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MERLOT Open Textbook Projects
In order to make college textbooks more affordable, and consistent with MERLOT’s philosophy of encouraging the use of shareable learning materials, MERLOT has adopted a Textbook Affordability strategy. Two projects that MERLOT actively supports towards this objective are 1) its alliance with the Public Interest Research Groups, and 2) the Global Text Project.
More information on textbook affordability can be found at http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/acsfa/turnthepage.pdf (US Congressional Hearing Report 2007), and http://www.bsa.ca.gov/pdfs/reports/2007-116.pdf (California Bureau of State Audits 2008).
1. Public Interest Research Groups
The Public Interest Research Groups (The Student PIRGs) and MERLOT have formed a strategic alliance to further our mutual goal of getting more high quality, open, and online learning materials into classrooms. After five years of research and advocacy to address rising college textbook costs, the Student PIRGs, are now looking to digital, open textbooks as a promising solution to rising costs. Ideally, this alliance will hasten the transformation of open textbooks and open educational resources into a mainstream, legitimate force in the learning content market.
The new alliance, which is aligned with MERLOT’s Textbook Affordability Institutional Initiative, will increase the number of faculty who incorporate open learning materials into their courses in place of commercial books. The alliance enables MERLOT members to make a simple commitment to seek, consider, and adopt open textbooks in addition to other MERLOT resources by signing Student PIRG’s The Open Textbooks Statement. MERLOT members can now discover Open Textbook content in the MERLOT collection. For a sample of offerings available through MERLOT click here to see results.
2. Global Text Project
The Global Text Project (GTP), an initiative of the University of Georgia and the University of Denver, provides frees electronic textbooks to university students in developing economies.
All books are written, edited, and managed by professors and students from around the world. Books will be available in Arabic, Chinese, English, and Spanish, and maintained for currency and relevancy across the globe. Textbook chapters are available in Open Document Format to enable professors to modify the content and provide only necessary material to students. For a list of books that have been internationalized and converted to the Global Text Project standard format, go to http://globaltext.terry.uga.edu/node/21.
The goal is to create a library of 1,000 electronic books covering a range of subjects typically taught at the undergraduate level in a comprehensive university. Distribution of electronic material is via the Internet. However, if Internet access is not available or bandwidth too slow, means are provided to distribute books locally and in a variety of formats -- e.g. print, CD, and different fonts and sizes.
MERLOT and GTP are working to expand the quantity and quality of online learning materials and services that can be incorporated into African educational programs as described in MERLOT Africa Network (MAN)
All books are released under a Creative Commons License and can be downloaded for free. For a list of currently available books and those in production, see http://globaltext.org/books.
MERLOT Textbook Affordability
MERLOT is a part of a “Textbook Affordability” strategy, making college textbooks more affordable. For more information, read the following government documents.
revised 11/19/08 BBS
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