The Changing Landscape of Course Content: Electronic Textbooks and Electronic Coursepacks

This fall, Michigan State University (MSU) implemented electronic textbook (eText) and electronic course pack pilot projects. Faculty and over 1,000 students in several pilot courses used either eTexts from one of two major publishers or faculty generated electronic course packs. All course content was accessible through MSU’s course management system via the Courseload platform. Courseload offers searching, highlighting, note taking/annotations, sharing, printing, and the ability to embed and add other electronic content, user statistics, and more.

This paper describes these pilots in detail and provides readers interested in eTexts and electronic course packs an overview of one university’s experiences from initial planning to implementation and assessment. The central role of the MSU Libraries as part of the planning and implementation team for both pilots is discussed, as are the specific tasks executed by the MSU Libraries. Research plans and procedures, accessibility issues, and future considerations and plans are also outlined.