By: Jason Turner
Instructor, Advanced Water Treatment, Plant City Campus
On October 7, 2011, Daytona State College hosted a conference on e-Texts and how they may be useful to college students. Daytona State recently participated in a pilot study where they had some courses taught only using e-Texts and had some of the instructors and students discuss their feelings about this method of delivery. While other people can give you some of the facts and figures, I wanted to give my impressions and opinions about how HCC could use e-Texts in the future.
Many of us teach from books that are large, expensive, and become outdated within a few years. Students complain that they are not able to return books to the bookstore after the semester is over because the book is not going to be used again or the version has been updated or just because the bookstore has too many copies already. Some also complain that they only use part of a large book and should not have to buy the entire book. This is where e-books come in to play.
One thing I learned is that some e-book publishers allow students to pay only for sections they need. This would help in classes like mine that use large books as well as in literature classes where only a few of the stories and poems are used. The students then would not have to carry heavy books, but the bookstore would also not need to stock as many of the larger books that take up retail space that could be used for other items. The bookstore could even be the contact point for the e-books so they will not lose all of their revenue.
Another advantage to both students and the bookstores is that when new versions of books are printed (especially in the science and computer fields), neither the students nor the bookstore will have copies of books they cannot sell back. They will have access only to the newest and most up-to-date information to stay ahead of the curve in an ever-changing world. This concern was specifically addressed at the conference by a Computer Engineering student who said that what he learned as a Freshman was already outdated now that he is a Junior.
Although it may take some work for HCC in the beginning, I think the College would benefit from using e-Texts for some classes. We could start where students could get both physical books and e-Texts for classes where the publishers already have package deals. Many textbooks already come with computer codes where students can access online portions that may either repeat information or even enhance what is in the book. Some even give the option for professors to add their own notes and additions that only the students have access to.
Jason, You wrote, "This would help in classes like mine that use large books as well as in literature classes where only a few of the stories and poems are used. The students then would not have to carry heavy books, but the bookstore would also not need to stock as many of the larger books that take up retail space that could be used for other items. The bookstore could even be the contact point for the e-books so they will not lose all of their revenue."
ReplyDeleteI agree 100%. The cost of books for students skyrockets when only a few selections are used from large anthologies. I tend to remember my own M.Div. textbook costs being 40% higher than they should have been since many textbooks were rarely used, were really more supplemental reading, etc. Excellent point, Jason!! :-).
I agree, Jason. In Biology, we frequently use less than one half of the text. And that "lugging around" of the text--students with wheeled suitcases to carry their books! Your blog addressed these issues very well.
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