As a college student, the thought of textbooks being expensive has probably popped into your mind at one time or another. Along with this thought, many wonder why something that is so vital to education is also so costly. Many students also believe that textbooks are inaccessible due to their high prices.
In general, it seems that when asked, “Do you believe that textbooks are expensive?” students will say yes. Gabriel Amen, a recent graduate from Sonoma State, said that textbooks can “range from $50-$300, depending on the book.”
However, the matter is not always black and white because, as Jessie Hobbs, a senior at Sonoma State, pointed out, “There are some teachers who acknowledge this and get us free PDF versions, find us cheaper options, or upload pages from the book so students don’t need to spend extra money on top of tuition.”
This can reassure some students, as they do not need to buy a copy of their own textbook for each class. As most students only use their textbook for one semester, this solution can be a great help with expenses.
The California Public Interest Research Group states, “Over the past 4 decades, the price of books has increased three times faster than inflation.” They also said that around 65% of students continue to skip purchasing textbooks because the price is too high.
In contrast to the question of textbooks being expensive, when students are asked if they believe that textbooks are easily accessible, the responses tend to vary.
The best example of this was Hobbs’ response, “You can get them both at the bookstore and online, but the bookstore runs out really fast and if you order online you have to wait for it to get delivered and hope it gets to you before you need it to do assignments.”
Amen’s responses seemed to be more on the positive side, by stating, “I do believe that textbooks are easily accessible because depending on the school, you can get them from the school themselves or you have options such as Amazon and also if not there you can view them online if there is a PDF of the book you need.”
Drew Gross, another SSU student, believes, “They are easy to find through mySSU when looking at the bookstore link at the bottom. They are printed on the syllabus and I can find them by going to mySSU, and being directed to the bookstore page makes it even easier.”
However, a response that ties to the question of textbooks being expensive is Amanda Burke’s, a senior at Sonoma State. She states, “I do not believe textbooks are easily accessible due to financial constraints of many students.”
It seems as though the accessibility of textbooks work hand-in-hand with how expensive they can be. This can lead students to justify not buying textbooks, especially if a student has financial constraints. This shows that there is a major flaw within the academic system that places lower income students at a disadvantage.
The questions of textbooks being expensive or accessible depend greatly on the school, professor, etc. However, it seems that in the end, the best thing for the future of education is for the academic system to be reformed, so everyone can get a quality education regardless of their financial status.
