Before an institution can act on textbook affordability, it needs local evidence that names the problem in its own students' voices. This session shares the design and early findings of a sequential explanatory mixed-methods landscape study that quantifies how course material costs shape the academic decisions of first-generation, Pell-eligible, and racially minoritized undergraduates at a regional public university. Phase 1 adapts a validated campus-wide survey instrument to measure cost-avoidance behaviors, financial stress, and impacts on course registration, persistence, and grades. Phase 2 uses focus groups to surface the lived experience behind the numbers. Attendees will leave with a replicable study blueprint, a vetted survey instrument, and concrete strategies for translating local data into institutional momentum for OER adoption and equity-focused open education policy.
Attendees of this session will be able to:- Articulate why localized, disaggregated data on textbook affordability are essential for advancing institutional OER and open education initiatives.
- Describe a replicable sequential explanatory mixed-methods design for studying course material costs at their own institution.
- Identify key survey constructs — cost-avoidance behaviors, financial stress, and impacts on academic progression — and locate a validated instrument they can adapt.
- Apply strategies for recruiting and centering first-generation and low-income student voices in qualitative follow-up research.
- Translate institutional landscape findings into actionable recommendations for faculty, administrators, and policy advocates.
