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E-textbooksOpportunities, innovations, distractions
and dilemmas
Tom Davy
Thomson Learning
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What is a textbook?Teaching aid and
learning resource
Matches course requirements
Follows a logical
sequence
A synthesis of current
knowledge
Includes supplements
Pedagogical features
Learning objectives
Case studies
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4
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Textbook Supplements
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1976
38.2%
33.8%
10.1%
8.4%
2.7%
6.8%Royalties
Printing
Typesetting
Permissions
Design
MS preparation
Textbook cost elements
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Textbook cost elements
2006
38.1%
33.5%
3.3%
2.8%
2.8%
2.8%
4.6%
4.6%
3.7%3.7%
Royalties
Printing
Typesetting
Permissions
Art
Web site
Design
Research
Testbank
MS preparation
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HE Textbook Revenue (£000's)
£0
£10,000
£20,000
£30,000
£40,000
£50,000
£60,000
£70,000
£80,000
£90,000
Bus Law Soc St. Med Eng Econ Comp Sc Biol Engl Other Total
Discipline
2003 2004 2005
CAGR (03-05) 2005 RevBus -5.0% £16,119Law 11.9% £12,648Soc St. 0.0% £8,866Med 6.0% £6,219Eng -2.0% £3,474Econ -5.3% £3,098Comp Sc -13.8% £3,094Biol 9.2% £2,884Engl -7.7% £2,774Other 0.9% £19,188Total -0.1% £78,364
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Teaching Philosophies
A bi-product of research
Learning shouldn’t be fun
Students shouldn’t be spoon-fed
Discovery not prescription
Learner-centred Vs teacher-led
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Student expectations
Get me through the course
Grab my attention
Highly visual
Better than Google
The bits I need when I need them
Built-in links for further research
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Publisher Objectives
Win market share Build a superior product
Better syllabus match Authoritative author Latest thinking New material Makes course delivery easier Value-adding supplements
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It’s an arms race…
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Diminishing returns
More returns, less ROI
Reducing sell-through
New edition cycles
Second-hand sales
“Web resources are free”
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US Vs ROW price differentials
Kotler, Armstrong Principles of Marketing
UK Edition £42.99
US Edition $160 = £80.00
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US Edition UK Edition
$141.98 = £70 £39.89
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Economics of textbook publishing High initial investment
Supplements High Price
In the US If discretionary purchase for students Used books, leakage, buying around, piracy
Inefficient supply chain Multiple intermediaries
High wastage “Unsuccessful” first editions Too much content Returns
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Corporate exodus from education
“Education slow to adopt digital solutions”
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Textbook Vs Digital
Textbook Portable
Tactile
No equipment required
Text better on paper
Organising framework
Linear
Single medium
Too much or too little
Single learning style
Digital I-pods, mobile phones
I-pods, mobile phones
Ubiquitous items
E-paper, print on demand
Learner journeys
Interactive
Multiple media
As much as you need
Individual learning styles
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Context
Faculty Tutor contact hours are reducing(www.williseemytutor.com)
From sage on the stage to guide on the sideStudents Access to huge amount of content Students will accept “good enough” Students have become Googleized
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Is there a better way?
What would we invent today if the textbook did not exist?
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Wisdom
Understanding
Knowledge
Information
Data
The Learning Pyramid
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Book Centric
Learning Assessments
Case Studies
Companion Website
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LearningObjective
Learning Assessments
Objective Centric
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Dilemmas
Print pays our salaries
The bleeding edge is a painful place
Selling direct to students
Digital rights management
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Distractions
E-books
Bookshops
Digitalist zealots
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Innovations
The demise of content silos
Customised content
User created and sharing
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Opportunities
University management: offer your customers a more compelling learning experience Go digital
Librarians: market your services more effectively Move into the campus bookshop space
Publishers Look beyond the textbook Start thinking objectives and digital learning
objects