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

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EDUCAUSE Library Items for E-Textbooks

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Some Thoughts on Free Textbooks: January 14, 2009

Textbooks : Introduction to Physical Oceanography; Our Ocean Planet; Environmental Science in the 21st Century Author: Robert Stewart, Professor, Oceanography Department,…
The Textbook That Is Truly Free: January 16, 2009

Textbook: A First Course in Linear Algebra Author: Rob Beezer, Professor, Mathematics and Computer Science Department, University of Puget Sound The Truly Free T…
Executive Summary: January 16, 2009

STUDENTS Course Correction : Executive Summary By Nicole Allen, Director, Make Textbooks Affordable Campaign From Course Correction: How Digital Textbooks Are Off Track, and H…
College: January 14, 2009

PUBLISHERS Book Industry Trends: College By Stephanie Oda and Glenn Sanislo From Book Industry Trends 2008 (New York: Book Industry Study Group, 2008), pp. 179-181. Reprin…
The Case of the Textbook: Open or Closed?: January 14, 2009

The Case of the Textbook: Open or Closed? As the price of college/university textbooks continues to rise, new electronic models and various “open” options are being proposed from all sid…
EDUCAUSE Review Magazine, Volume 44, Number 1, January/February 2009: January 16, 2009

The Case of the Textbook: Open or Closed? EDUCAUSE Values: Openness features The Case of the Textbook: Open or Closed? As the price of college/university textbooks…
Kno a New Type of Textbook: August 22, 2011

Just putting this out there. I know there are many types of online text books and platforms for using the textbooks both via the web and through iOS apps that are making the rounds but I heard o…
e-Textbook Apps and Higher Education Costs: August 11, 2011

The high cost of textbooks has been a significant concern among students, families, and legislators for the last several years, and it has often been used as a proxy for concerns about higher …
E-Textbooks for All: October 7, 2008

A pilot at the University of Texas at Austin will replace printed textbooks with electronic versions for all students in certain classes, free of charge. …
Students Flock to Web Sites Offering Pirated Textbooks: September 4, 2008

A new survey of students found that about a quarter of them reported hunting for an illegal copy of a textbook from pirate Web sites. The survey was small—only about 500 students from two co…