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Textbook Cost-Lowering Initiatives: An Exploration of Community College Faculty Experiences

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Date Issued:
2014
Abstract/Description:
Faculty have been identified as critical players in the implementation of textbook affordability efforts at community colleges. Furthermore, emerging lower-cost alternatives to traditional textbooks present a wide and growing range of options that may help further efforts. This study sought to examine more closely the role of faculty with respect to textbook cost-lowering initiatives. The researcher utilized in-depth interviews to gain a rich picture of the experiences, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of nine full-time community college faculty as they confronted textbook affordability efforts and textbook alternatives. The interview data were analyzed using a thematic analysis process. Five major themes and three minor themes were identified. The five major themes were: (a) campus administrators support, but do not mandate, efforts; (b) frequent edition revisions frustrate faculty; (c) departmental approaches to textbook selection vary; (d) content, then affordability, drive selection choices; and (e) faculty have mixed feelings about textbook alternatives. The three minor themes were: (a) faculty efforts to save students money are thwarted by campus bookstores and financial aid policies; (b) English faculty benefit from public domain readings; and (c) more faculty participating in textbook selection means more difficulty deciding on a text. Implications and recommendations were offered for community college leaders, campus bookstores, publishers, and future researchers.
Title: Textbook Cost-Lowering Initiatives: An Exploration of Community College Faculty Experiences.
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Name(s): Dunn, Susan, Author
Cintron Delgado, Rosa, Committee Chair
Owens, James, Committee CoChair
Boyd, Tammy, Committee Member
Mcardle, Michele, Committee Member
University of Central Florida, Degree Grantor
Type of Resource: text
Date Issued: 2014
Publisher: University of Central Florida
Language(s): English
Abstract/Description: Faculty have been identified as critical players in the implementation of textbook affordability efforts at community colleges. Furthermore, emerging lower-cost alternatives to traditional textbooks present a wide and growing range of options that may help further efforts. This study sought to examine more closely the role of faculty with respect to textbook cost-lowering initiatives. The researcher utilized in-depth interviews to gain a rich picture of the experiences, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of nine full-time community college faculty as they confronted textbook affordability efforts and textbook alternatives. The interview data were analyzed using a thematic analysis process. Five major themes and three minor themes were identified. The five major themes were: (a) campus administrators support, but do not mandate, efforts; (b) frequent edition revisions frustrate faculty; (c) departmental approaches to textbook selection vary; (d) content, then affordability, drive selection choices; and (e) faculty have mixed feelings about textbook alternatives. The three minor themes were: (a) faculty efforts to save students money are thwarted by campus bookstores and financial aid policies; (b) English faculty benefit from public domain readings; and (c) more faculty participating in textbook selection means more difficulty deciding on a text. Implications and recommendations were offered for community college leaders, campus bookstores, publishers, and future researchers.
Identifier: CFE0005159 (IID), ucf:50715 (fedora)
Note(s): 2014-05-01
Ed.D.
Education and Human Performance, Educational and Human Sciences
Doctoral
This record was generated from author submitted information.
Subject(s): textbooks -- costs -- open educational resources -- OER -- ebooks -- etextbooks -- electronic textbooks -- custom editions -- custom textbooks -- higher education costs -- college costs -- costs of college -- cost of community college -- textbook affordability -- affordability -- digital textbooks -- textbook alternatives -- qualitative research -- in-depth interviews -- faculty -- thematic analysis -- community college -- community college faculty -- theory of planned behavior
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005159
Restrictions on Access: public 2014-05-15
Host Institution: UCF

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