Most of us assign textbooks for what we always assumed were good pedagogical reasons: We wanted students to be able to fill in gaps we don’t get to, engage in fact-checking, hear other perspectives, have easy access to data, find a framework for some of our more esoteric departures, and provide students with a specialized reference guide rather than having them reach for a general topics encyclopedia. Great ideas — except that it doesn’t work that way anymore!

By Rob Weir

Teaching Without Textbooks 

As someone who is less than pleased with the cost of textbooks, requires only a $5.00 textbook in his research writing class, and frequently requires no textbook in his introductory composition class, I would welcome a valid argument that allowed me to justify not requiring a textbook in my introductory history courses. Unfortunately, Rob Weir’s thesis is flawed—or at least not well enough supported—to convince me to drop the textbook from my history courses.

I am one who finds some of the pedagogical reasons Professor Weir cites—especially the one to find a framework for some of our more esoteric [and not so esoteric] departures—as reasonable. Therefore, it would be nice to see the evidence to support Professor Weir’s claim that these reasons don’t work any more. Professor Weir’s observation that student achievement was better after he stopped using a textbook would be more believable if he had cited evidence to support this contention.

While the costs cited for textbooks is true, Professor Weir neglects to point out that by using brief editions, the pedagogical reasons he so easily discards can be met with less cost to students. Especially because a strong case can be made that the brief editions are also overpriced and that publishers are guilty of price gouging when they bring out new editions with minimal changes, Professor Weir only hurts his credibility by neglecting to mention the availability of brief editions. As I teach my students, we cannot ignore evidence that does not support our arguments.

As an instructor who does not lecture at his students but who relies heavily on class projects and cooperative learning, I need something that will provide my students with a chronological framework of the historical period. In meeting this objective, monographs are not an acceptable replacement for the textbook. Therefore, to drop the textbook in favor of monographs would hurt students in my classes.

Because I am very concerned about the costs of textbooks, I am pleased that my department decided to adopt a common textbook for our American history series and world history series. Schoolcraft College students can use their $60 American history textbook for all three American history textbooks we teach. And their $20 world history textbook can also be used for three classes. Students who only take one class and decide not to keep their book know that they can sell it back to the book store which was something that was not always the case before we adopted the common text.

I wish that Professor Weir would have given a solid explanation as to how we could accomplish the pedagogical reasons many of us have for requiring a textbook in introductory history classes without using a textbook in the class. For me, those objectives are important enough to justify asking students to spend the money for a brief edition of a standard history text—at least until something better comes along.

–Steven L. Berg, PhD

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Responses
March 7, 2007

I found all the blog postings and related responses fascinating. One point that might be added to the discussion is my company’s, and probably others’, recent efforts to provide “value versions” of textbooks. Usually, these versions have less use of color and are missing certain illustrations that are expensive for us in permissions fees. For example, we offer a version of our best-selling U.S. History text that retails at $40 for the single-volume, complete book. The contents are similar to the contents of the more expensive version, but color is used sparingly and some of the illustrations are left out. We also offer downloadable e-books at a lower cost than their hard copy counterparts.

We are trying to give professors as many choices as we can, so that you can weigh all the factors that are important to you and make the best decision for every course. For a new series of textbooks across several disciplines, we even had students meet in focus groups to help us with the design and other features. The aim was to create books that are appealing enough and helpful enough for students to want to read the content that their professors assign.

–Book Rep #2
When I asked to post these comments, the book rep requested anonimity because she is “not an official spokesperson” for her company and was not sure if it were appropriate for her to post comments on blogs.

March 9, 2007 I know that I am not the only person who forgets that publishers have to pay “permission fees” to include copyrighted materials such as illustrations and photographs in their books. I am currently reading China: It’s History and Culture by W. Scott Morton and Charlton M. Lewis; a book with few illustrations–and those only in black and white. The same day I received this comment from the book rep, I had read about a [Yangshao Neolithic] bowl from Banpo [which] has a fish of a highly satisfying semiabstract design in opposing triangles and subtle curves of red and black, with prominent snout and eyes and open mouth. It is highly stylized, yet it exhibits the vitality and rhythm which is to characterize all Chinese art. I thought, “Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a color photograph of this bowl!” But how much more than $18.95 would I be willing to pay to get more illustrations—much less illustrations in color? Because I already have some background in Chinese art, an illustration is not that crucial for me. However, the single black and white photograph of a Neolithic pottery jar included in the book is not really sufficient for students who do not share my background. So maybe paying an extra $20 or $30 or $40 for a textbook to get color illustrations might be a justifiable expense? At Schoolcraft College, we have excellent classroom technology and I could easily supplement the textbook with wonderful images as a way to keep the cost down for my students. But not all professors are as technologically fortunate as my colleagues and I are at Schoolcraft. –Steven L. Berg

March 10, 2007

Book pricing is a subject that we could discuss for hours. Keith’s course in Music Appreciation [mentioned in “A Box of Govida Chocolates”] would have expensive permissions associated with the CDs. You hit the nail on the head in noting that Schoolcraft has excellent, independent tech resources, while other colleges might not. Then there are the tech resources that publishers provide and that some professors demand. Those development costs have to be built into the cost of the textbooks, but they are paid by students whether professors use the resources or not. It’s a more complicated issue than it might seem at first.

–Book Rep #1

March 21, 2007

As a publisher’s representative, speaking on my own behalf, I would like state that publishers are working to provide students less expensive choices. When the opportunity arises, we encourage professors to adopt less expensive black and white, loose-leaf, and custom published titles.

Each year more and more instructors in my territory custom publish course material that is used in the classroom; usually in the instance where they don’t use all of the content in a particular text. For the most part, these custom versions decrease the cost of the book by 40-50%. Some of these individuals choose to add their own material at a negligible cost. So long as there are no permissions to clear, adding self-authored content is quite inexpensive. In fact, our TextChoice – FlexText program offers 34 pages of self-authored material free of cost. www.textchoice.com .

Another true indication of Thomson’s latest commitment at offering students less expensive choices can be found at www.ichapters.com. iChapters offers students the option to purchase individual printable chapters of a particular book, e-books (50% less, discounted text books, audio downloads, and free ground shipping where applicable.

As for bundling, personally I only bundle if the instructor is certain to use the supplement, and if a particular supplement will add to student learning. It is my experience that today’s student is quite informed and is very hesitant to purchase books that are bundled. Unless a student has been informed by their instructor or their peers that a supplement is required to pass the class they will not purchase the bundle. I can honestly say that there are only a few adoptions in my territory that are bundled, and they are in disciplines that require additional student support; foreign language, accounting, business, and distance learning.

Lastly, I truly believe that my success in this industry is the fact that I acknowledge the needs of both the instructor and the student; whether it be content or cost related. Thus, it is best to promote less expensive useful alternatives.

Lastly, as a mother of a college age student, I commend you on your concern for your students and the cost of their education.

–Janet Hunnius
Publisher’s Representative
Thomson Learning