by Audrey Watters
This article addresses how technology is revolutionizing textbook publishing and distribution. The title of this article refers to the new ability for teachers to compile freely available, open-source course materials into their own custom digital course text. Textbooks have always been a huge expense for schools (or, in the college environment, for students), with many schools getting by with outdated course materials due to lack of funds (or, like some classes in which I've had practica, without textbooks altogether.) The resources mentioned in this article, particularly CK12.org. CK12.org offers free science and technology textbooks in iPad or Kindle format. Mrs. Watters recounts one school district, the Anoka-Hennepin district in Minnesota, which created its own textbooks, saving the district money and allowing the district to update every year, rather than every ten years as they had done previously.
Another benefit that free and open-source textbooks provide is the ability to circumvent the censoring influence that groups such as the Texas school board hold in the textbook publishing industry. By removing the pressure of profit from the textbook market, these free textbooks allow textbooks to focus on teaching.
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