The Open Textbook Puzzle

Can open textbooks provide a viable solution to high-cost textbooks? Are they quality books? What will encourage faculty to develop or adopt them? What is a book? How do students prefer to use textbooks? What is the sustainability model for a free, open textbook? How can the development of open textbooks become recognized and rewarded in tenure and promotion decisions? Answers to these questions and more will be offered from the findings of the FIPSE Open Access Textbook grant project. We will explore Florida faculty and student survey results, interviews with OER leaders, open textbook authors and faculty adopters, and lessons learned from Orange Grove Texts Plus, Florida's open textbook initiative. Discover how your institution or state can participate in open textbooks and benefit from the generous support of FIPSE. Please bring your ideas to help solve the puzzle!