OER & ZTC: Open Educational Resources & Zero-Textbook Cost Classes

El Camino College is aligned with California SB 1359, which requires all course sections that are “zero-textbook-cost" with freely accessible learning materials, be clearly designated as such in the online course schedule. The California Community College Chancellor, in partnership with the statewide Academic Senate and the ASCCC OERI, has established parameters for what constitutes “ZTC" that El Camino has adopted. 

To receive a ZTC designation for a class, and made searchable to students on the campus online schedule, instructional materials for a class must meet one of the following:

• Only no-cost digital instructional materials (e.g. licensed as Open Educational Resources (OER) or copyright is in the public domain)
• If instructional material costs are not passed on to the student (e.g. library or campus provided materials with simultaneous access to the full class)
• If there are no associated instructional materials
• If all assigned textbooks and learning materials are optional for the section and students are not required to buy or print a physical copy.

Other considerations:

• WOULD Qualify: Lab materials or required supplies for being successful in the class (e.g. art supplies, musical instruments) are not considered a textbook cost, so if a course section meets the parameters noted above, but do require a materials fee of this sort – then the section qualifies as ZTC.

• Would NOT Qualify:  If students need to pay fees to access a software platform to do coursework or homework, this counts as an "instructional material" cost.  The course section would not qualify as ZTC.

All course materials used must comply with copyright law and with the Americans with Disabilities Act.  

• What courses need to be designated as ZTC (Zero Textbook Cost) in the class schedule?

  The ZTC designation is required only for those courses where the cost of the required textbook is zero dollars. This includes classes with no textbook assigned, that use OER materials, that use library materials that are adequately available for all students in the class, or that have optional texts.

• What if my course has no assigned textbook? Does it need to be listed as zero-cost?

  Yes, as long as students are not required to buy course materials that are not traditional textbooks, such as online homework systems, subscriptions to publications, or lab manuals. Supplies such as paint for an art class or athletic tape for a tennis class do not count as course materials for the purpose of SB1359.

• What if a course has an online zero-cost text but students have the option to pay to have it duplicated?

  This is still a ZTC section and should be designated as such since students have the option of accessing the text completely online for free.

• What if a course has an online lab manual written by the instructor but all students are required to duplicate the manual for use in class?

  In this case, there is a cost for students, so the ZTC designation would not be used.

• If a course's texts or materials are low cost, do we use the ZTC designation?

  No, the ZTC designation is only for courses that have zero textbook cost. If all your required instructional materials meet ECC's Low Textbook Cost parameter of $40 or less, you should select the "LTC" option on the Textbook Requisition Form. Your section will then be noted as LTC in the online schedule.

• What if a course section has been designated as ZTC but the instructor leaves and a new instructor takes over that section?  Is that new instructor required to keep the section as ZTC?

  The new instructor would not be bound by the original designation. Faculty have the right and responsibility to determine the course materials required for the section they teach. Some departments make departmental decisions by the faculty for multi-section courses and these selected course materials would be used by all the faculty teaching those sections, in accordance with departmental policies. The new instructor could have the option to use the previous instructor’s course materials if s/he wished to do so and this option might be convenient and useful given the timing of the assignment. If the instructor chose to use course materials that incurred a cost instead, they  must notify the Dean and campus scheduler so that students in the class may be notified that the class is no longer using zero cost course materials and the ZTC designation can be taken off the online schedule.

• Will courses using OER transfer to the CSU?

The articulation statement from the CSU and UC (2017) is as follows:

• It is fine to use assembled materials or Open Educational Resources, so long as they’re stable and publicly available as published textbooks (and not a list of links). 
• All CSU and UC campus departments consider the content of textbooks when reviewing articulation proposals from the CCCs. The use of online texts is reviewed by campuses on a case-by-case basis for articulation with CCCs.
• There are multiple CCC courses that use online texts that are approved for CSU- and UC-transferability, and for articulation with CSU and UC campuses.
• Some CSU and UC campus departments use online texts themselves.