EXPENSIVE EDUCATION

Expensive Education

Expensive Education

Thesis statement

Is the time spent on textbooks by an average student sufficient in their college careers? If not then you would be in for a surprise as textbooks are actually one of the most expensive parts of attending a college or university.

Introduction

In addition to rising tuition and the decreasing availability of financial aid, the high cost of rising prices of textbooks has become a serious issue for students who are seeking to pursue education beyond high school. There have been several reports published on the issue of rising prices of textbooks. The recent update of “Rip-off 101: How the Current Practices of the Publishing Industry Drive up the Cost of College Textbooks,” conducted by the California Student Public Interest Research Group, concludes this after taking a survey of 59 colleges and universities. It is surprising to note that textbook prices have risen more than four times than the price of other finished goods. (High Cost of Textbooks, 3)

The cost of textbooks can range anywhere from a few dollars to a couple of hundred dollars per book. If the student is taking a course that requires more than one textbook that the student could end up spending over $1000 per semester of money (GAO, 2). The rising cost of books had raised many outcries nationwide (Nicholls, 2). The U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate recently passed the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 that includes language to help students manage the costs of textbooks. The provisions include: providing students with advance information on textbook pricing to help them plan for expenses before each semester; ensuring that colleges and faculty have full textbook pricing information when making purchasing decisions; and requiring publishers to provide pricing information on “unbundled” versions of every “bundled” textbook they sell (High Cost of Textbooks, 2008). The average cost of books and course material for a full-time student turned out to be $898 in the USA, considering the four year degree program in 2006-07. Since 1987-88 the textbook prices have shown an increase of 6% annually. Until now the prices of textbooks have increasing by 186%. Within this period the tuition fees have taken a steep curve of going up by 240%. (GAO, 2008)

Decline in enrollment and the rising costs is the main financial concerns for many educational institutions. Institutes warned to prepare themselves for a 9.1 percent budget cut. Students have taken the alternative of electronic books as they are affordable than conventional books.

Despite the large increase in average tuition charges, higher education costs to students remain well below their total expenditures per student. With huge numbers of students getting their education through online services and all kinds of tools used in classrooms, from virtual chemistry experiments to animation of tectonic plates to online exams.

As the popularity of tablets is rising, colleges have started to incorporate them in classrooms. This has lead leading publishers to sign deals in order to expand their electronic book offerings far and ...