Walking down an aisle at the College of DuPage Bookstore, stacks of textbooks line the shelves. Students can purchase “The Art of Public Speaking” for $230 or used for $180, or an early childhood experiences textbook for $235. The average college student spends over $1,000 a year on textbooks and course materials.
Those prices can force students to make tough decisions. In a 2023 survey of Illinois college students, 69% of respondents said textbook costs caused them not to buy required materials and just try to get through the class without them. Some had to take fewer classes to blunt the cost or not enroll in courses with high costs at all — even if they may need them to graduate.
With that in mind, College of DuPage has been trying to reduce textbook costs by investing in Open Educational Resources or OER projects.
Read more at Northern Public Radio.
