My kids (in grade school) still lug around 45 lbs of stupid text books. Why don't they have a kindle and download whatever they want? Is that really going to be more expensive than buying a 6 lb book that’ll be out of date in a couple of years? Or, in college, because of the small press run, paying $120 for the professor's book?
Wouldn't it be nice to be able to reference the facts in those books without having to lug around a library?
The last thing "Big Publishing" wants is a challenge to their little (HUGE) monopoly on text books. I mean if authors start going "digital" on text books we don't need printers and shippers and paper mills and lumberjacks etc. AND when you wish to publish and updated version of a text book its just a little bit of editing and an upload. So that destroys the industry because all of the sudden most of the jobs in "Big Publishing" are the 21st Century equivalent of "Buggy Whip Manufacturers..."
The domestic printing industry has come under severe price pressure over the past decade or so. “Small press run” doesn’t explain the rapid inflation in the cost of college textbooks since the press run isn’t getting any smaller than it’s ever been, and the cost of printing has actually declined on smaller runs due to digital printing presses that require little setup and no printing plates.
Look elsewhere for the source of this. I’d suggest looking at royalties.
They can’t have Kindles in public school because welfare daddy comes home, sees it and pawns it to buy drugs. Then the grade schooler can’t get a good education because the only people who can get a quality education are rich white people.
That’s what happened to the free government laptops in the schools.
Textbooks are a racket, with “new” editions every few years to churn profits for publishers and authors. Notice that the professors who specify the books do not incur any expenses, and often benefit directly by royalties, and are treated royally by the publishers and bookstores.
My experience is that professors use text books to line their pockets.
They write 2-3 standard texts, they require them for their class, and do an updated volume every year or two. The low run printing ensures a $40-100 price.
Maddeningly, they then teach from someone else’s text, and never reference their own.
On the flip, our Catholic High School is going electronic.
Their bigger burden is probably 165 pounds of stupid teacher. :)