California Open Source Textbook Project
792818
90167601
2006-11-26T05:29:31Z
EntChickie
318255
cat
The '''California Open Source Textbook Project''' (COSTP) is a collaborative, public/private undertaking created to address the high cost, content range, and consistent shortages of [[primary education|K-12]] [[textbook]]s in [[California]].
==The plan==
There are three main goals to COSTP:
*Leveraging free, already-existing, and widely available K-12 educational content in the [[public domain]]
*Better leveraging the substantial [[curriculum]]-based intellectual capital of California's best K-12 teachers
*Using innovative [[copyright]] tools to secure new and dormant K-12 textbook content that would not otherwise be made available
The cost of K-12 textbooks has risen steadily over the years and critics contend [[publishing]] companies artificially increase prices. The state of California currently spends more than US$ 400M annually for K-12 textbooks, and with enrollment projected to rise in the coming years, revenue demands for textbooks and other [[curriculum]] materials will surely increase.
COSTP will employ the advantages of [[open-source]]d content and innovative [[licensing]] tools to significantly reduce California's K-12 textbook costs — eventually turning K-12 curriculum and textbook construction from a [[cost]] into a [[revenue]] generator for the State of California. Open sourced, distributed content can be made available [[gratis]], and/or through the use of innovative copyright tools provided by organizations like [[Creative Commons]], its partners, and other organizations.
COSTP's currently projected benefits are:
*Complete elimination of the current US$ 400M+ [[line item]] for California's K-12 textbooks
*Significant increase in the range of [[content]] afforded to California's K-12 textbooks
*Permanent end to California's textbook shortages
*Creation of fully portable content holdings [[database]] that scales with classroom technologies as they are introduced.
It is important to note that COSTP's mandate does not replace [[printed]] textbooks, but simply making them less expensive to produce. This creates many additional [[efficiency (economics)|efficiencies]] that will fully leverage California's activities in the K-12 textbook publishing domain.
==The future==
COSTP is projected to augment the current K-12 textbook supply chain, be self-supporting with 18 months of starting up, and save the State of California upwards of US$ 200M+ per year for K-12 textbook allocation within five years.
In phase two of the COSTP plan (following year five), California will be able to offer (by license, at nominal cost) K-12 textbook and curriculum materials to other educational organizations and international agencies. This should create substantial cost savings for those entities, and will result in a revenue generator for California.
==External links==
*[http://www.opensourcetext.org/ California Open Source Textbook Project website]
*[http://www.fhsst.org A similar project in South Africa] called [[Free high school science texts|FHSST]]
[[Category:Education in California]]
[[Category:Textbooks]]