As the cost of higher education continues to rise and the economy appears increasingly unstable, one University of Wisconsin professor is providing students with a money-saving option on textbooks.
For his fall 2009 Principles of Microeconomics class, professor John Scholz will be using the book “Principles of Microeconomics” by Tim Taylor. Taylor’s book can be read online for free from Textbook Medium, a website offering free versions of college textbooks.
“Did I choose the book because it was free? Of course. With close to 1,000 students paying $70 to $140 for the text, this was a very appealing option,” Scholz said.
However, Scholz said the main reason he chose the book was for the quality of its author. Tim Taylor is an award-winning professor and has been the managing editor of the American Economic Association’s “Journal of Economic Perspectives” for more than 20 years.
“If I thought this text wouldn’t provide as good of a learning experience [as printed texts], I would not have assigned it. People come here to get a first-rate education — textbooks are part of that. In this case, we’re using a good book and doing something right for students,” Scholz said.
The structure of Scholz’s microeconomics course will not change following the use of an online book. A black-and-white printed copy of the text will be available from the website for a nominal fee less than $20, and students can also access a PDF and print chapters for free.
Scholz said he anticipates most students will print off the PDF version or buy the printed copy from Textbook Medium’s website. He believes this alleviates any concerns some students would be at a disadvantage, especially those who study by highlighting or writing notes in page margins.
Aaron Brower, vice provost for Teaching and Learning, has done extensive research on student textbook usage and believes more books will be available online for student use in the future.
“The nature of textbooks is changing — we’re in a revolution. It wouldn’t surprise me if 10 years from now textbooks were like dinosaurs. It seems as though online is the way to go,” Brower said.
Brower’s research estimates UW students spend on average about $700 a year on books. Because of this, students are looking outside of campus bookstores for ways to purchase these texts at a lower cost.
Brower said the university is helping students in this endeavor by encouraging professors to distribute required text lists to students two to three weeks before the semester commences.
Students can now access this information for more than 50 percent of UW courses through the course guide found in their student center and are using it to purchase books online and through textbook swaps.
Although they are facing an increase in competition from online book purchases and swaps, Pat McGowan, president of the University Bookstore, says they will not be lowering book prices.
“We have lowered our prices so much over the past few years to where we are now one of the lowest-pricing bookstores in the nation,” McGowan said.
However, McGowan added the bookstore is establishing a textbook swap on its website.
