Abstract:
Faculty adoption of open educational resources (OER) has remained low even though previous research demonstrates potential positive outcomes for students and lower costs overall. The social aspect of textbook adoption, which already exists in the traditional textbook adoption process, may be a missing link in OER advocacy. To examine the social aspects of textbook adoption, this chapter reports how faculty selected and used traditional textbooks and the OER landscape on campus. The faculty textbook adoption experiences detailed in this chapter demonstrate how social aspects might inform OER efforts, reaffirm current practices, and advance OER advocacy efforts.