Open Access E-Textbooks: One Solution to the Growing Textbook Dilemma?
The Swarthmore College Library has been holding ongoing discussions with students this semester about how to deal with increasing expensive textbooks. On Monday (11/16), a campus-wide meeting about the textbook dilemma. One possible solution is the adoption of open-access textbooks, which are freely available on the web and may be downloaded, and even purchased bound (for a small fee). For more information...
Open Textbooks are high quality open-access textbooks that can be used for no cost online, and can be printed for a low cost. Textbook costs can be a huge financial burden on students, and considering new low-cost options like open textbooks can help make textbooks affordable!
• Make Textbooks Affordable - this is an impressive student-run site that offers a clear explanation of the open textbook movement. It also provides access to several open textbooks and other resources for open textbooks.
Examples of Affordable, Free & Open Textbooks:
http://www.maketextbooksaffordable.org/statement.asp?id2=37833#examples
Some Open Textbook Providers:
• Flat World Knowledge - offer free textbooks online and affordable options for accessing print versions of books.
• Global Text Project
• Connextions - Rice University’s Press newly re-worked as an OPEN ACCESS publisher.
• Textbook Revolution - a student-run site.
Some Online Sources for Open Courseware & Educational Resources:
• MIT Open Courseware
• MERLOT – Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning & Online Teaching
Printing On Demand:
• Lulu.com - offers inexpensive book publishing services (different bindings, soft vs. hard cover, color vs. B&W).
• Qoop - used by Rice’s Connextions for Print on Demand.
• Make Textbooks Affordable - this is an impressive student-run site that offers a clear explanation of the open textbook movement. It also provides access to several open textbooks and other resources for open textbooks.
Examples of Affordable, Free & Open Textbooks:
http://www.maketextbooksaffordable.org/statement.asp?id2=37833#examples
Some Open Textbook Providers:
• Flat World Knowledge - offer free textbooks online and affordable options for accessing print versions of books.
• Global Text Project
• Connextions - Rice University’s Press newly re-worked as an OPEN ACCESS publisher.
• Textbook Revolution - a student-run site.
Some Online Sources for Open Courseware & Educational Resources:
• MIT Open Courseware
• MERLOT – Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning & Online Teaching
Printing On Demand:
• Lulu.com - offers inexpensive book publishing services (different bindings, soft vs. hard cover, color vs. B&W).
• Qoop - used by Rice’s Connextions for Print on Demand.
Comments
Pharmk145 said on November 27, 2009 6:38 PM:[link to this]
Very nice site!
hanna said on November 28, 2009 4:19 PM:[link to this]
That is a good resource for textbook problem. Easy to use and I could even get around with that. http://hannaowen.com
Leo said on December 2, 2009 7:03 PM:[link to this]
Redalyc is an online open access library which makes available for its users more than 550 scientific magazines with a total of 119805 wide text articles which can be downloaded, read, criticized and and cited by users.