The University of Wisconsin-Madison Wisconsin Student Public Interest Research Group released a statement Monday announcing the results of a survey conducted on students regarding the cost of college textbooks, revealing that many students have refused to continue purchasing books.
According to the survey of 143 students led by WISPIRG, 65 percent of students are not buying print textbooks because of the rising price.
The report, entitled “Fixing the Broken Textbooks Market: How Students Respond to High Textbook Costs and Demand Alternatives,” details the rise in cost, saying textbook prices have increased 82 percent over the past decade.
“Even though used books and rental programs are saving students money, the price of textbooks is still going up,” WISPIRG campaign leader Mariella Treleven said in the release. “We need the federal government, states, and most importantly—individual campuses—to support and invest in alternatives outside of the traditional textbook market.”
Treleven said that the best option for students looking to stray away from textbooks is open textbooks, which are free, online resources for class content, compiled by faculty and peers.
Associated Students of Madison Chair David Gardner said the issue of textbook affordability is one that will be a major focus for student council in 2014. University Affairs Committee took part in a whiteboard campaign in the fall, where students wrote the cost of their textbooks for the semester.
“The issue is looking at the cost to students and what options are available,” Gardner said. “The whiteboard campaign was really about awareness and spreading the word that students are spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars every semester on their textbooks.”
At a recent conference of the Association of Big Ten Students, Gardner said focus was placed on finding alternatives for colleges other than making students purchase physical books. Gardner also highlighted the availability of course readers at UW-Madison, which provide material for classes at a reduced rate.
The University Affairs Committee, as well as ASM as a whole, will continue work this spring to reduce the financial burden on students, according to Gardner.
WISPIRG’s report can be viewed in its entirety at their website.
