2008 Woodie Awards
High Priced Books Must be Lowered
Issue date: 10/13/04 Section: Editorials
- Page 1 of 1
Textbook publishers are taking advantage of us as students, and it is up to the faculty to help us fight back.
On average we pay $100 per textbook. That means the cost of books is double, even triple, the cost of the classes we are taking.
For students who are a full load of classes that bill can add up $400 to $500.
At $26 dollars per unit, for a total of $180, students are paying twice as much for books as for their classes themselves.
Now, for most of Citrus College students, $400 is a big deal. Most of us don't make that much money in a two-week's paycheck.
And statistics show that textbook prices are on the rise.
If in fact we actually got a lot out of the textbooks, it might not seem as bad, but with some professors, we rarely use the textbooks, if at all.
Teachers often require students to buy several for one class but end up using only one or two. As a result, we end up spending money for books that we don't even use.
We are throwing away our hard earned money as well as having the hassle of carrying around an extra book.
The difficulty of selling used textbooks back to the bookshop is also an aggravation.
The problem is that the publishers keep coming out with new editions. The Owl Bookshop will not buy back out of date editions for the same reason, but frustrated students often do not understand this concept and blame the bookshop unfairly.
Publishers are forcing the students to buy new textbooks for more costly prices instead of less expensive used ones.
So what can teachers do to help?
First of all, teachers should choose texts carefully, and they should consider prices and inform the students what books we will actually use, and which ones are simply for our enrichment.
Second, faculty should avoid ordering books packaged with useless CD-ROMs and other such accessories. Teachers seldom use them, and they just drive up the cost of the textbooks.
Third, faculty should pressure publishers to slow down the production of new editions.
The California Legislature gets the idea. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently signed AB 2477 sponsored by Assemblywomen Carol Lui forces, which will force the publishers to disclose information as to what makes new editions different from older ones.
The bill also requires that the publishers disclose how long they intend to publish the certain textbook editions.
The faculty needs to do its part to keep textbook prices down and do what is best for students.
On average we pay $100 per textbook. That means the cost of books is double, even triple, the cost of the classes we are taking.
For students who are a full load of classes that bill can add up $400 to $500.
At $26 dollars per unit, for a total of $180, students are paying twice as much for books as for their classes themselves.
Now, for most of Citrus College students, $400 is a big deal. Most of us don't make that much money in a two-week's paycheck.
And statistics show that textbook prices are on the rise.
If in fact we actually got a lot out of the textbooks, it might not seem as bad, but with some professors, we rarely use the textbooks, if at all.
Teachers often require students to buy several for one class but end up using only one or two. As a result, we end up spending money for books that we don't even use.
We are throwing away our hard earned money as well as having the hassle of carrying around an extra book.
The difficulty of selling used textbooks back to the bookshop is also an aggravation.
The problem is that the publishers keep coming out with new editions. The Owl Bookshop will not buy back out of date editions for the same reason, but frustrated students often do not understand this concept and blame the bookshop unfairly.
Publishers are forcing the students to buy new textbooks for more costly prices instead of less expensive used ones.
So what can teachers do to help?
First of all, teachers should choose texts carefully, and they should consider prices and inform the students what books we will actually use, and which ones are simply for our enrichment.
Second, faculty should avoid ordering books packaged with useless CD-ROMs and other such accessories. Teachers seldom use them, and they just drive up the cost of the textbooks.
Third, faculty should pressure publishers to slow down the production of new editions.
The California Legislature gets the idea. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently signed AB 2477 sponsored by Assemblywomen Carol Lui forces, which will force the publishers to disclose information as to what makes new editions different from older ones.
The bill also requires that the publishers disclose how long they intend to publish the certain textbook editions.
The faculty needs to do its part to keep textbook prices down and do what is best for students.