E-Textbooks

With the cost of textbooks soaring, many colleges and universities are looking to alternatives to the traditional paper text. The electronic textbook field is still emerging, and higher education is experimenting with the concept in various modes. Explore this resource site—a collection of all EDUCAUSE resources related to E-Textbooks.

EDUCAUSE and Internet2 E-Text Pilots

EDUCAUSE and Internet2 are implementing a series of e-text pilot efforts with colleges and universities to evaluate technologies and business models in the fast evolving migration from traditional textbooks to electronic content. Learn More >

E-Texts Constituent Group

Intended for general discussion in addition to news about the pilot, the E-Texts Constituent Group discusses the rapidly evolving domain of digital textbooks, multimedia supplements, tutorial websites, e-reader/annotation software, and related materials. Learn More >

New Resources

7 Things You Should Know About the Evolution of the Textbook, ELI 7 Things, April 2012. This resource examines a new breed of rich-media publishing tools that offer an evolving set of opportunities both for the creation process and for the kinds of resources that can be produced.
Developing a Digital Textbook Strategy for Your Campus, Florida Distance Learning Consortium, February 2012. This one-day symposium examined institution and state level digital textbook initiatives, including national trends and prevailing models for both publisher digital textbooks and open textbooks.
eTexts: A Perishable Opportunity for Higher Education?, EDUCAUSE Live!, January 24, 2012 - This EDUCAUSE Live! program addressd the strategic, business, and policy implications for institutions in light of a changing world of consumer electronics and new models for digital educational resources such as eTexts, website tutorials, and other licensed content.

Articles, Papers, and Reports

A Study of Four Textbook Distribution Models, EDUCAUSE Quarterly, December 2011. In preparation for campus-wide e-text adoption, Daytona State College completed a two-year comparative study of four textbook distribution models: print purchase, print rental, e-text rental, and e-text rental with e-reader device.
Digital Texts and the Future of Education: Why Books?, EDUCAUSE Quarterly, March 2011. Abilene Christian University and GYLO partnered to investigate student attitudes and perceptions of the impact of using a mobile device as a supplemental tool for teaching statistics.
7 Things You Should Know About Open Textbook Publishing, ELI 7 Things, March 2011. Open textbooks can be offered by commercial publishers or found in open repositories. Open resources can promote active learning through student interaction with the text, particularly when they contribute to authorship.
A Cover to Cover Solution: How Open Textbooks are the Path to Textbook Affordability, Student PIRGs, September 2010. This report evaluates cost-reducing options from the traditional textbook market—rentals, e-books and e-readers—and open textbooks as potential next steps to reduce the high cost of textbooks.
E-Textbooks: “An Interesting Ride”, EDUCAUSE Review, March/April 2010. An interview conducted at the EDUCAUSE 2009 Annual Conference about the use of digital textbooks in higher education.
E-Books in Higher Education: Are We There Yet?, ECAR Research Bulletin, January 2010. This ECAR research bulletin presents an update to the rapidly changing e-book and e-textbook landscape and provides some higher education stakeholders with a clearer view of the road ahead.
A Campus-Wide E-Textbook Initiative, EDUCAUSE Quarterly, July 2009. This article focuses on the process that Northwest Missouri State University followed in studying the feasibility of transitioning from the rental of traditional textbooks to the rental of e-textbooks, along with the extensive integration of e-textbooks across the university’s academic environment.

Presentations, Podcasts, Seminars, and Videos

Got Open Textbook? ELI Online Fall Focus Session, September 2011. This session speaker discusses resource discovery, implementation issues, and the pros and cons of using open-source materials and concludes with some recommendations applicable for any stage of open-source resource adoption.
Textbook Affordability: Emerging Solutions in Ohio, ELI Web Seminar, March 2011. This webinar discusses why textbook costs have skyrocketed; how textbook costs impact students, faculty, and institutions; and current initiatives by the University System of Ohio to address textbook affordability and learning outcomes.
Digital Content in Higher Education—Practical Findings, ELI Web Seminar, March 2011. This webinar provides an overview of the digital textbook landscape as it currently exists and a glimpse into the emerging trends that will shape higher education digital content in the near future.

EDUCAUSE Staff Picks

7 Things You Should Know About the Evolution of the Textbook, ELI 7 Things, April 2012. This resource examines a new breed of rich-media publishing tools that offer an evolving set of opportunities both for the creation process and for the kinds of resources that can be produced.
eTexts: A Perishable Opportunity for Higher Education?, EDUCAUSE Live!, January 24, 2012 - This EDUCAUSE Live! program addressd the strategic, business, and policy implications for institutions in light of a changing world of consumer electronics and new models for digital educational resources such as eTexts, website tutorials, and other licensed content.
A Study of Four Textbook Distribution Models, EDUCAUSE Quarterly, December 2011. In preparation for campus-wide e-text adoption, Daytona State College completed a two-year comparative study of four textbook distribution models: print purchase, print rental, e-text rental, and e-text rental with e-reader device.
7 Things You Should Know About Open Textbook Publishing, ELI 7 Things, March 2011. Open textbooks can be offered by commercial publishers or found in open repositories. Open resources can promote active learning through student interaction with the text, particularly when they contribute to authorship.

Library Items on this Topic

View All

EDUCAUSE Library Items for E-Textbooks

Showing 11 - 20 of 104 Results

Sort by:

Relevancy | Title | Date

Next-Generation Learning: How Do We Get There from Here?: February 4, 2013 | A session at the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative Annual Meeting
What does tech-enabled next-generation learning mean to you, and what does it look like on your campus? What excites you most about the potential it offers? What is your greatest concern about if t…
Technology Enhancement Tools in an Undergraduate Biology Course: December 10, 2012

Key Takeaways This single-class study sought to evaluate technology-enhanced student engagement by comparing the experiences of students using only an e-textbook with the exper…
EDUCAUSE/Internet2 eText Pilots and Accessibility: October 24, 2012

In 2012, EDUCAUSE and Internet2 began a series of pilots to explore e-text/e-content business models and institutional adoption. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) expressed concerns abou…
Policy Issues for eText Adoption in Higher Education: December 11, 2012

EDUCAUSE and Internet2 have initiated an eText Pilot Series in an effort to learn more about the promises of eContent and to influence evolving business models. During a recent presentati…
E-Content: Opportunity and Risk: September 5, 2012

Shel Waggener is Senior Vice President of Internet2. The debate is over: students are asking for digital now, this semester. It isn't as if we didn't know the change was coming.…
Free Digital Textbooks, More For-Profit Accountability Coming to California: September 28, 2012

As reported by Inside Higher Ed , new laws enacted in California will have significant impacts on higher education in the state. The Los Angeles Times reports that two companion pi…
ERO Podcast: Cable Green of Creative Commons Talks About Openness: September 5, 2012

In this podcast, Cable Green talks about Open Access, Open Resources, and Open Policies. Cable Green is director of global learning for Creative Commons. …
Podcast: Wake Forest University's BioBook: July 17, 2012

In this podcast we interview the creators of BioBook, a scalable e-text embodying six central principles of learning. It is organized into self-contained "nodes" that can be revised or …
Case Study 21: Shaping the Path to Digital: The Indiana University eTexts Initiative: May 2, 2012

A case study from Game Changers Brad Wheeler and Nik Osborne This chapter is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License Introduction The risi…
7 Things You Should Know About the Evolution of the Textbook: April 3, 2012

Tablet devices and the publishing they enable are leading us to reconsider what constitutes a textbook , and they certainly change the landscape of what it has traditionally meant to write an…

Main Nav

Publications

Research

Major Conferences

Online Events

Special Topic Events

Events for all Levels and Interests

Career Center

Leadership and Management Programs

Fellowships and Awards

Getting Involved

Jump Start Your Career Growth

Latest Topics

EDUCAUSE organizes its efforts around three IT Focus Areas

Join These Programs If Your Focus Is

From the Blogs

Find Others

Share Ideas

Get on the Higher Ed IT Map

2013 Strategic Priorities

Membership

Who We Are

Stay Informed

Uncommon Thinking for the Common Good™

< EDUCAUSE Library

Subscribe

Browse this Topic

Expand Topic...

Your Selections Under:

Related Topics

Filter by type

Filter by Publications

Filter by Presentations

Filter by Library Taxonomy