WashPIRG urges faculty to use open textbooks and educational resources to lower cost barriers for students - Emma Scher, The Daily

Representatives from Washington’s PIRG ­— better known around the UW campus as WashPIRG — took to the steps of Red Square on the morning of Jan. 25 to spread awareness of the report’s findings. WashPIRG chapter chair Madison Longbottom explained how students can get cornered into paying full price for textbooks. “Textbook companies know that they can charge students whatever they’d like and that students have to buy the coursebook,” Longbottom said. “If a faculty member doesn’t have an option to assign [an OER] then the student won’t get to use it.” Open educational resources (OERs) are high-quality and peer-reviewed teaching and learning materials that are free to the public and can be repurposed to suit the needs of both students and instructors. Although OERs are not available for every course and subject, they are a cost-effective alternative for some expensive textbooks, especially in standard, introductory courses. http://www.dailyuw.com/news/article_698678c4-023c-11e8-8ea6-578b647578ce.html