Why Audit for Cost (5 mins)

An important element of your syllabus is the cost of required and recommended materials. The higher the price of textbooks, the more students are locked out of basic access to resources integral to learning.  The cost of college textbooks has skyrocketed: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the price of college textbooks has risen 1,041% since 1977:

 

SJSU AL$ (n.d.). Maria’s textbook story Links to an external site. [Video]. YouTube.

Image caption: A textbook case of price-gouging.  

 

Some data show that student spending has dropped in the last two or three years, but other studies indicate that the reason is that students are no longer purchasing required textbooks due to price. According to a US PIRG report, Links to an external site. sixty-five percent of college students said they have delayed buying a textbook because it was too expensive and, in some cases, done so even though they were worried the decision would hurt their grade. 

Image caption: Impact of book cost on students: 66% don't purchase the required textbook; 21.6% drop the course; 19.8% fail the course. 

 

The situation is not helped by the fact that five large publishers control so much of the academic content. Pearson, Cengage, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, McGraw Hill, and Scholastic make up 80% of the textbook market. Pearson and Cengage are becoming more prevalent here at SJSU, at times to the detriment of students who have difficulty paying for textbooks. 

Image caption: Five textbook publishers control 80% of the market: Pearson, Cengage, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, McGraw Hill, Scholastic. 

 

Over half of San José State students receive some type of financial assistance and face the high cost of course materials every semester. The Financial Aid and Scholarship Office reported that our students spend on average $2,002 on textbooks and supplies per academic year. 

SJSU and CSU have taken progressive steps to reduce the cost of textbooks, by creating a CSU-wide mandate Links to an external site. to find solutions to expensive textbooks. Nonetheless, the cost of textbooks remains prohibitively high for many students. 

Fortunately, instructors like yourself have choices when it comes to selecting your materials. It might mean finding a less expensive modality for your existing readings, offering chapters and articles in Canvas rather than requiring an entire textbook, or selecting different material. This section shows you how to audit your course for costs and what other options might be available. 

Dive Deeper (Optional) 

This three-minute video is one SJSU student's story:

 (03m:33s | CC Available)

Next 

Thank you for reading about the current landscape of textbook pricing. In the next section, you will review ways to analyze the cost of your class from a student perspective.