Illinois

Course Material Affordability in Illinois

The Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois (CARLI) and its Open Educational Resources Subcommittee developed the “Illinois Course Materials Survey: Student Perspective” to help identify the needs of Illinois students regarding affordable course materials and their interest in Open Educational Resources or other affordable course material options.

This survey specifically aimed to answer the following research questions:

How much did students spend on course materials during the current term?
How are students affected by the cost of college course materials?
Which demographics of Illinois college students are most impacted by the cost of course materials?
What are students’ interests in and experiences with Open Educational Resources (OER)?
What are students’ interests in and experiences with other affordable material options?
Do students have clear preferences for the formats and features of course materials?

This survey was conducted between April 5, 2023 through December 31, 2023. This data helped us identify future steps CARLI can take to better support Illinois students’ required course material needs, including continued support for the creation of Open Educational Resources and advocacy for recurring funding. It also benefited individual institutions by identifying answers to the research questions at the institutional level for library directors who requested institutional aggregated data.

Publications

Report: Illinois
Illinois Course Materials Survey: Student Perspective
Author: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois
Year: 2023 - Format: PDF

Presentation: Illinois
Key Findings and Student Reflections from the Illinois Course Materials Survey Student Perspective
Author: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois
Year: 2023 - Format: MP4

Presentation: Illinois
Key Findings And Student Reflections From The Illinois Course Materials Survey: Student Perspective
Author: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois
Year: 2023 - Format: PDF

Presentation: Illinois
Agenda-05-12-22-Item-2F
Author: Kelly L. Denson, Laura Knox, Alli Gentile, and Jennifer Becker
Year: 2022 - Format: PDF

Questionnaire: Illinois
2023 Illinois Course Materials Survey: Student Perspective
Author: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois
Year: 2023 - Format: PDF

Other Resource: Illinois
Illinois College Course Materials Affordability and Equitable Access Taskforce
Author: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois
Year: 2023 - Format: PDF

National and Regional

State Level

Institutions

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