Open Access Textbooks Will Get More Students Through University

“Students spend an average of $1,168 on textbooks, according to the College Board's 2011 Trends in College Pricing. ‘We know the current pricing of textbooks is discouraging students from purchasing the mandatory reading, but we are changing that. Our mission is to make it possible for students to go through university without having to spend a single dollar on textbooks, and we are already making a difference for many students." says Thomas Buus Madsen, COO at bookboon.com. The publisher currently offers over 800 free textbooks on their website... Robin Donaldson from the Open Access Textbooks Project in Florida, which is supported by the U.S. Department of Education, shares the conviction that textbooks are putting too much financial pressure on students. ‘This year, we conducted a survey at Florida College amongst students. 64% reported that it had happened at least once that they hadn't purchased the required textbook for one of their classes because of high costs. In addition, 23% reported that they regularly decided not to purchase any required textbooks for the same reason... By using open access textbooks, we're giving all students free access to their textbooks, lowering their education costs, and improving their chances at successfully completing their degrees’. Donaldson continues ‘There are many approaches to making textbooks freely available to students, and the commercial models such as those of bookboon.com and for instance Flat World Knowledge are some of the most innovative.’ Bookboon's textbooks are free thanks to the inclusion of a small number of employer branding and recruitment advertisements in the books. ‘The ads are targeted at specific students. If you are a Senior Engineering student, you will see Engineering companies telling you about future career opportunities’, explains Buus Madsen. When students for example download the Strategic Management textbook they find advertisements at the bottom of every 4-5 pages. Larry Walther, professor at Utah State University, published with Bookboon to help his students. Walther says it is common for students to complain about textbook prices, and he doesn't blame them. ‘Most books required for an accounting class are around $200,’ he says. Besides the cut of costs, open access textbooks offer new opportunities. Author Michael Templeton from Imperial College London says ‘it is very convenient for students to have the opportunity to read books online and use search tools and other functions that come with online work’. Bookboon's textbooks are available in pdf and can be read on any computer, tablet or eReader. If students prefer, they can print them out. All textbooks are written exclusively for the publisher by professors from leading universities. In 2011, 11 million eBooks were downloaded, and in 2012, bookboon.com has so far experienced over 600% growth. The Publisher free ebooks expects over 50 million downloads in 2012...”