Textbook prices got you down?
Frustrated that you paid for a book you didn't use?
It’s not just you! Students have been fighting this challenge for decades in the US alone. There are options other than the traditional publisher textbook. These options,
What can you do?
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Be informed. Engage with students already working on this. This report by Student Public Interest Research Groups discusses the rapid rise of textbook prices and its effects on students across the country.
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Join a student body group to advocate for more affordable solutions.
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Get to know your Bookstore! They are on the front-lines already working to make your education as affordable as possible.
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Take a class that uses OER. Let you instructor know how much you appreciate their efforts.
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Ask your professors if they know about or would be willing to look into more affordable options.
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Have ideas? Share them with us @opentrailsmt
Make Your Voices Heard!
How the prices of and access to textbooks affect students is really important. The most powerful way to make an impact is to share those affects with your campus and state leadership. Here are some ways to do that.
Post-it Boards
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#textbookbroke has a lot of ideas that campuses have used.
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How much did you spend board. How much by discipline board.
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I just spent signs. Another example.
Get their story
- Have students write thank you letters to faculty using free course materials. Create posters of these to post around campus.
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Ask students to write notes to faculty/admin/state higher ed/etc. about their affordability struggles. Make a display physically or virtually of these. Invite faculty and admin to come and see what students are saying. Example of postcard to use. How this may look.
Social Media outreach
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Create a hashtag or handle for your campus OER outreach. Keep it simple and uniform so that students have a regulated method to respond. Ontario example.
Create Videos
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University of Minnesota example.
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Other OTN Community videos for inspiration.
Survey Students. TRAILS conducted a statewide survey of students. Get some community feedback from your campus alone.
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