Whitepaper: For-Profit B2B Content

A few years ago, I was contracted to write a whitepaper that could be used by the CEO and other sales employees who were in conversation with prospective clients. The whitepaper was designed to educate higher education administration on the complex web of struggles students experience when they are faced with the high cost of course materials. It also aimed to offer a definition for a new kind of model called equitable access that created a more predictable cost structure for course materials. This whitepaper was also ghostwritten under the owner and founder's name and is still an active piece of content on their website today, a few years after its initial publication.

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When Course Materials Bite: How an Equitable Access Program Can Give Students More Than Textbooks

Across universities and colleges, administrators and staff work hard to provide for students and equip them for success. But what if one fundamental piece of the academic experience was underserving students, impacting their performance, their eating habits and overall emotional and mental health?

Most students arrive on campus with everything except their course materials, which they expect to purchase or rent at the university bookstore or online before classes begin. Each year, they are met with rising costs and limited time to get what they need. What should be a simple process—gaining access to critical learning tools—has become a barrier to success for many students. Backed into a corner, some students must become inventive and resourceful, finding ways to get by when options are limited.

What if universities could reach students with the right resources at the right time? Many institutions are operating on an outdated model of delivering course materials and may not realize they are well-positioned to remove these simple barriers that impact basic needs and academic success. This article explores the challenge of accessibility to course materials and offers a solution that will not only increase resources for students but relieve the financial burden long before they arrive on campus.

The Access Problem

COST

The course materials access problem is believed to be a socio-economic issue. While some studies have found student spending to be on a slow decline, there are various explanations for this change. Some attribute it to intentional efforts on behalf of college stores to make materials more affordable, but other experts are worried student spending is down simply because students cannot afford the books and aren’t buying them. The National Association of College Stores (NACS) conducted a survey in the 2018-19 school year that found 89 percent of students downloaded some kind of free materials for a course—illegally obtained, legitimate open educational resources (OERs) or otherwise.

So, what do course materials actually cost students? College Board estimates that, on average, students at private, non-profit, four-year institutions spent $1,240 on books and supplies in the 2019-20 school year, about the same as the 2018-19 school year. Increasingly, costs associated with course materials go beyond textbooks. Some courses require students pay for a code to gain access to quizzes and homework associated with the textbook.

One study released in 2020 found 89 percent of students surveyed reported feeling additional stress due to textbook costs, and 65 percent reported not buying a required textbook due to cost. As a result, many students didn’t have their materials on the first day of class, and startling numbers of students reported avoiding, dropping or failing a class—an impact directly connected to high costs and access to course materials.

This isn’t uncommon, and it’s the reason why some learners never purchase their textbooks. Others take a wait-and-see approach, holding off on a big purchase until they see the course syllabus on the first day or even waiting until the professor assigns the reading or coursework to look for the materials. Instead of putting off purchases, students also put off taking classes with expensive course materials or spend hours in the library scanning pages from books just to get by. They can end up with outdated materials, which impacts their performance in class.

Creativity and resourcefulness become essential for college survival, especially for learners who find themselves at a disadvantage socio-economically. The cost of course materials also varies widely depending on area of study, creating significant inequity among students. College Board reported 17 percent of students said they changed their major because of high textbook prices and 33 percent opted not to take certain courses.

And, unfortunately, the impact doesn’t end with a student’s choice of major.

INEQUITY

Food insecurity on college campuses is more prevalent than most people realize. Students often have to choose between buying textbooks and buying food, according to registered dietician nutritionist Laura B. Frank. Frank attributes food insecurity to rising costs associated with higher education. She says it also correlates with first-generation college students, students of color, Pell Grant recipients and more. Even when other systems within the institution prioritize equity, something as simple as course materials can widen the gap between students, marginalizing those who are equally capable of academic success and high performance.

This cycle of struggle is difficult to break. Students from low-income families are more likely to work their way through college in part-time jobs in order to make ends meet. Unfortunately, getting a job is still not enough to relieve food insecurity for many students and can even contribute to the problem, causing them to miss dining hall hours and opt for cheaper meal plans with fewer meals. In fact, 22 percent of students working more than 30 hours a week still identified as being food insecure. And, if students drop out due to these issues, they’re at an even greater disadvantage with student debt and no degree.

Read the entire whitepaper and see associated graphics and references here: When Course Materials Bite Whitepaper.