OER Digest- May 16th, 2019

From Kaitlyn Vitez and Nick Sengstaken (USPIRG) | Volume 81 | May 16th, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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PUBLISHER CONSOLIDATION CONTINUES: Shortly after Cengage and McGraw-Hill announced their intention to merge (our top story in the last edition), another textbook publisher, Wiley, finalized the purchase of Knewton. The eleven year old ed tech startup has focused on adaptive learning technology and, recently, lower-cost access codes based on openly licensed content. While this acquisition is giving some advocates more reason to worry about greater consolidation of publishers in an already tight marketplace, it also shows that there are increasing pressures on major players to expand their lower-cost offerings. Read more “OER Digest- May 16th, 2019” →

OER Digest – May 2nd, 2019

From Ethan Senack | Volume 80 | May 2nd, 2019

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MERGER ANNOUNCED: Yesterday morning, Cengage and McGraw-Hill announced their intent to merge, combining the #2 and #3 largest textbook publishers into a $3 billion dollar company controlling over 44,000 titles. The move is planned for 2020, and will be pending approval by regulators. Advocates for students and consumers have expressed significant concern about the impact on pricing and choice in the industry, especially as it relates to inclusive access and online homework platforms. You can read more coverage of it here:

• MarketWatch: McGraw-Hill and Cengage are merging — is that good or bad news for textbook prices?
• Yahoo Finance: ‘The textbook market is broken’ and the latest mega-merger makes it worse
• Chronicle of Higher Ed: Planned Merger of Cengage and McGraw-Hill Could Remake College-Textbook Market

Read more “OER Digest – May 2nd, 2019” →

OER Digest – April 18, 2019

From Mo Nyamweya (SPARC) | Volume 79 | April 18th, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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POLICY UPDATE: Meanwhile, the Illinois Senate passed SB 2096, which would prohibit publishers from offering any institution instructional materials for adoption, sale or exchange until certain requirements are met. Oregon’s HB 2213 passed the House and would require each community college and public university to establish textbook affordability plans with measurable goals. HB 839 was amended in Florida to authorize the adoption of innovative pricing options, a term associated with inclusive access programs. SB 6 was also signed by their governor, deleting an expired requirement that the Florida College System board of trustees examines the cost of materials. Read more “OER Digest – April 18, 2019” →

OER Digest – April 4th, 2019

From Cailyn Nagle (USPIRG) | Volume 78 | April 4th, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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FEDERAL UPDATE: The Affordable Textbook Act was reintroduced Thursday by Senator Durbin, King, Smith, and Senima and Representative Neguse. If passed, the act will provide permanent authorization for an open textbook grant program to support the creation and expansion of open textbook programs. The act also includes language requiring higher education institutions to include information about OER in course schedules, which will allow students to make more informed decisions, and codifies strong definitions of OER and open licensing. Learn more by checking out statements from SPARC and U.S. PIRG, two leading advocacy groups supporting this legislation. Read more “OER Digest – April 4th, 2019” →

OER Digest – March 21st, 2019

From Ethan Senack | Volume 77 | March 21st, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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STATE UPDATES: The Governor of Virginia signed HB2380 into law, requiring public institutions of higher education to clearly designate in the course catalog which courses are using no- or low- cost materials. In West Virginia, HB 2853 (creating a program to encourage OER use in both higher ed and K-12) passed the Senate and will be sent to their Governor. Legislators in Texas introduced HB3650 and HB3652, which would encourage OER use in dual credit programs and would establish a statewide OER repository, respectively. In Hawaii, the state House has proposed asking the University of Hawaii to conduct and OER feasibility study in HR72, and in Iowa, SF433 requires universities to explore open education. Read more “OER Digest – March 21st, 2019” →

OER Digest – March 7th, 2019

From Mo Nyamweya, SPARC | Volume 76 | March 7, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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OPEN TEXTBOOK PILOT UPDATE: The U.S. Department of Education has awarded the second round of $5 million in Open Textbook Pilot funding to Chippewa Valley Technical College and Arizona State University. Instead of opening a new competition as per Congress’s instructions, the Department funded high-ranking proposals that were submitted in the first round. While that means there will not be a chance to apply, the funding will go toward projects that benefit the broader community. Senators Durbin and Murray sent a letter to Secretary DeVos requesting an explanation of the Department’s actions. Read more “OER Digest – March 7th, 2019” →

OER Digest – February 21st, 2019

From Kaitlyn Vitez, U.S. PIRG | Volume 75 | February 21st, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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POLICY UPDATES: A new bill was introduced in West Virginia that would create a statewide program to increase the use of OER in both K-12 and higher education. Maryland introduced legislation that would require apprenticeship program operators to pay for books and materials for students, unless there is OER already available to students for free. A Virginia bill requiring no- and low-cost course markings has now passed both chambers and heads to the governor’s desk for signature. Read more “OER Digest – February 21st, 2019” →

OER Digest – February 7th, 2019

From Ethan Senack, Creative Commons USA | Volume 74 | February 7th, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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POLICY UPDATES: With the new legislative year underway, a host of OER bills have been introduced at the state level. Bills to create course designations for low-cost/no-cost materials passed the House in Virginia, and were introduced in Washington (4-year schools and 2-year schools). Legislators in Minnesota introduced a bill requiring each college to offer an “Z-degree”. New York introduced a pair of bills creating a NY OER Council, and requiring Boards of Trustees to report back about use of OER on their campuses. Hawaii and Massachusetts have proposed bills to study the feasibility of a statewide OER initiative and greater investment in digital, low cost materials, respectively. Read more “OER Digest – February 7th, 2019” →

OER Digest – January 24th, 2019

From Mo Nyamweya, SPARC | Volume 73 | January 24th, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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STATE POLICY UPDATES: State legislatures are off to a start across the country, with numerous states introducing legislation on OER and related issues. Oregon and Virginia are considering a bills to require marking OER or low-cost materials in course schedules. Hawaii and Massachusetts have introduced bills concerning OER taskforces. Meanwhile, Minnesota is considering a far-reaching bill to set textbook affordability targets. Read more “OER Digest – January 24th, 2019” →

OER Digest – January 10th, 2019

From Kaitlyn Vitez and Cailyn Nagle (U.S. PIRG) | Volume 72 | January 10th, 2019

THE OER DIGEST

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HAPPY NEW YEAR: Happy Public Domain Day! For the first time in twenty years, U.S copyright expired on hundreds of published works from 1923, which can now be freely adapted. Books by Aldous Huxley, Kahlil Gibran, and Robert Frost are now available without restriction online, as well as over a thousand  works such as of movies and songs. You can check out a partial list of released works and the history of copyright fights here. Read more “OER Digest – January 10th, 2019” →