2008 Woodie Awards
Our reader's voices
Issue date: 11/16/07 Section: Voices
- Page 1 of 1
Faculty's side ignored
I ignored the first article on textbook deadlines for faculty, but when Central Michigan Life also published an editorial on the subject, I decided to speak up. Why did the student journalists not speak to departments or to faculty members to get a more complete picture?
I am also sorry that the bookstore itself has painted such a limited picture of the book ordering system. The textbook due date mentioned is only for faculty using the same textbooks as the semester before. The purpose is to allow the bookstore to buy back books from students and resell them. Departments have always been told that if a professor expects for any reason to use different books, something that happens quite often, then their order does not have to meet that early deadline. There are also professors who prepare course packs for classes and do not use a textbook at all. It did not seem that this was considered when publishing information about the percentage of professors not meeting the early deadline.
The editorial stated that professors have plenty of time to get their textbook preparation together. You have not considered that professors must continually consider new textbooks. They may have to order examination copies of several new textbooks before finding the best fit. Professors must examine the content of all of these books while teaching three or four classes, grading, keeping office hours, doing research and carrying out committee duties.
There are many things students themselves can do to limit the cost of books. Often books can be purchased online for less than the bookstores charge. The faculty do bear a responsibility to get their orders in, but there is more to the story than CM Life has told.
Betty Lewis
Exec. Secretary of Philosophy and Religion
I ignored the first article on textbook deadlines for faculty, but when Central Michigan Life also published an editorial on the subject, I decided to speak up. Why did the student journalists not speak to departments or to faculty members to get a more complete picture?
I am also sorry that the bookstore itself has painted such a limited picture of the book ordering system. The textbook due date mentioned is only for faculty using the same textbooks as the semester before. The purpose is to allow the bookstore to buy back books from students and resell them. Departments have always been told that if a professor expects for any reason to use different books, something that happens quite often, then their order does not have to meet that early deadline. There are also professors who prepare course packs for classes and do not use a textbook at all. It did not seem that this was considered when publishing information about the percentage of professors not meeting the early deadline.
The editorial stated that professors have plenty of time to get their textbook preparation together. You have not considered that professors must continually consider new textbooks. They may have to order examination copies of several new textbooks before finding the best fit. Professors must examine the content of all of these books while teaching three or four classes, grading, keeping office hours, doing research and carrying out committee duties.
There are many things students themselves can do to limit the cost of books. Often books can be purchased online for less than the bookstores charge. The faculty do bear a responsibility to get their orders in, but there is more to the story than CM Life has told.
Betty Lewis
Exec. Secretary of Philosophy and Religion
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