It is easy to go with one of the "standard" textbooks for your class, especially when the publisher's rep takes you out to lunch and describes all the fancy new features that their online homework systems and ebook now offer (you probably won't use these, but its nice to know they are available). It is easy to convince yourself that, even though students might have to by over $200 for the book, the price of the book will eventually be worth it to students, given the wealth of information it contains (maybe they can find a used copy). And it is easy to use the textbook as a pedagogical backstop: to teach your class like you would anyway, leaning on your own expertise, and then being surprised when students struggle (did they even read the textbook?).
The above certainly doesn't describe everyone, but it did describe me about five years ago. The possibility of using Open Textbooks allowed me to reflect on the way I used, and didn't use, textbooks in my teaching. Partly because few students would read the textbook ahead of time, and partly because I wanted to give my students value beyond what they could buy in a book, I had drifted away from using textbooks as anything more than a course outline and repository for homework problems. These functions do not require students have a textbook, so why have a textbook at all? The solution: if the textbook is free for students, there is no harm in adopting it. There is no harm in adopting multiple books or to writing modules to cover material books don't get quite right. After a few semesters, these materials can be compiled into one coherent textbook tailored perfectly for our students.
What I describe here might not be easy, but we should take up the challenge to improve the educational experience of our students.
0 Comments.