What should I consider when requiring a commercial textbook?
Answer
Faculty Guidelines for Selecting Commercial Textbooks
Because reliable access to required course materials is critical to student success, we recommend that faculty assigning commercial textbooks:
- Assign the most current edition of a text that is actively in print (i.e. currently available from the publisher) for your classes.
- Report to the GCC Bookstore all materials that your students are required to purchase.
Why is this important for student access?
Many GCC students rely on vouchers via Financial Aid to purchase their textbooks, which are only redeemable via the GCC Bookstore. These students may not have the funds to use online vendors (including Amazon) to purchase their textbooks.
The GCC Bookstore is generally only able to stock the most current editions of textbooks that are actively in print. So, while it might be the case that older editions are available through some vendors for lower prices, the Bookstore may not be able to obtain enough copies to support our students. Assigning current editions allows the Bookstore to purchase these materials and include them in their listings, which ensures students using vouchers can purchase them.
In addition, many students who do not use vouchers rely on the Bookstore listings to order their books ahead of time so that they have them at the start of the semester.
Why is this important for the college?
Reporting all required materials to GCC Bookstore ensures that the College adheres to California law and helps GCC Library provide students access to print textbooks.
Section 66406.9 of California Education Code (CEC) requires that colleges list the cost of all required course materials and fees in the Online Class Schedule so students can see them prior to registration. GCC accomplishes this in the Online Class Schedule by linking each course section’s Class Details page to its corresponding Bookstore landing page, as well as listing the Material Fee in the ticket note. (See more details about CEC 66406.9 here: Senate Bill (SB) 1359 and Beyond – Textbook Affordability and Transparency, by ASCCC OERI.)
GCC Library also relies on the Bookstore textbook list to maintain an up-to-date reserves collection to support your classes.
What if I’d like to allow students to use older textbook editions in my class?
In some cases, you will assign the newest edition of a textbook but would also like to allow students the option to use an older edition. If this is the case, you can inform students in class and on the syllabus which older editions are acceptable to use. It’s possible the GCC Library may have older editions of a textbook for students to borrow or use on reserve in the library.
To sum up, assigning current, in-print textbook editions and reporting them to GCC Bookstore allows maximum access to students to either purchase textbooks via the Bookstore, purchase on their own from another vendor, or access via the library. For additional guidelines on making your course materials more available for students, see Best Practices for Equitable Access to Course Materials from the Academic Senate OER Committee.