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Textbooks and course materials

This guide provides and overview of the types of content that faculty may consider utilizing in their courses.

Traditional textbooks

Available in print or ebook format, purchase new or used, or rent from bookstore and other retailers.

Benefits

Accessibility

  • Students are able to use their financial aid through the college bookstore to for traditional textbook rentals and purchases. 
  • The college offers services for students that require accommodations with regards to making textbooks accessible. Contact the Achievement Center for information on services provided.  
  • Most traditional publishers provide an accessibility statements on their websites.  

Cost to students

  • Used textbook and rental options can reduce costs to students
  • Placing a copy of the textbook on reserve in the library can provide no cost access to students unable to afford a copy
  • Students who've purchased a copy of the textbook may have an opportunity to recoup some of their costs by selling their book back to the bookstore at the end of their class. 

Format & Flexibility

  • Layout is generally familiar to both faculty and students
  • Online platforms often let faculty customize their lessons / text based on their preferences

Ownership

Textbook content

Students purchasing the textbook will retain ownership of their copy after the end of the course. For industry reference materials, content that spans multiple semesters, etc. this can be beneficial. 

Permissions

Physical textbook purchased generally allows student or faculty to use for purposes of teaching and learning.  Ebooks may allow for a certain amount of copy, paste and print by student. Verify permissions via copyright statement in each text, as they may vary based on publisher.

Data

Little data is gathered aside from what is collected by publisher when physical item is purchased. Publisher may track how ebook is accessed, used, etc. Verify by checking terms of use statement if purchasing an ebook version. 

Quality of Content

  • The Textbook & Academic Authors Association has provided a list of  author guidelines that give a fair idea of what to expect of content published by a traditional textbook publisher. 
  • Editions are updated regularly, and as such, generally provide content that is current. 

Usability

  • A 2015 Minnesota State University study deduced that there was not a correlation between comprehension, attitudes toward computer use and textbook format, though it was noted that additional research was needed to form conclusions 
  • Research on the usability of digital textbook environment is ongoing (see recent systematic review and article published by the Journal of Usability Studies)
  • Some common positive features attributed to ebook versions of a text include portability and searchability.

Challenges

Accessibility

Cost to students

  • According to a 2016 U.S. PIRG student group report Covering the Cost, the cost of a college textbook has risen 73% between 2006-2016. 50% of community college students report using financial aid to help cover textbook costs. Nearly $3 billion dollars of financial aid is used on textbooks per year. CollegeBoard's Trends in Higher Education website notes that the national average yearly cost for books & supplies for 2 year college students is $1,440, $200 higher than students enrolled in any 4 year college. This data is compiled data from CollegeBoard, NCES and IPEDS.
  • Textbook rentals aimed to save students money may have hidden costs, including large late fees for rentals not returned on time. 
  • Frequent edition updates by textbook vendors may devalue the buyback price offered to students for trading in textbooks. 

Format & Flexibility

  • Publisher dictates availability of format. 

Ownership

Textbook content

Supplemental content obtained by additional access codes (discussed in another section) may not be retained depending on terms of use. Students renting the textbook will not be able to retain ownership of their copy after the end of the course. 

Permissions

Content is copyrighted and subject to use and copy restrictions as outlined in textbook copyright statement. 

Data

If accessing an ebook via publisher platform, user is required to abide by terms of use with regards to personal data. 

Usability

  • A 2019 study by the University of New Mexico investigated barriers and negative experiences reported by students using ebooks in their college classes to better understand how students interacted with ebooks. Barriers included
    • Navigation
    • Print & download difficulty
    • Access to internet
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Research