Students are a powerful but often overlooked ally in the OER movement. This session provides a crash course on how to engage students as OER advocates, and how to leverage the ever-important issue of textbook affordability to build grassroots support on campus and gain recognition off campus.

1. Building Student
Advocacy for OER
Connexions Conference
Feburary 2012 • Houston, TX • #cnxcon
Nicole Allen
The Student PIRGs
www.maketextbooksaffordable.org
nicole@studentpirgs.org
@txtbks
studentpirgs.org

2. Why Work With Students?
• Students are the beneficiaries of
OER
• Faculty respond to students
• There are a lot of them (20.3 M)
• We need an army
studentpirgs.org

3. “Student loan debt
outpaced credit card debt
for the first time last year
and is likely to top a trillion
dollars this year.”
studentpirgs.org

4. Textbooks
cost HOW
much???
studentpirgs.org

5. Popular
Calculus
Textbook
studentpirgs.org

6. Popular
Econ 101
Textbook
studentpirgs.org

7. Students spend
$1,168
per year
on books & supplies
- College Board
studentpirgs.org

8. Textbooks vs. Inflation Prices are rising
4 times
250%
200%
Textbooks
150%
100%
50%
Inflation inflation
- Student PIRGs
0%
1989 1994 1999 2004 2009
studentpirgs.org

9. 26% of tuition
@ public 4-year
72% of tuition
@ comm. College
- GAO
studentpirgs.org

10. 7 in 10
students surveyed
hadn’t bought a
required text due
to cost
- Student PIRGs
studentpirgs.org

11. Publisher Practices
studentpirgs.org

12. Producer
Consumer
studentpirgs.org

13. Publisher
Student Professor
studentpirgs.org

14. Working With Students
1. Focus on affordability.
Generally speaking, students are interested in OER
for one thing, and one thing only – cheaper
textbooks. The key to attracting and motivating
students is to present OER as a solution.
studentpirgs.org

15. Working With Students
2. Explain why OER is a solution.
Students want lower costs next semester, not next
decade. They tend to fight hardest for immediate
solutions: renting, used books, reserve copies, etc.
To gain student support, it is important to provide
context for why OER is a solution worth fighting for.
studentpirgs.org

16. Working With Students
3. Don’t overcomplicate things.
Most students do not understand open licensing –
and that’s OK. Students can appreciate and
advocate for OER as a solution without knowing the
ins and outs of openness – all they need is a
practical understanding (stay tuned).
studentpirgs.org

17. Working With Students
4. “Open textbooks” not “OER”
“OER” and “educational resources” are foreign
terms to students. It’s best to focus on the most
familiar form of OER, “open textbooks.”
studentpirgs.org

18. Explaining OER to Students
What are open textbooks?
1. Comparable: like any other text – similar
material and format, sold in the bookstore
2. Affordable: low-cost in print and digital form
– read free online, download printable PDF
and/or buy a hard copy for $20-40.
3. Flexible: professors can legally create their
own version of the textbook by removing
unwanted sections and adding new material.
studentpirgs.org

19. Explaining OER to Students
Why support open textbooks?
1. Savings: professors who adopt open
textbooks save students 80% on average,
that’s $5,000 for the typical 100-student class.
studentpirgs.org

20. Savings vs. New Books
E-Readers 39%
E-Books 52%
Rentals 61%
Used Books 25%
Source: www.studentpirgs.org/textbooks/research
studentpirgs.org

21. Maximum Savings
Open Textbooks 80%
Rentals 33%
E-Books 8%
E-Readers 1%
Source: www.studentpirgs.org/textbooks/research
studentpirgs.org

22. Explaining OER to Students
Why support open textbooks?
1. Savings: professors who adopt open
textbooks save students 80% on average,
that’s $5,000 for the typical 100-student class
2. Options: students can choose whichever print
or digital format they want, all at low costs
studentpirgs.org

23. Student Preferences
25%
34% Prefer
Rent All digital
66% 75%
Keep Some
Prefer
print
Source: www.studentpirgs.org/textbooks/research
studentpirgs.org

24. Explaining OER to Students
Why support open textbooks?
1. Savings: professors who adopt open
textbooks save students 80% on average,
that’s $5,000 for the typical 100-student class
2. Options: students can choose whichever print
or digital format they want, all at low costs
3. Change: major publishers have a stranglehold
on the market, and the best way to change
that is to increase competition with OER
studentpirgs.org

25. Explaining OER to Students
Why take action now?
1. Self Interest: if your professor chooses an
open textbook, you could save hundreds next
semester!
2. Define the Enemy: this is the best way to
fight back against publisher rip-offs
3. Stress Urgency: faculty are choosing books
for next term right now, and students are the
best hope to tell them about OER
studentpirgs.org

26. Outreach to Students
Student Groups
• Student government
• Political, consumer or social justice groups, like
PIRG, Campus Progress, Young Dems, etc.
• Academic clubs and societies
• Fraternities and sororities
• Environmental or cultural groups
studentpirgs.org

27. Outreach to Students
Individual students
• Ask professors to recommend students, or
offer extra credit
• Create opportunities for students to self-
identify: sign up form, posters, flyers, info
sessions
• Offer internships for credit
• Distribute materials to help students take
action on their own
studentpirgs.org

28. Grassroots Tactics
Campus Events
• Textbook Rebellion van
tour!
• “Open Book Fairs”
• Panel discussions
• How much did you pay?
graphs
studentpirgs.org

29. Grassroots Tactics
Contact Professors
• Meet with professors like
“sales reps”
• Send e-mail, letters
• “Day of Action” events
• Resources/training for
individual students
studentpirgs.org

30. Grassroots Tactics
Presentations
• Faculty Senate
• Academic departments
• Conferences or
organization meetings
• Faculty development
days
studentpirgs.org

31. Grassroots Tactics
Media Outreach
• Press conferences to
release reports or make
announcements
• Op-Eds/letters
• Pitch features for
authors/adopters
studentpirgs.org

32. Grassroots Tactics
Campus Coalition
• Bookstore
• Library
• Prof. development
• IT, eLearning depts.
• Administration
studentpirgs.org

33. Building Student
Advocacy for OER
Connexions Conference
Feburary 2012 • Houston, TX • #cnxcon
Nicole Allen
The Student PIRGs
www.maketextbooksaffordable.org
nicole@studentpirgs.org
@txtbks
studentpirgs.org