4 ms·

In School Systems, Slow Progress for Open-Source Textbooks

26 points by SandB0x 16y ago

dublinclontarf 16y ago
Nice to see McNealy doing something constructive with his time. It's not like this idea hasn't been around for some time but it's never taken off, for numerable reasons.
- chunkbot 16y ago
  Could you enumerate the reasons? I'd like to know why "open books" hasn't taken off.
  - shantanubala 16y ago
    As a high school student, here's what I've found: Most students in public school systems don't actually pay for books, so the students couldn't really care less about who makes the books they use let alone the licensing, cost, etc. Parents aren't aware enough to demand it of their school systems. Teachers are extremely skeptical of wiki-style operations from the start, even if there is solid editing. Marketing open-source textbooks is difficult since it doesn't necessarily generate a whole lot of revenue. Organizations, especially schools, buy stuff that's marketed to them. Most curricula (especially International Baccalaureate/Advanced Placement) is designed with specific topics in mind. Since there aren't as many open books, there isn't as much selection. Books sometimes miss important topics. Even though teachers aren't allowed to photocopy regular textbooks, they do. Who's going to file a lawsuit? There's more, but these aren't necessarily drawbacks to open books, but reasons why they're not really being considered as much.
adulau 16y ago
The website (relying on a modified version of XWiki[1]) is a bit difficult to use and read. I didn't try contribution or to register but compared to Wikibooks (http://en.wikibooks.org/ http://en.wikibooks.org/) where navigation is easy and contributing is much more easy. This could be factor for the slow progress. [1] Please note the use of Java...
zavulon 16y ago
This is completely off topic.. but how do you name your son "Dakota"? Poor boy ...
gamble 16y ago
Few kids in grade school pay for their own texts. They are provided by the district, and new sets aren't purchased every year. Cost is a less salient issue than politics and changes to the curriculum. The 'solution' to expensive textbooks for university students is, increasingly, piracy. I'm surprised anyone is still buying books these days. Almost any undergrad text is easily pirated.

26 points by SandB0x 16y ago

Nice to see McNealy doing something constructive with his time. It's not like this idea hasn't been around for some time but it's never taken off, for numerable reasons.

chunkbot 16y ago
Could you enumerate the reasons? I'd like to know why "open books" hasn't taken off.
- shantanubala 16y ago
  As a high school student, here's what I've found: Most students in public school systems don't actually pay for books, so the students couldn't really care less about who makes the books they use let alone the licensing, cost, etc. Parents aren't aware enough to demand it of their school systems. Teachers are extremely skeptical of wiki-style operations from the start, even if there is solid editing. Marketing open-source textbooks is difficult since it doesn't necessarily generate a whole lot of revenue. Organizations, especially schools, buy stuff that's marketed to them. Most curricula (especially International Baccalaureate/Advanced Placement) is designed with specific topics in mind. Since there aren't as many open books, there isn't as much selection. Books sometimes miss important topics. Even though teachers aren't allowed to photocopy regular textbooks, they do. Who's going to file a lawsuit? There's more, but these aren't necessarily drawbacks to open books, but reasons why they're not really being considered as much.

adulau 16y ago

The website (relying on a modified version of XWiki[1]) is a bit difficult to use and read. I didn't try contribution or to register but compared to Wikibooks (http://en.wikibooks.org/ http://en.wikibooks.org/) where navigation is easy and contributing is much more easy. This could be factor for the slow progress. [1] Please note the use of Java...

zavulon 16y ago

This is completely off topic.. but how do you name your son "Dakota"? Poor boy ...

gamble 16y ago

Few kids in grade school pay for their own texts. They are provided by the district, and new sets aren't purchased every year. Cost is a less salient issue than politics and changes to the curriculum. The 'solution' to expensive textbooks for university students is, increasingly, piracy. I'm surprised anyone is still buying books these days. Almost any undergrad text is easily pirated.