Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) courses

Have you ever signed up for a course, only to discover that the assigned textbook cost over $100 – or maybe even $200?! 
Textbook costs are on the rise. When publishers charge hundreds of dollars for a single textbook, it makes it harder for students to access course readings. In order to address the problem, SUNY and CUNY are investing  in something called Open Educational Resources (OER).
If you hear that a course is “OER,” or “Zero-Textbook Cost,” it means that you won’t have to worry about how to pay for the course readings. They’ll be provided for free!
How do I sign up for Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC) courses?
You can find these courses in CUNYFirst by changing the Course Attribute to Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC). See the below image for details:

Free materials? Wait, what is OER?
Lastly, you might find yourself wondering – are these free materials really the same as the old textbook? 
Open Educational Resources have been developed at many different universities and colleges across the country (and the world!). They are seen by many as an alternative to textbooks, that leads to greater knowledge sharing.  OER can be found in a digital or print format, and are looked over carefully to ensure high educational quality. OER textbooks may have even gone through the same process of “peer-review” that a scholarly research article would.
Questions? 
If you have any questions, or are a faculty member who would like to learn more about how to integrate OER into your course – feel free to reach out to Prof. Cailean Cooney (Chair of the Library’s OER Committee), at ccooney@citytech.cuny.edu