Penn State news by
Penn State's student blog

Topics

More

Penn State Joins Open Textbook Network To Increase Free Student Textbook Access

The university library is now part of the Open Textbook Network to “help support Penn State faculty’s use of and students’ availability to free, openly licensed academic course content,” the university said in a press release.

Basically, the Open Textbook Network provides students and faculty access to free peer-reviewed textbooks online. “Open textbooks are textbooks that have been funded, published, and licensed to be freely used, adapted, and distributed,” the Network’s website says. Now that Penn State is in the Network, university faculty will also be able to review the textbooks.

If faculty commit to using open textbooks in classes, rising textbook costs could be a thing of the past for Penn State students. Many professors are already making the switch to free, online textbooks, opting to have students spend their course resource budgets on other tools like Top Hat or iClickers.

“Penn State’s membership in the Open Textbook Network supports faculty and students’ access to a large volume of free, openly licensed course content, available online, to help reduce students’ overall cost of attendance,” the University Libraries’ associate dean for Learning, Undergraduate Services, and Commonwealth Campus Libraries, Joe Salem, said in the release. “Joining the Open Textbook Network was one of the recommendations of the University’s Open Educational Resources Task Force as part of a multi-faceted approach to supporting open and affordable course content throughout the curriculum.”

Penn State will hold the Open Education Resources Summit on March 23 to “educate participants university-wide about OER, share updates from the provost-charged OER task force, showcase examples of OER in practice, and encourage active creation of OER content at a hands-on workshop.” An additional workshop in the fall will coincide with international Open Access Week in October.

Your ad blocker is on.

Please choose an option below.

Sign up for our e-mail newsletter:
OR
Support quality journalism:
Purchase a Subscription!

About the Author

Elissa Hill

Elissa was the managing editor of Onward State from 2017-2019. She is from Punxsutawney, PA [insert corny Bill Murray joke here] and considers herself an expert on all things ice cream. Follow her on Twitter (@ElissaKHill) for more corny jokes.

State College Goodwill Sells Rare Lego Piece For Over $18,000

While it took some time for Goodwill experts to know what they had on their hands, initial offers for the peice came in at $30,000.

New Defensive Coordinator Tom Allen Brings Key Wrinkles To Penn State Football’s Defense

“We try to keep things simple so we can play fast.”

Women’s History Month: Five Influential Penn State Alumnae

To celebrate Women’s History Month, learn more about five influential Penn State Alumnae.

Follow on Another Platform
113kFollowers
164kFollowers
59.4kFollowers
4,570Subscribers
Other posts by Elissa

2020 Blue-White Game To Kick Off April 18

More details will be announced following the 2019 season, but the game is usually scheduled for a mid-afternoon kickoff and aired live on BTN.

Penn State Football Announces First Five Kickoff Times For 2019 Season

Behring, Barlow, Engeman, & Marshall Secure Democratic Nominations For State College Borough Council