Solving the Textbook Problem

As I see it, there are three problems with textbooks: (1) content, (2) publishing, and (3) medium. That is, publishing companies have a heavy hand in deciding what content students learn, which is somewhat problematic in a democracy (but expected within a capitalistic society). In addition, as information grows and increases exponentially, it is becoming more difficult to maintain the relevancy of content. Second, a select number of publishers in California and Texas dominate the publishing industry, which is predominantly financed by K-12 school districts and college students. Finally, the idea of lugging a five-pound tome to and from school only to read 40 pages seems antiquated.

Given these problems, do we have solutions? Excitedly, we (seemingly) do. Through open-sourcing and e-readers, adapting solutions seems to be within reach. In a recent NYT piece, ($200 Text Book vs. Free. You do the Math) the plausibility of these options are addressed. The article's author, Ashlee Vance writes, "Over the last few years, groups nationwide have adopted the open-source mantra of the software world and started financing open-source books. Experts — often retired teachers or groups of teachers — write these books and allow anyone to distribute them in digital, printed or audio formats. Schools can rearrange the contents of the books to suit their needs and requirements."

Will this be the panacea? Doubtful. Is it an improvement from the current state of textbooks? Likely. The article is a worthy read, and I hope this issue gains more cultural and political momentum.