbook on (or even before) day one.

There is an alternative that…….is built to drive curriculum and is ready to use from day one.

….allows every student in your class access to the textbook on (or even before) day one.

….every student can afford.

There is an alternative that…….is built to drive curriculum and is ready to use from day one.

….allows every student in your class access to the textbook on (or even before) day one.

….every student can afford.

….enables faculty to tailor content to the course objectives they select.

Open Textbooks

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kalexanderson/7176605114

Why textbooks?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/timuiuc/4232485465

Open Content

OER

Open Textbooks

Defining Open Educational Resources

Hewlett Foundation Definition:

“OER are teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or are released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use and repurposing by others”

With Creative Commons licenses, you are free to…

Copy Mix

Share Keep

Edit Use

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN IN TERMS OF LEARNING EXPERIENCES?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rahimageworks/804575557

Customization and improvement.

• Ability to customize and update in real time.

• No additional costs to the institutions, the students, the parents.

Affordable course materials

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/survey/partial-credit-2015-survey-faculty-attitudes-technology

Tailoring courses based on faculty expertise

https://www.flickr.com/photos/helloturkeytoe/4932748746

What might open textbooks stay to students?

WHAT IS THE POTENTIAL FOR HIGHER EDUCATION?

Powerful local solutions

Open is a global solution

Imagine

“a student saves $128 per course, when their traditionally published textbook is replaced with an open textbook”

“open textbooks have the potential to save more than a billion dollars each year”

Open textbooks are a toe hold

https://www.flickr.com/photos/markdoliner/13523516913

The effect could be staggering.

It could impact…• The future of research• The future of publishing

• How our institutions look at our intellectual output.

http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2007684425/

It could result in…• More open access publishing

• A change in our reliance on big publishers

• A change in our reliance on big deals

• A change in how we use our budgets

WE’RE TALKING ABOUT A CULTURE SHIFT.

What does that mean on the ground?

https://www.flickr.com/photos/kevandotorg/4023199860

Taking first steps.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/thedepartment/110775600

an alliance of schools committed to improving access, affordability and academic success through use of the open textbooks

Oregon Community

College Distance Learning

Association

Oregon Community

College Distance Learning

Association

We ask faculty to:• Take a look at open textbooks from the Open

Textbook Library (open.umn.edu).• Write a review.• Adopt if a book meets their needs and the needs

of their students.• Raise awareness - talk with colleagues in your

program and department.

open.umn.edu: a catalog of complete, openly licensed textbooks.

178 books204 reviews

What we see from faculty.

1.0 - 1.5 1.5 - 2.0 2.0 - 2.5 2.5 - 3.0 3.0 - 3.5 3.5 - 4.0 4.0 - 4.5 4.5 - 5.00

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0 05

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73 72

Ratings

Rev

iew

s

Open.umn.edu: web traffic47% increase in web traffic in six months.

WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?

For our children.

For our students

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sakeeb/4647211575

For the possibilities in front of us.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms/3155662908/

THANK YOU.sfcohen@umn.edu@thesheck ; @open_textbooksopen.umn.edu