How Textbook Publishers Manipulate Costs for Students

I remember my jaw dropping the first time I saw the prices for my university textbooks. Textbooks are one of the most frustrating expenses for an undergraduate student. According to the Canadian Roundtable on Academic Materials (CRAM), from 1997-2005, textbook prices have increased approximately by 280%. Over the same period, the Canadian Price Index (CPI) has only increased by 22%. Annette Bright, the manager of the University of Lethbridge Book Store, says that the average full time student should budget around $2000 for textbooks for each academic year. This represents more than 12% of tuition for a sizable portion of the student body.

Many students blame campus bookstores for these high costs but a more appropriate body to criticize would be the textbook publishers/distributors.

The market for textbooks for undergraduate students is very unique when compared to most traditional markets. The individuals that are responsible for deciding what textbooks are used for a course (the instructors) are not the same individuals that are paying for them. For many professors, content and quality are the main deciding factors for deciding what textbooks should be used for a class. While content and quality are important factors, this means that textbook publishers are under less pressure to keep textbook prices low.

Another factor that is driving up the cost of textbooks is the high frequency of new editions. Over the past decade the frequency of new editions for textbooks has increased significantly. According to Bright, it is now customary for a textbook publisher to issue a new edition approximately every two years. This is typically the industry standard regardless of how much change has occurred in the subject matter since the previous edition.  According to Jim Corven, a professor from Bristol Community College, “while updates are useful and necessary, the real differences from edition to edition are often insignificant and do not justify the publication of an expensive new edition”.

The inflow of new editions of textbooks also hurts the used textbook market. A new edition of a textbook may result in students being unable to resell a recently purchased textbook. The shorter shelf life of textbooks results in a lessened opportunity to sell a textbook. For many students, the used textbook market is the most functional medium of accessing lower cost academic materials.

Another item that is contributing to the high costs of textbooks is the increased practice of bundling. Bundling is the practice of shrink-wrapping additional materials such as CDs, study guides, activation codes for websites and foldouts with textbooks. This practice results in an increased price for the textbooks. The main issue with bundling is that instructors rarely include bundled materials in their curriculum. According to the State PIRG study, only 24% of instructors estimate that they “always” or “usually” use the additional bundled materials.

The high cost of textbooks for Canadian post-secondary students is also heavily influenced by Canadian importation regulations. In 1999, the federal government implemented importation regulations in the Canadian Copyright Act in an attempt to protect the Canadian publishing industry. This regulation requires Canadian bookstores to purchase from Canadian distributors as long as the distributor is selling within 10 percent of the American price or 15 percent of the international price. This allows Canadian publishers to sell their products above market price and pass the increased costs on to students. The proceeds from the imported mark-up go directly to the textbook publishers and not to the authors of the text. Also, the American branch for many book distributors will not do business with Canadian bookstores because of internal agreements with the Canadian branch of the organization.

The actions of textbook publishers have caused several groups to react.  In 2008, the Canadian Roundtable on Academic Materials (CRAM), a group comprising of several student associations/unions and campus bookstores, was formed to create a national dialogue on academic materials. In addition to this, several organizations such as the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA), Campus Stores Canada, the Canadian Booksellers Associations and CRAM have lobbied to the federal government about issues relating to academic materials.

While the textbook industry may be inherently flawed, there are many things that students can do to reduce their expenses.

• Buy used textbooks- Used textbooks are noticeably cheaper than their unused counterparts. Sometimes they even have helpful highlighted portions.
• Talk to your instructor- Before you purchase a textbook you should always ask your instructor if the textbook is necessary and if you can use an older edition.
• Look at bulletin boards- The hallways are usually filled with flyers from students trying to sell textbooks. You can end up getting a good deal and help out a fellow student at the same time.
• Ask friends- A really easy way to save some money is to borrow or buy books from friends who have taken the class already.
• Share a textbook- If you have a friend in the same class you can possibly consider this option.  The main downside to this is organizing when each of you gets the textbook.
• See if the library has a reserve copy- In some instances, the library will have a reserve copy of the text on hand.
• Visit local used book stores- If you are purchasing literature, a good option would be to visit local used book stores.  If it’s a fairly common text (e.g. Hamlet) it should be fairly cheap and easy to find.
• www.thothle.ca – This is a free web service that searches through several online bookstores to find the best possible deals. The main issue with purchasing online would be waiting for the text to ship.
• eBooks- eBooks are becoming a more viable textbook medium. They are paperless and typically cheaper than physical copies. The only downside is that some are sold on a subscription basis.
• Online Databases- Free online databases in recent years have become a more viable option for students. Some really good databases are Bibliomania, the Guttenberg Project, Open Courseware Consortium and Connexions.

Summer at the U: U and the mayor.

Everyone knows that feeling they get when they are told to get “involved in something” or “there are so many opportunities you should take advantage of”. It seems to me that the feeling is not one of “screw that”, but rather a distant “maybe I should, but I wouldn’t know where to start, so I won’t”. If I’m completely out to lunch well then I guess I’m sorry, and crazy. Assuming I’m not completely crazy, I know about something that just might be simple enough to do and feel good about without cutting into too much of your summer fun. This something is called a City Circle. A City Circle sounds great in the first place just because it is one of the best geometric shapes, far superior to any city square, which means Lethbridge is better than New York and Beijing. However, a city circle is not something that we are going to build but rather something that is going to build us. Before I tell you what they are, consider how much we all love Vancouver (or would if it were not so rainy, or unless this is another one of my crazy person moments.) Van is a pretty sweet city that most people love. They have a city circle; or rather city circles, or more accurately they had City Circles. Vancouver used the idea of small groups of citizens sitting around the proverbial kitchen table or coffee shop talking about what their city should be. Long story short, it worked and it worked well. The city listened to ideas and problems that had never crossed their elected minds. They even listened to the solutions that these citizens thought were reasonable, then took all those ideas and suggestions and used them to create the urban development plan for the city. It lent an ear to the people and in a real way: the public’s concerns were not just heard but listened to—almost like democracy.

Okay, so have I come close to telling you what a city circle is? No. here’s the formal definition {“A City Circle is a self-formed and self-managed group of Lethbridge residents who want to help with preparing the new plan. To form a City Circle get a group of friends together; they can be from work, school, sport, extracurricular, an existing organization, your family, or all of the above—there are no rule for how your Circle organizes itself. Your City Circle will meet when and where its member want and discuss any community related issue you choose.”} Some social activism for your summer might be a pretty good way to explore what you think a city should be. Address any issue you think it is worthwhile. Maybe consider something like the cancerous growth that is Calgarian urban sprawl. Urban sprawl is one of the topics started in a facebook based city circle on housing so if you’re not starting your own then contribute to this one.   These city circles are a major part of a smaller oversight committee that will be charged with the task of going through the suggestion of each and every city circle, and designing the new Lethbridge City Plan around them. Last year the Students Union fought for a seat on this committee and now we have it. SU President Jeremy and VP internal Cole sit on this committee to make sure post secondary students, who make up 10-15% of the population, are in that plan. But we need more students to spark a city circle and send those ideas strait onto the mayors desk. The City Circle work ends sept 1st so take the summer down time and get started on it right away.

Beyond the geometric shape of social activity there is a list of amazing opportunities for students within Canada and globally; in my personal opinion, I would give up a lot to take part in some of these. One I just heard about this morning: As part of its 2009 FilterForGood campaign, Brita has partnered with the award-winning organization Students on Ice (SOI) to launch the Filter For Good Eco-Challenge Student Grant Program. This means a major grant that will take you to the Arctic all summer studying ice with leading scientists, might be the start of an amazing career.

Some are more of a job- you may even get paid for it:  http://www.sierraclub.ca/prairie/

Some are grass roots lobbying- The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition (CYCC) is in the early stages of organizing an event called Power Shift Canada. We need YOU!

..Could be one hell of a summer if you really feel like getting out there.

Federal lobbying with CASA

For those of you that don’t know, one of the primary mandates of the University of Lethbridge Students’ Union (ULSU) is to advocate for students on a municipal, provincial and federal level. The ULSU fulfills the federal aspect of our advocacy mandate with our membership in the Canadian Alliance of Students Associations (CASA).

Federal lobbying provides the University of Lethbridge Students’ Union with another vessel to express the needs of UofL students to the federal level of government. The ULSU believes that it is important to lobby the federal level of government because they can play a vital role in controlling student debt and in increasing the accessibility and affordability of a post-secondary education.

CASA is, in essence, an alliance of student associations and unions formed to lobby/advocate for the best interests of students on a national level. This organization is composed of 24 post-secondary institutions in Canada and represents more than 300,000 students. It is a lobby group that is focused solely on post-secondary education at the federal level and inter-governmental levels of decision-making and nothing else.

CASA prides itself as a lobby group that presents realistic  on post-secondary education to the federal level of government. The ULSU strongly respect the lobbying methods used by CASA because they make sound pragmatic arguments to party leaders, senators, members of parliament and other political policy-makers to draw the government’s attention at a more personal level about education.

This is a member-driven organization that operates under a “one school, one vote” philosophy where each school has equal say regardless of its size. The membership, rather than the staff, shapes the policy, goals and direction of the organization.  

The organization operates under four primary policy principals.

Accessibility: CASA believes that any academically qualified student with the desire to pursue post-secondary education should not face a barrier – financial, social, political, physical, cultural, or otherwise.

Affordability: CASA believes that students should not accumulate an unreasonable or insupportable amount of debt in the pursuit of a post-secondary education or in continuing such an education.

Innovation: CASA believes that post-secondary education should have sustainable research programs across all disciplines, with the benefits of such research shared across all levels of the student body.

Quality: CASA believes in a quality public post-secondary education system that is properly funded, effective and accountable; cooperatively maintained and enhanced by the federal and provincial governments.

CASA has worked on and has advocated for several issues that the ULSU feels is relevant to students such as the Canada Student Loans Program, the Canada Student Grant Program, Canada Study and Access Grants, the Canada Millennium Scholarship Foundation, access and affordability of PSE for under-represented students, Debt Reduction in Repayment, Interest Relief, and interest and rates on student loans ¹

 

“CASA has played an important role in the development of federal policies on post-secondary education – in particular the Canadian Opportunities Strategy.  I am confident that these young leaders, and the organization they now represent, will continue to have a positive influence on the federal policy in the future.”

- The Rt. Hon. Paul Martin, then Minister of Finance.

“Your input is welcomed and encouraged without reservation.  Our party will try to give voice to the very real concerns that face Canadian students.  It is only with your help that we can accomplish this.”

– Rt. Hon. Joe Clark

 

“CASA’s recommendations have been taken very seriously by the government, and many of them have found their way into federal budgets.”

- Hon. Maurizio Bevilaqua
Secretary of State for Science, Research and Development
and former Chair of the House of Commons Finance Committee.

Council of Alberta University Stu-Whaaa?

CAUS and its Role

The ULSU is a member of CAUS, the Council of Alberta University Students. Why should you care? First, the Post-Secondary Learning Act, which also mandates our existence, directs us to provide a voice for students at the municipal, provincial, and federal level. Second, CAUS provides that Albertan venue for expression of Lethbridge University students’ concerns about their education, and how it is affected by the provincial government. Most importantly, if we sit still with our hands crossed, listening without giving any feedback to the people operating the education system we go into debt or work hard to pay for, do we deserve the terrible treatment we would likely receive?

What happens when one doesn’t stand up for themself

What happens when we all voice our opinions and come to compromise.

 

Advocacy

Advocacy is the name of the game. Through round-table discussion, the Council is currently discussing what our provincial lobbying priorities will be for the next year. Balancing local issues with provincial issues, the Council must come to a consensus as to how we will be approaching the government in the next lobby conference. Stronger together than separately, the University of Alberta, the University of Calgary, and the University of Lethbridge Students’ Unions will come to agreement and then approach the relevant ministries to get tangible results that benefit our students.

08/09 Lobbying Priorities and Accomplishments:

• We lobbied for increased deferred maintenance –i.e. monies for repairing and upkeeping University buildings. The year saw $155 million in new funding and a promise to match federal funding for deferred maintenance.
• CAUS asked for tuition increases to not exceed the CPI cap. This means that as the Consumer Price Index increases (it did by 2% this year), institutions cannot increase tuition past that. Indeed, the Minister of Advanced Education and Technology, Doug Horner, committed to this, and with CPI going down from 5% to 2% in 09/10, the increase to tuition has gone down from previous years. 
• Further, CAUS asked for the elimination of property taxes on University residences, in order to create an environment encouraging Universities to complete capital projects to create new residences.

 

What the 09/10 ULSU Exec have been up to

This past week, the ULSU Exec went to a CAUS changeover conference, to discuss policy direction for the next year, and elect new positions for the Council Board.

09/10 Lobbying Priorities:

• Improving student financial aid
• Keeping tuition tied to CPI
• Increasing base operating funding to Alberta’s universities
• Targeting deferred maintenance
• Disability Student Resources
• Elections Act to to be more student-friendly

Through CAUS, your expectations that the SU will be providing you with a voice to the provincial government are met. Exceedingly, this year’s executives believe that the Council of Alberta University Students is an organization to invest time and resources into, to benefit UofL students. A new townhouse-style residence building is in the University’s capital plan, so let’s help them with their goal by creating a positive financial environment for them to complete their project and provide students with more spaces. As the recession hits the University, they may want to increase tuition to fund their operations, so let’s make sure we have tuition tied to CPI to make sure students can afford their education. As University Hall’s cramped science laboratories generate layers of chemical crust, lets help the University secure funding to move those labs out of that building, off the heads of all those residence students living a few floors down. Support us in supporting you. Generate conversation with our peers about these issues and make sure every student you meet is well-informed. However, if nothing else, stay tuned. There is more to come.

Cheers,

Jeremy Girard

Hungry for Power? Concerned for Students

If you answered ‘yes’ to both questions, we have just the opportunity for you!As you may know, the future of the ULSU has recently been placed in the nervous hands of a brand new General Assembly and Executive Council. Since the beginning of this month, we’ve gotten right down to work on our primary mandate: student advocacy. Many students know the ULSU from our more public activities: hosting concerts, booking speakers, operating the Zoo, and the like. What you may not know is that our most important work happens behind the scenes. We love the glitzier aspects of our jobs, but our function, first and foremost, is to ensure that students’ rights and interests are not overlooked by University and government.

Fortunately, the University gives us an opportunity to look out for undergrads by staffing various committees with student representatives. That’s where you come in: the SU wants volunteers to help represent student interests. Looking to get more involved on campus but don’t know where to start? Do you feel that important student concerns are being overlooked by administration? Do you want an opportunity to network with influential people on campus? Join a committee!

The fact is that this university is largely run by committees, and those committees take student reps very seriously. If you want a say in running this institution, look no further. All you need to do is contact me by e-mail at su.academic@uleth.ca or by phone at 403-329-2770. Feel free to drop by the Students’ Union office (SU 180) for more information.

On the tangibles of advocacy…

As outlined in the Post Secondary Learning Act of Alberta, the mandate of all student unions/associations in Alberta is to advocate on behalf of their constituents, to the University administration, and to the three levels of government. This year the ULSU has done this through its membership in The Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA), The Council of Alberta University Students (CAUS), attendance at City Council meetings, as well as on numerous committees at the University level (including the Board of Governors, the Senate, General Faculties Council, and University Budget).

Of these groups, the federal and provincial advocacy tends to be the most contentious when it comes to the student body. The ULSU pays approximately $26,000 in membership fees to CASA and CAUS. As you may have guessed, the money for these membership fees comes from YOUR SU fees. A common question we receive, and rightly so, is “What are the benefits of being part of these organizations?” People frequently want to see the tangibles for the money they have contributed, so how do we justify spending all this money to be part of these organizations?

The answer is quite simple – access.

March was home to the Lobby Conventions for both CAUS and CASA, which were both weeklong events during which members from the ULSU go to the respective capital cities and advocate on behalf of the students here at the University of Lethbridge.

For CAUS, President Adam Vossepoel, VP Academic Jenn Prosser, and VP Academic Comissioner Kendall Yamagishi spent several days in Edmonton lobbying MLA’s and Ministers. During that week, CAUS had 51 meetings with members of the Legislative Assembly, including meetings with the Minister of Advanced Education and Technology, Doug Horner. 

For CASA, Adam Vossepoel, President Elect Jeremy Girard, and I spent a week in Ottawa running around Parliament Hill. During that week, CASA had over 160 meetings with MP’s, Senators, and parliamentary aids. Some names you might recognize are: Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Opposition Leader Michael Ignatieff, Jack Layton, Elizabeth May, Gilles Duceppe, Stéphane Dion, Speaker of the House Peter Milliken, local MP Rick Casson, and local Senator Joyce Fairbairn. That’s right; we were able to meet with all five party leaders, a first for the organization. Also, I was invited to attend a special meeting with the top dogs at Elections Canada, were we had the opportunity to discuss the “Lethbridge Incident,” as well as future plans to increase accessibility for student voters.  

So all of these meetings are fine and dandy, but the follow-up question is do they accomplish anything?

If any of you were watching CPAC during the last week of March, you would have probably noticed a few questions during question period about Post Secondary Education, questions that were formulated directly from CASA policy. During the 2008 Federal Election, many of the main political parties had policy almost word-for-word from CASA in their PSE plans. Both the new Canadian Student Grant Program and Repayment Assistance Program introduced by the government address policy presented by CASA; policy that was contributed to by the ULSU. The ~$2 Billion in funding for deferred maintenance announced by the federal government was not just a victory for CASA, but also the University of Lethbridge, as we recognized this as a major issue on our campus. When teamed up with CAUS, we are able to secure $145 million of that for the U of L. Last year CAUS succeeded in lowering interest rates on student loans in Alberta, something that many of us here are quite appreciative of. Elections Canada said they want the ULSU to be one of their main partners in formulating a student strategy for the next election. Elizabeth May said the Green Party wants to use CASA as their main source of information and policy on PSE. The Prime Minister Stephen Harper talked positively about CASA in caucus (he is not frequently known for mentioning advocacy groups in caucus). If you noticed that now when you apply for an Alberta Student Loan, they no longer consider the value of your car as income, that’s another CAUS victory. The increase in funding for university residential spaces across the province? Check mark CAUS!

While these victories may seem small compared to the dozens upon dozens of policies presented by CASA and CAUS, you really need to look at the system in which they are working. If you ask for 30 things, you might only get two, and it could take a year or two to implement. That’s the nature of the bureaucracies of the provincial and federal government. However, that is MAJOR progress. It’s the needs of students being addressed, and both CASA and CAUS are attributed levels of success that many similar organizations could only dream of. Not many organizations can say they get meetings with the head of every political party, or have its members on a first name basis with the Minister of Advanced Education and Technology. But we can, and that’s worth something.

Brodie Pattenden

VP Admin

The 2008/2009 CAUS Membership

ULSU VP Admin Brodie Pattenden with Stephane Dion

ULSU President Adam Vossepoel with Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff

 

 

 

 

Huzzah Minister!!! Part 2: Let’s talk about books…

When you think of the costs associated with obtaining a University education, you typically think of tution, rent, cost of living, etc. But academic materials (textbooks, course packs, lab materials) are real, and often exorbitantly priced.

Get a load of this statistic: From 1997-2005, textbook prices have increased by 280%, while CPI has only increased by 22%!!! Obviously, something is wrong here.

Well, neglecting the publishing costs, and shipping costs, and whatever other costs that the bookstore tells you they have, there is also another cost on top of the list price. That cost is the Book Importation Regualtions.

It breaks down like this. In 1999, Canada imposed these book import regulations in an effort to protect the Canadian publishing industry. Any books that were imported from the States were subject to a 10% fee above the list price; from anywhere else, it is 15%. One would think that the government might be seeing some revenue from this regulation, but they are not! Not a single penny!

So why is this regualtion in place? Maybe it increased the number of publishing houses in Canada? Wrong. Since this regulation was put in, we have seen the eventual extinction of our publishing houses; from around 40 to 2!

“So what?”, you may be asking yourself. Well, to put it into context, if this regualtion were to be removed, Canadian students would immediately be saving ~$30M/ year on books from the U.S. alone! And this stat doesn’t even account for the savings that students at French schools would see (Canada’s French publishing community is weak, which means that most academic materials must be imported from France, increasing costs for French students).

But I am not done! You know when you walk into Chapters to pick up a book and you see 2 prices on the back, a Canadian one and an American one? Well, that is not just the exchange rate. That difference in price is this book import regualtion fouling your favorite fiction as well!

So, let’s recap:

1) Canadians pay an extra 10-15% on any imported book

2) Canada is the only country that has this regualtion

3) The government does not see a penny of revenue from this regualtion

4) A flick of the wrist and a signature can eliminate this regualtion immediately

5) It makes books cheaper for Canadian citizens

Taking all the above things into account, there should be only one question in your head, “Why aren’t we doing this?!” We here at CASA have the same question in mind, and now, so do a lot of MPs looking for political capital. Let’s hope they can see it a easily as we can.

Next up, TRI-COUCIL FUNDING and AUTONOMY

Adam Vossepoel

President

ULSU Club of the Year Winner – GALIA

Congratulations are due to the Gay and Lesbian Integrity Association (GALIA) here at the University of Lethbridge for winning the ULSU Club of the Year Award!

Out of the 5 clubs nominated for this award, GALIA was selected by the ULSU Clubs’ Council as the best club on campus for this year. GALIA has shown a high level of professionalism and spirit in all of their events – they have renewed the face of their club by increasing the number events they host. They have sponsored advocacy events and social nights alike, and very shortly will be painting a brand new mural in the tunnel.

On behalf of the ULSU General Assembly, I would like to extend a well deserved congratulations to GALIA.

Cheers,

Eric
VP Internal

Sweet Rhymes and Hard Times

Our goals this week,

As the Economy looks bleak:

Learn more about RAP and the CSGP,

And get big Commitments from every MP!

Gather together and collect Information,

To Spread PSE all over the Nation!

The above is courtesy of the great team at the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations. I am hunkered down in Ottawa at the Lord Elgin Hotel, with VP Admin Brodie Pattenden, and President Elect Jeremy Girard. We are in the process of briefing new and old members about how to effectively advocate PSE issues to the federal government.

For those of you who haven’t been paying attention, CASA is a national lobby organization that focuses on issues related to post secondary education in Canada. Over the next week (3.5 days technically) over 70 student leaders will be meeting with ~150 MPs, Senators, and Policy staff of the government.

This event, called Lobby Con (Con is for conference, not some clever reference to government), and has become quite the event on the Hill. The priorities that CASA has can change from year to year, but it always focuses on improving Canada’s university system through non-partisan, rational, and intelligent policy recommendations.

This year, in the face of the “looming economic crisis” (I really hate that term actually. Sorry for perpetuating it), CASA has had a tough job. It is not easy to ask for funding when the government is staring down the wrong end of defecit budget for the first time in a decade. But CASA does not give up that easily. We are nothing if not persistent!

This year, the membership has decided to focus on the following priorities, in no particular order:

- Expand the Canada Student Grant Program

- Enhance the Repayment Assistance Plan

- Take a Balanced Approach to Copyright Law

- Reduce the Cost of Academic Materials

- Create Tri-Council Funding Autonomy

- Improve Tri-Council Salary Guideline

As the week goes on, I will post more on each of the above points.

Until the future,

Adam Vossepoel

President

GET OUT THE VOTE (Then come party)

All right everyone,

It is that time of year again. Thats right, it is time to vote in the ULSU Elections.

It is super easy. All you have to do is go to the website, log in, and VOTE!

WWW.ULSU.CA

There is literally no reason not to vote. Seriously, if you are reading this, then you can vote. Just open the site in another tab or something. Go. Do it. Now. VOTE!

Voting is open until March 5th at 3:00 pm.

Then, come on up to the Zoo for the Election Results and Big Rock Bash Party.

At 5:00 pm, the winners are announced. Then comes the music. With performances by The Record Holder and Chief Mountain, it promises the be quite the night. Also, there is no cover.

But it doesn’t stop there. At 7:00 pm, our friends at Big Rock Brewery are giving a little presentation on how you can enter to win $10,000, just by entering a contest. Also, you can go the Eddies (apparently these are a big deal in C-town).

All in all, looks to be quite the night. So, come on out, welcome in the new council, say goodbye to us old hacks, listen to some cool jams, and find out how you can win the big bucks.

Not too bad, for a Thursday in Lethbridge.

Check out the FB for more info:

ULSU Elections and Big Rock Bash

Adam Vossepoel

President