Textbook costs, stress rising
Students, faculty try to find cheaper alternatives to pricey books for class
Joie Nishimoto and Remington Taum
Issue date: 9/14/09 Section: News
The bookstore tries to buy back as many books as it can, but there are some exceptions, said Kory Uramoto, who will take over Zane's job when she retires at the end of the semester.
She said that the bookstore works with teachers to find the cheapest possible prices for students.
Wilbur plans to sell back her textbooks after the semester is over.
"I definitely want to sell my books back or whatever I can," she said. "Because I have to pay for my textbooks, I don't feel too good about it. I need the textbooks if I want to pass the class."
But not all students participate in the buy-back program. And not all of their books are bought back by the bookstore, either.
"I keep forgetting to sell back my books, but I'm planning to," Maor said.
The bookstore tries to stick with the latest editions because they are easier to order.
According to Uramoto, the publishers try to understand the teachers' needs but do not always grasp the whole picture when they work with the bookstore.
"We feel like we're at the mercy of the publishers sometime," Uramoto said.
There are also loose-leaf books available, which are pages that are not bound together.
"We don't buy back loose-leaf packets. But they're convenient (for teachers and students) because they're cheap when it's new," said Uramoto.
Math professor Kyong S. Chung, who has worked at KCC since 1971, has been around campus long enough to notice the prices of textbooks.
Chung mentioned that textbook prices are reduced to accommodate students when a KCC edition is published.
In a KCC edition of a textbook, only a certain amount of chapters are taught.
In math 103, they have the KCC edition of the textbook where only certain chapters are in the book. The regular textbook has about 12 chapters, but teachers usually teach just six a semester. New math textbooks cost around $100.
Kalani Fujiwara, political science instructor, tries to order about 35 textbooks for each class. He said that the price range for textbooks he orders for students range from $40 to $230.
Department chair of arts and humanities and associate professor of religion Eric Denton is also concerned about textbook prices for students. This semester, Denton is using PDF files from EBSCOhost through the library. They don't use textbooks and there is no textbook charge.
"That's the direction I'd like to go. I'd like to move away from textbooks," said Denton. "A lot of that is a concern for cost… I'd like to find something that does the job of a textbook, but not the cost of a textbook."
If the publishing company says they're discontinuing a book and they're putting out a new edition, then students have no choice but to buy the new book.
"The textbooks do seem a little bit of a scam," said Denton.
She said that the bookstore works with teachers to find the cheapest possible prices for students.
Wilbur plans to sell back her textbooks after the semester is over.
"I definitely want to sell my books back or whatever I can," she said. "Because I have to pay for my textbooks, I don't feel too good about it. I need the textbooks if I want to pass the class."
But not all students participate in the buy-back program. And not all of their books are bought back by the bookstore, either.
"I keep forgetting to sell back my books, but I'm planning to," Maor said.
The bookstore tries to stick with the latest editions because they are easier to order.
According to Uramoto, the publishers try to understand the teachers' needs but do not always grasp the whole picture when they work with the bookstore.
"We feel like we're at the mercy of the publishers sometime," Uramoto said.
There are also loose-leaf books available, which are pages that are not bound together.
"We don't buy back loose-leaf packets. But they're convenient (for teachers and students) because they're cheap when it's new," said Uramoto.
Math professor Kyong S. Chung, who has worked at KCC since 1971, has been around campus long enough to notice the prices of textbooks.
Chung mentioned that textbook prices are reduced to accommodate students when a KCC edition is published.
In a KCC edition of a textbook, only a certain amount of chapters are taught.
In math 103, they have the KCC edition of the textbook where only certain chapters are in the book. The regular textbook has about 12 chapters, but teachers usually teach just six a semester. New math textbooks cost around $100.
Kalani Fujiwara, political science instructor, tries to order about 35 textbooks for each class. He said that the price range for textbooks he orders for students range from $40 to $230.
Department chair of arts and humanities and associate professor of religion Eric Denton is also concerned about textbook prices for students. This semester, Denton is using PDF files from EBSCOhost through the library. They don't use textbooks and there is no textbook charge.
"That's the direction I'd like to go. I'd like to move away from textbooks," said Denton. "A lot of that is a concern for cost… I'd like to find something that does the job of a textbook, but not the cost of a textbook."
If the publishing company says they're discontinuing a book and they're putting out a new edition, then students have no choice but to buy the new book.
"The textbooks do seem a little bit of a scam," said Denton.
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