This guide offers information and best practices related to the adoption of zero-cost course materials. This content can be used to assist with the course redesign process.
The information is split into 7 categories:
PALSave: PALNI Affordable Learning is a project funded by the Lilly Endowment, Inc, in support of student success across the 24 institutions supported by the Private Academic Library Network of Indiana (PALNI). This program and resulting resources are the result of a collaboration with PALNI’s Instructional Technology and Scholarly Communication advisory groups. Learn more about PALNI and PALSave.
This infographic depicts the PALSave Program and how it connects to PALNI's Open Education Network (OEN) membership.
A long description of the infographic can be found at https://palni.org/palsave/support-infographic-description.
Faculty viewing these modules are at Step 4. You may have attended an open textbook workshop and written a review. As part of the requirements for a Course Redesign Grant, you are consulting these modules for course redesign support.
Information in this guide is remixed and adapted from the following resources:
ACC Learn OER by Carrie Gits is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The OER Starter Kit by Abbey K. Elder is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Understanding OER by SUNY OER Services, Project: OER Community Course, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
PALNI's Zero-Cost Textbook Adoption LibGuide is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. PALNI’s logos and branding template are not covered by this license, and all rights to such material are reserved.
US Debt graph by David Ernst. This work is is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Data from Federal Reserve https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g19/Current
Student loan debt now sits at $1.5 trillion in the United States. The graph above demonstrates the rise of student debt compared with consumer revolving credit, or credit card debt, since 2006. It has tripled in the last decade. A long description of the graph is available at https://palni.org/palsave/debt-graph-description.
About two-thirds of students borrow to get through school, and the average borrower graduates with about $30,000 worth of debt. Costs for college are on the rise as well, with increases in tuition seen every year.
Increase in Textbook Prices graph by David Ernst. This work is is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Data from Bureau of Labor Statistics https://www.bls.gov/cpi
Textbooks are definitely not the highest education cost, but their costs are rising at an alarming rate: Over %1000 in the last 40 years. This rate is three to four times the rate of inflation, as shown by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) line on the graph above. A long description of the graph is available at https://palni.org/palsave/textbook-price-graph-description. This is a much faster rate than any other consumer product.
"Infographic: Impact of Student Textbook Costs on Student Progress” by Florida Virtual Campus Office of Distance Learning & Student Services, 2018 is licensed under CC BY 4.0
While only a portion of the overall price for college, the cost of textbooks can have a detrimental effect on student success.
The infographic above shows the impact of textbook costs on student progress. A long description of the graph is available at https://palni.org/palsave/cost-impact-graph-description.
Some students have to borrow more, are likely not to buy required materials at some point, and might even earn a poor grade, drop, or fail a class because of text prices.
Colvard, N., Watson, C. & Park, H. (2018). The impact of open educational resources on student success metrics. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 30(2), 262-276.
Florida Virtual Campus. (2018). 2018 student textbook and course materials survey: Executive summary.
Grimaldi, P., Basu Mallick D., Waters A., Baraniuk, R. (2019, March 6). Do open educational resources improve student learning? Implications of the access hypothesis. PLOS|One.
Hilton, J. (2016) Open educational resources and college textbook choices: a review of research on efficacy and perceptions. Education Tech Research and Development, 64(4), 573 – 590.
SPARC. (2018). SPARC Open Education.
In addition to local librarian(s) and/or instructional design staff, the PALSave Team is available to provide consultation and support for the adoption of zero-cost textbooks. You can contact the whole team at palsave@palni.edu.
