Study: Publishing stocks up 26%

U.S. librarians object to Cuba arrests

Robot digitizes 1,200 pages an hour

Glen Hanson (counseling), University of Utah, Peter J. Venturelli (counseling), and Annette E. Fleckenstein (counseling), University of Utah, wrote the eighth edition of Drugs and Society (Jones and Bartlett). Mark Kesselman (political science), Columbia University, Joel Krieger (political science), Wellesley College, William A. Joseph (political science), Wellesley College, Ervand Abrahamian (political science), Baruch College, Christopher S. Allen (political science), University of Georgia, Amrita Basu (political science), Amherst College, Joan DeBardeleben (political science), Carleton University, Louis DeSipio (political science), University of California, Irvine, Shigeko N. Fukai (political science), Okayama University, Haruhiro Fukui (political science), University of California, Santa Barbara, Merilee S. Grindle (political science) Harvard University, Darren Kew (political science), University of Massachusetts, Boston, ul Kohli (political science), Princeton University, Peter Lewis (political science), American University, and Alfred P. Montero (political science), Carleton College, wrote the third edition of Introduction to Comparative Politics (Houghton-Mifflin).

Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people

Pearson upgrades classroom tool

MESA, Arizona, January 13, 2004 -- The latest release of Pearson Digital Learningšs flagship student information system, SASIxp, Version 6.0, is compatible with the Mac OS X operating system, the company announced. The SASIxp reporting, scheduling, attendance, and grading capabilities are part of Pearson Digital's Concert family of K-12 instructional management tools.

PEARSON DIGITAL LEARNING

Wiley to issue manufacturing DVD

HOBOKEN, New Jersey, January 13, 2004 -- College textbook publisher Wiley is adapting material from the Society of Manufacturing Engineers' Fundamental Manufacturing Processes video series for a DVD to bring "real world manufacturing into the academic classroom." Bruce M. Spatz, a Wiley vice president, said students will be bettger able to visualize important concepts discussed in Wiley textbooks. The Society's base video, a project initiated in 1995. offers more than 35 full-length programs with 15 hours of instructional video. The new DVD accompanies Mikell P. Groover's second edition of Fundamentals of Modern Manufacturing- Materials, Process and Systems and E. Paul Degarmo, J.T. Black and Ronald A. Kohser's ninth edition of Materials and Processes in Manufacturing. Covered are machining, plastic, forming and other processes.

JOHN WILEY & SONS

Wadsworth launches writing program

BELMONT, California, January 13, 2004 -- Education publisher Wadsworth launched an electronic portfolio program, InSite for Writing and Research, which it touted as "the first of its kind, all-in-one electronic portfolio for managing the research and writing process." InSite allows educators to manage the flow of documents and grade papers entirely online, Wadsworth said. From a personalized instructor home page, instructors can set up their courses, set up curriculum sections, assign passwords for themselves and their teaching assistants, and view statistics on student's performances.

WADS- WORTH

Delmar launches EMT Training course

ALBANY, New York, January 13, 2004 -- Education publisher Delmar published the first -ver online emergency medical training course, EMT-Basic. The Internet-based course assesses and enhances skills and offers refresher training for re-certification, Delmar said. . It covers 24 hours of training, which EMTs can use for state-approved hours for online training toward re-certification and continuing education credit, the company said.

DELMAR LEARNING BIOSIS

Heart problem sidelines Pearson chief

NEW YORK, January 12, 2004 -- The chief executive at Pearson Education, Peter Jovanovich, will be on medical leave for several months with a recurring pulmonary problem. Doctors recommended an extended rest, according to Marjorie Scardino, chief executive at parent company Pearson in London. Scardino said she will sit in for Jovanich during his recovery. She said he will be back "as soon as possible" but added that the leave will be for "several months."

JOVANOVICH PEARSON EDUCATION

Kluwer to use speedier review software

LONDON, January 12, 2004 -- Journal publisher Kluwer Academic will use TechBooks' PowerReview technology for online manuscript submission and tracking of its major reference works, Kluwer announced. PowerReview is a web-based tool designed to simplify the manuscript submission and peer review process. It should reduce the span between submission and publication, Kluwer said.

JOURNALS KLUWER ACADEMIC

2004 el-hi prospects seen weak

NEW YORK, January 12, 2004 -- El-hi publishers likely will sit out another slow year before sales pick up in 2005, executives at several major publishing houses told investors. Terry McGraw said 2004 McGraw-Hill el-hi sales may be off as much as 5 percent. Grwoth of 2 to 3 percent is expected in 2005, McGraw said. Mark Armour, finance director at Reed Elsevier, said his company;s Harcourt unit will reach a "low point" in 2004 before a three-year slide is reversed. Mark Armour of Thomson said his company is expecting state adoptions to improve in 2005. The forecasts, gloomy shiort term, a litte brighter long terms, were made at the annual UBS media investors' conference.

MCGRAW MCGRAW- HILL

Thomson buys Biological Abstracts

NEW YORK, January 12, 2004 -- Academic publisher Thomson bought the publishing assets of Biological Abstracts and its Biosis life science indexing service. The indexing service is the world's largest, Thomson said Terms were not announced. Thomson said the new assets woild be folded into its scientific and healthcare division.

JOURNALS THOMSON BIOSIS

Librarians adamant against Patriot Act

Copyshop bristles at infringement suit

Louis E. Boone (business), University of South Alabama, and David L. Kurtz (business), University of Arkansas Fayetteville, wrote the 11th edition of Contemporary Business (South-West). Jerrold S. Greenberg (health), University of Maryland-College Park, wrote the fifth edition of Health Education and Health Promotion: Learner-Centered Instructional Strategies (McGraw-Hill). Ray Lowrey vice president for strategic product technology at Thomson Learning, was named chief technology oficer at Thomson Gale. Heather Myers who headed business development for Universal Studios, was named senior vie presideny for trategic planning andbusiness development at Scholastic. Joanna Sullivan (English) wrote Children's Literature Lover's Book of Lists (Jossey-Bass).

Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people

Gale cuts 180 employees

NEW YORK, January 12, 2004 -- Education and reference publisher Gale, part of the Thompson empire, cut 180 jobs, mostly in New York, as part of a downsizing that is part of a shift more into K-12 publishing. A soft library market also factored in the decision, the company said. The Macmillan Reference office in New York will be moved to Gale's headquarters in Farmington Hills, Michigan. No reduction in titles or consolidation in imprints is expected. Gale imprints include Macmillan Reference, Charles Scribner's Sons and Thorndike, all of which Gale acquired from Pearson in 1999. The staff reduction represents about 15 percent of Gale's workforce.

K-12 REFER- ENCE THOMSON GALE

Elsevier inks California package

BERKELEY, California, January 12, 2004 -- Journal publisher Elsevier signed a five-year content agreement with the California Digital Library to provide the University of California with access to the list of subscribed titles, all Cell Press titles and the entire Elsevier collection of back files for all subject areas. In its announcement, Elsevier did not disclose what it is charging -- a major issue with many library bulk subscriptions, which can run in the millions of dollars a year. The back files include three million articles, and the UC list of subscribed titles involves access to about 3.6 million full-text articles and 59 million abstracts. The agreement permits free access to all California citizens coming to University of California libraries for scientific and medical information. The university system itself has more than 300,000 undergraduates, graduates, researchers, faculty and staff who will have access.

JOURNALS ELSE- VIER

Macmillan buys Ediciones Castillo

LONDON, January 11, 2004 -- Global education education publisher Macmillan will buy the Spanish-language textbook publisher Castillo Ediciones of Monterrey, Mexico, the companies announced. Terms were not announced. Chris West, Macmillan's regional director for Latin America, said Castillo will remain independent of Editorial Macmillan de Mexico. Castillo publishes curricular-based textbooks in Spanish, while Macmillan focuses on English-language materials. The deal does not include the Castillo tradebook line. The Castillo and Macmillan education lines have grown up together, Castilo going into business in 1977 and Macmillan de Mexico in 1982.

MACMILLAN CASTILLO EDICIONES

Iowa State Press renamed Blackwell

AMES, Iowa, January 11, 2004 -- A proud and venerable name in academic publishing, Iowa State University Press, is disappearing after 72 years. British-based Blackwell Publishing, said the name henceforth will be Blackwell to reflect more than a regional scope. Blackwell bought the Iowa State press in 2000 in the first, and so far only, corporate takeover of a university press in the United States. In announcing the name change, Blackwell said the Iowa State unit has developed a stronger international reach its veterinary medicine, agriculture, animal science, aviation and journalism lists were folded into the Blackwell inventory. Since then takeover, Blackwell has added new lines in aquaculture, chemistry, dentistry and food science.

BLACKWELL IOWA STATE UNIVER- SITY PRESS EARLIER ARTICLE Iowa State sold to Blackwell

Messier sees "below radar" future

NEW YORK, January 11, 2003 -- Global media wheeler-dealer Jean-Marie Messier, who once was considered a possibility for president of France, says he has given all that up. In an interview with the Financial Times after accepting heavy U.S. securities fraud penalties, the former Vivendi chief executive said he no longer aspires to running a media conglomerate, let alone his homeland. About being banned from U.S. corporate boardrooms, Messier said: "I had no desire to become chief executive at Time Warner." He is focusing on his nis business consulting firm, Messier Partners. "I start again from zero, from less than zero." He said he expects his new venture to operate "below the radar." Messier biographer Jo Johnson, who conducted the FT interview, observed, however: "There are still loyal supporters in Partisn who say he will one return like Napleon from Elba and rally his countrymen." Even so, Johnson said, such a scenario sems far-fetched.

VIVENDI MESSIER EARLIER ARTICLE SEC decides Messier's media finale

Scholastic editor wins Benjamin

WASHINGTON, January 10, 2004 -- A senior vice president at Scholastic, Jean Feiwel, was named the 2004 winner of the Curtis Benjamin Award for Creative Publishing by the Association of American Publishers. Her works include the Dear America series, introduced in 1996 to make history come alive through personal diaries. Feiwel has directed Scholastic's multicultural publishing program. At Scholastic her titles include editor-in-chief and publisher. The award will be presented in February.

ASSOCIA- TION OF AMERICAN PUB- LISHERS The Curtis Benjamin Award, first given in 1975, honors a former president of McGraw-Hill.

How-to authoring book half-price

Ames plans short-run O'Reilly titles

DON'T UNDERESTIMATE YOUR FRONT MATTER Veteran author Frank Silverman sees opportunities, sometimes overlooked, in the opening pages ahead of the first chapter. The inside of covers, for example, can be used for reference information to which readers can refer back easily. Some content is pro forma, like copyright information. Other front matter can be used creatively and effectively for navigational assistance and to orient readers. HIS COMPLETE COLUMN SILVERMAN ENTIRE SA2 HOW-TO SECTION TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Danish author cleared of "dishonesty" COPENHAGEN, January 8, 2004 -- The Danish Science Ministry dismissed an accusation of scientific dishonesty against Bjorn Lomborg, author of a book critical of the environmental movement. There was no evidence of dishonesty, the Ministry said. Earlier a committee of the Danish Research Agency claimed thate Lomborg's book, The Skeptical Environmentalist, was "contrary to to standards of good scientific practice." The agency said Lomborg stacked the data and used dubious methodology. Lomborg defended himself by saying his critics were politically motivated. About the Science Ministry's decision, Lomborg said there way is now clear in Denmark for honest debate and free speech on environmental issues. FREE EXPRESSION TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE WORTH READING Jennifer Jacobson. "No Mark of Distinction," Chronicle of Higher Education (January 8, 2004). Pages A134-A15. Jacobson, a news reporter, examines the propensity academics to choose titles for their work with a colon followed by a subtitle. Hers is a thorough examination of pros and cons. Jo Johnson. "Messier's Final Downfall," Financial Times (December 29, 2003). Page 9. Johnson, who with Martine Orange wrote a biography of Jean-Marie Messier, The Man Who Tried to Buy the World, offers a definitive update on the ousted executive's poost-Vivendi woes. Debra Viadero. "Online Research Journals Take Off," Education Week (December 10, 2003). Pages 1, 13. Viadero, a news reporter, examines the growing number online education research journals and concludes that there is growing respectability. By one count 100 journals either publish electronic alternatives or publish entirely online. AUTHORING BIBLIOGRAPHY TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ACADEMIC AUTHORING PEOPLE John S. Reed, interim chair of the New York Stock Exchange, was named founding director of the Strategic Education Research Partnership, whose goal is to coordinate and finance studies that bear on K-12 classroom issues. Gaylord N. Smith (accounting), Albion College, wrote the second edition of Excel Applications for Accounting Principles (South-West). Susan K. Telljohann (health), University of Toledo, Cynthia W. Symons (health), Kent State University, and Beth Pateman (health), University of Hawaii-Manoa, wrote the fourth edition of Health Education: Elementary and Middle School Applications (McGraw-Hill). Teri Tibbett (music) wrote the second edition of Listen to Learn: Using American Music to Understand Language Arts and Social Studies (Jossey-Bass). Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Getting out-of-print books back free NEW YORK, January 8, 2004 -- After one of Cathy Crimmins' books stopped selling, the publisher called and said that 30 copies remained in the warehouse: Would Crimmins want to buy them for $15 each. "Couldn't you just return them to me for free?" Crimmins responded. A few days later the books arrived on her doorstep. She was never billed. "The boldness of my request must have stunned her," Crimmins said. She shares the experience in an article in the January issue of ASJA Monthly, published by the American Society of Journalists and Authors. What this means for authors: Most contracts provide for author buybacks when a publisher decides to declare a title out of print, but it's niggardly for publishers to squeeze authors for all they can, down to the last penny, from books ready for remaindering. Whether Crimmins' boldness will work in other cases remains to be seen. Try it. CONTRACTS CONTRACT POINTERS Out-of-print provision TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Reed, Thomson see more fast e-growth NEW YORK, January 7, 2004 -- The two major electronic law publishers, Reed's Lexis and Thomson's WestLaw, have experienced solid growth in recent months and will continue to grow, executives told investors. Thomson President Dick Harrington said Thomson's electronic sales overall have grown at a compound 16 percent rate over the past five years. The e-sales are about one-third of Thomson Learning's sales, he said. Mark Armour, financed diretcor at Reed, said online sales growth has outpaced print-product growth. Thomson's cientific and medical e-products also are hot, especially materials that can be downloaded to physicians' other health-care professional's palm devices, Harrington said. REED ELSEVIER THOMSON LEARNING TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Publishers post jobs want-ads NEW YORK, January 7, 2004 -- To attract new talent to publishing, the Association of American Publishers created a web site, Book Jobs, geared to college seniors and grad students. About 70 entry-level jobs and internships are listed. Publishers expect a shortage of employees through attrition to other fields by 2005, said Bridget Mannion, chair of AAP's diversity and recruiting committee. Mannion said publishers are looking for grads in fields as diverse as art, bilogy and fianance, as well as journalism and literature. Mannion's committee also is stepping up recruiting, first in New York-area colleges and then more broadly. ASSOCIA- TION OF AMERICAN PUB- LISHERS TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Courier buys test-prep publisher PISCATAWAY, New Jersey, January 6, 2004 -- Book printer Courier, which is moving into publishing, bought text-prep publisher Research & Education of Piscataway. The $6 million-a-year company specializes in study guides, both in pront and sotware, for high school, college and professional markets. Research & Education has an 800-title backlist. The company had been a long-time Courier customer. No changes in operations are planned, the companies said. Courier, a major book-printing company, began its move into publishing in 2000 by buying Dover publications. COURIER TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE FINANCIALS Scholastic: Sales grew 6 percent in the latest quarter to $669 million, compared to a year earlier. Net income fell 11 percent to $66.7 million. Education sales grew 13 percent to $87.3 million, which helped offset a dramatic falloff in sales of the latest Harry Potter in the children's division. PREVIOUS FINANCIALS TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Publishers miss Top 100 cut NEW YORK, January 5, 2004 -- The Fortune magazine list of the Top 100 best companies to work included no book publishers or even their conglomerate parents. Number One was jelly-maker J.M. Smucker of Orrville, Ohio. Familar names on the list included Genetech, Pella, Microsoft, Starbucks, Mayo Clinic, American Express, Goldman Sachs, Monsanto, Continental Airlines, General Mills, Eli Lilly, Merck, Procter & Gamble, and FedEx. In September Pearson and Wiley proudly announced that they had made a Top 100 list compiled by Working Mothers magazine. BOOK BIZ EARLIER ARTICLE Pearson, Wiley on Working Mothers list TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ACADEMIC AUTHORING PEOPLE Rick Antle (accounting), Yale University, and Stanley J. Garstka (accounting), Yale University, wrote the second edition of Financial Accounting (South-West). Ulric J. Gelinas (business), Bentley College, Steve G. Sutton (business), University of Connecticut, and Jane Fedorowicz (business), Bentley College, wrote the third edition of Business Processes and Information Technology (South-West). Jerrold S. Greenberg (counseling), University of Maryland-College Park, wrote the third edition of Comprehensive Stress Management (McGraw-Hill). Timothy McEwen, executive vice president and chief operating officer at Haights Cross, was named president and chief executive officer at Harcourt Supplemental. Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE CONTRACT ALERT Update your foreign sales provisions WINONA, Minnesota, January 4, 2004 -- Authors need to review the foreign sales provisions of their textbook contracts because of growing sales of heavily discounted books back into the U.S. market, the Society of Academic Authors advised in a Contract Alert. Most textbook publishers' standard-contract language specifies only half the domestic royalty rate for foreign sales, which was bad enough for authors although in many cases the loss was only a trickle, said SA2 founder John Vivian. But now, he said, with U.S. students tapping foreign web sites for these books, the loss stands to become a hemorrhaging drain on author income. Publishers should be open to renegotiating foreign royalty rates if confronted with the reality that conditions have changed rapidly and significantly since the original agreement, Vivian said. He asked SA2 members to keep the association posted on their success in renegotiating the provision. "The new situation suggests that foreign and domestic sales be at the same rate," he said. "Even then, considering that publishers sell books at substantial discounts in foreign markets, authors will not realize the same return as on domestic sales." Meanwhile, he said, authors must keep pressure on their publishers to address the revenues being lost in trans-border sales back to U.S. customers: "This is a publisher-created, not author-created problem. It's publishers that, like the pharmaceutical companies, have created dual pricing structures." CONTRACTS NEGOTIATION POINTERS CONTRACT TRENDS WHAT TO DO Review new and also updated contracts carefully. Insist that the foreign sales provision be revised to reflect the reality of growing foreign sales back to the United States. Keep SA2 up-to-date on your progress on this issue: SA2 EARLIER ARTICLE Probe sought into text pricing You do the math TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ROYALTY ANALYSIS A tale of two book sales Here is the math from an author's perspective of a publisher's sale of a textbook at a 50 percent discount in a foreign market and the selling of the book back into the United States. The illustration assumes a 15 percent royalty rate for domestic sales and, as is typical, half of that for foreign sales. The illustration also assumes a 20 percent retailer markup. DOMESTIC SALE Publisher net to retailer Author royalty (15%) Retailer markup (20%) Cost to customer $48.00 6.20 12.00 60.00 FOREIGN SALE Publisher net to retailer Author royalty (7.5%) Retailer markup (20%) Cost to customer $24.00 1.80 4.80 28.80 In this illustration, the author earns $1.80 on the foreign sale, only one-fourth than if it had been a domestic sale. By one measure, the author actually loses because the foreign sale displaces a domestic sale that would have generated $6.20 in royalties. The $6.20 loss is offset partly by the $1.40 royalty from the foreign sale, but there is a net loss: $4.80. CONTRACTS EARLIER ARTICLE AAP: Discount foreign pricing OK Probe sought into text pricing Finger- pointing on text prices 2003's leading author issue TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ANALYSIS AND COMMENT 2003 IN REVIEW John Vivian's annual wrapup of the news for academic authors has been called the most valuable service that any authoring organization can offer its members. His pick as the most significant news has been the explosive growth of super-discounted textbooks intended for foreign markets finding their way back to U.S. shores. Students have discovered they can buy new textbooks from foreign web sites at half what their campus stores charge -- even less than used books. "It's a bargain that hits hard at authors, who already usually take only half their usual royalty rate on the initial foreign sale" he said. "For academic authors this undoubtedly will remain the biggest story of 2004 too." YEAR-ENDER VIVIAN TOP STORIES 1. Foreign leakage 2. Aquisitions nouveau 3. Whither Houghton? 4. Textbook choices 5. Textbook pricing 6. Manuscript reviewing 7. Journal pricing 8. Dual-medium textbook 9. Patriot Act 10. Flat sales TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ACADEMIC AUTHORING PEOPLE Carol H. Behrman (English) wrote Ready-To-Use Writing Proficiency Lessons & Activities: 10th Grade Level (Jossey-Bass). Andrew J. DuBrin (business), Rochester Institute of Technology, wrote the fourth edition of Research Findings, Practice, and Skills (Houghton Mifflin). Karl G. Heider (anthropology), University of South Carolina, wrote the third edition of Seeing Anthropology: Cultural Anthropology Through Film (Allyn & Bacon). Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE R.I.P.: John Toland DANBURY, Connecticut, January 4 -- John Toland, who won the 1971 Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction for The Rising Sun, a historical work on the Japanese empire during World War II, died at a hospital at age 91. Death was attributed to pneumonia. Toland's also included the highly regarded Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography in 1976. In Infamy: Pearl Harbor and its Aftermath, in 1982, he cited evidence that President Franklin Roosevelt knew in advance of plans to attack but remained silent. JOHN TOLAND 1913-2004 TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Arizona state adoption question: Why? PHOENIX, Arizona, January 4, 2004 -- An official of the state's leading teacher group, the Arizona Education Association, has reservations about a proposal by State Senator Robert Blendu to centralize textbook selection. "It's not clear what problem the senator is trying to fix," said John Wright, vice president of the association. Blendu says standardizing textbooks statewide would improve pupil performance on standardized reading, math and science tests. Wright is dubious: "The consistency we have is the Arizona academic standards." He said that Arizona's culturally diverse population requires flexibility. Wright himself teaches on a Navajo reservation. EL-HI PRICING EARLIER ARTICLE Arizona schools chief favors state adoption TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Text prices their fault! No, theirs! WASHINGTON, January 4, 2004 -- Finger-pointing has become the fashion of the day on textbook pricing. The president of the Association of American Publishers, Pat Schroeder, tried to deflect the focus away from publishers, saying that some shops "that may well exceed the 25 percent to 30 percent" markup that they acknowledge. Brian Cartier, executive director at the National Association of College Stores, bristled in response. The average college store markup on textbooks has remained constant at 22 percent for seven years, he said. Cartier said that publishers must accept responsibility. He cited government data that show textbook prices have risen 35.1 percent since 1998 compared to a 5.4 percent average for other manufactured products. Judith Platt, an AAP spokesperson, said publishers work "to get textbooks into the hands of students as efficiently as possible." Pricing, she said, is complex and involves many parties, including authors. John Vivian of the Society of Academic Authors noted, however, that author royalties are a smaller part of the sale price than ever. He said author royalties have declined significantly over the past decade from the once-standard 15 percent. TEXT- BOOK PRICING CONTRACT ALERT Update your foreign sales provisions EARLIER ARTICLE AAP: Discount foreign pricing OK TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Pupil tracking tools called essential VANCOUVER, Washington, January 4, 2004 -- Technology-based pupil-tracking information systems are essential for schools to reach goals established in the federal No Child Left Behind legislation, according to a paper prepared James F. Parsley, a retired Vancouver superintendent now in residence with the American Association of School Administrators. Schools must find ways to buy the new tools, Parsley said: "We have groundbreaking scientific knowledge about the learning process, but schools are restrained by the multiple obstacles of shrinking financial resources, mounting social pressure, students' personal learning barriers and an unprecedented explosion of information." The technology, he said, can turn vast amounts of raw data into usable knowledge for managing and guiding the education process as required by the No Child Left Behind Act. TESTING ASSESS- MENT TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Nominations open for Talby Prize WINONA, Minnesota, Janaury 4, 2004 -- The Society of Academic Authors' recognition for the excellence in visuals in textbooks and other learning materials is accepting nominations. Nominations for the William Henry Fox Talbot Prize, the "Talby," will accepted from SA2 members through January, the association said. The prize is named for the Talbot, a photography pioneer, who was the author of the important 1844 text The Pencil of Nature. The book is considered the single most important book of photographs ever produced. The Pencil of Nature, published in London by Longman, was the first commercially published book illustrated without the aid of an artist. 2003 WINNERS Steve Ackerman Peter C. Jurs John Knox Frederic H. Martini John W. Moore Conrad L. Stanitski Robert B. Tallitsch Michael J. Timmons John Webber TALBOT DETAILS TALBY PRIZE TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE AAP: Discount foreign pricing OK WASHINGTON, January 4, 2004 -- Heavy discounts on textbook sales in select foreign markets makes sense because it discourages piracy, according to a spokesperson for the Association of American Publishers. In markets with weak economies, books must be within the reach of students, said Judith Platt. Otherwise, U.S. publishers would be inviting more piracy problems that could even flood the U.S. market with pirated copies , Platt said. Selling textbooks overseas, even at deep discounts, helps to lower the costs for books both at home and abroad by encouraging economies of scale in production, she said. Platt's observations came amid growing concern about textbooks being purchased online by U.S. students at a fraction of retail prices at their campus stores and frequently even less than used copies. TEXT- BOOK PRICING CONTRACT ALERT Update your foreign sales provisions EARLIER ARTICLE Feds may investigate textbook pricing TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Arizona chief favors state adoption PHOENIX, Arizona, January 4, 2004 -- A proposal to move the power for textbook adoptions from Arizona local districts to a state-level board has the support of state schools Superintendent Tom Horne. The proposal has academic merit, Horne said, noting that many Arizona school children do poorly on standardized tests. The legislation, proposed by State Senator Robert Blendu, would have the Board of Education create an approved list from which school districts and charter schools would make their selection. Blendu modeled his legislation on state adoption systems in California, Texas and Florida, which are the most influential centralized adoption states. EL-HI EARLIER ARTICLE State adoptions proposed for Arizona TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE SA2: THE VOICE OF ACADEMIC AUTHORS Used-book site needs policing WINONA, Minnesota, January 4, 2004 -- The Society of Academic Authors asked Amazon.com to monitor the used-book section of its site for offers to sell instructor editions and manuals for college textbooks. In a message to Jeff Bezos, Amazon chief executive, SA2 founder John Vivian said that more materials intended only for instructors, some with test answers, are entering the used-book market. "These sales undermine the integrity of the education process by tempting students to short-circuit their learning," Vivian said. He also asked Amazon to remove the postings for these materials and to admonish the purveyors. Also, he asked Amazon to post a warning about this practice with other rules for people who use the service. Meanwhile, the Society of Academic Authors has asked members to use their campus intranets to discourage sales of intructor-only materials. FREE INQUIRY POSITION PAPER SA2 letter to Amazon.com EARLIER ARTICLE Authors asked to help quell used-book sales Campus stores and used4books TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Help quell used-book sales WINONA, Minnesota, January 4, 2004 -- Members were asked by the Society of Academic Authors to help crack down on the sale of used books and instructor manuals by passing a pre-drafted SA2 message on to colleagues on their campus intranets. John Vivian, society founder, said the immediate concern is the growing volume of instructor editions of textbooks and manuals, some with answers to problems and test questions, being sold into the student used-book market. This is the wording of the pre-drafted message for campus distribution: Hi, Colleague: The Society of Academic Authors asked me to pass along its concern about instructor editions of textbooks and manuals, some with answers to problems and test questions, being sold into the student used-book market. This practice undermines the integrity of all that we do in our classes. When you are done with instructor editions and manuals and other often-complimentary learning materials that publishers provide, the Society encourages you to destroy them. These were never intended to tempt students to short-circuit their learning. The Society has found these materials on online used-book sites. In a few cases, they have shown up in campus stores through the used-book industry's redistribution channels. With 1,800 SA2 members, Vivian said he expected the message would reach almost every college instructor in the country. USED BOOKS OTHER SA2 POSITION STATEMENTS Free jailed Cuban librarians Campus stores and used books Used Books Instructional Materials Accessibility Act Access to Presidential Papers University of Minnesota Press autonomy TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Analysis: Tuition hurts textbook sales NEW YORK, January 3, 2004 -- Explosive tuition hikes have contributed to an erosion in the college textbook market, according to publishing executives speaking at an investors' conference. Dick Harrington, president at Thomson, said that 2003 high-ed sales were up 2 percent through September but he doubted whether that rate would be sustained for the year and that 2004 sales may be flat. Community college sales have been especially weak, he said, pointing to tuition hikes pressing students into cutting back in other areas of their traditional college spending. Harrington sees 4 to 6 percent college textbook growth in 2005. Terry McGraw said that college enrollments grew less than expected in 2003, hurting sales. Enrollments will be stable at best in 2004, McGraw said. TEXT- BOOKS TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE AAP on Wu bill: Nobody asked us WASHINGTON, January 3, 2004 -- Legislation to authorize a federal investigation into textbook pricing was drafted without any input from publishers, a spokesperson for the Association of American Publishers said. The legislation, by Oregon Congressman David Wu, apparenbtly was based on an October New York Times article, said AAP's Judith Platt. "We have not seen the legislation, but appreciate Congressman Wu's concerns and welcome the opportunity to speak with him," Platt said. She said textbook pricing is complex and involves bookstores, publishers, professors, students and authors. "The development, production and distribution of textbooks and related educational materials require significant investments," Platt said. Textbooks, unlike trade best-sellers, textbooks are sold to niche markets in relatively small quantities, she said. TEXT- BOOKS EARLIER ARTICLE Probe sought into text pricing AUTHORING BIBLIOGRAPHY TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ACADEMIC AUTHORING PEOPLE Elizabeth Crosby Stull (social studies) wrote the second edition of Global Discovery Activities: For the Elementary Grades (Jossey-Bass). Arnold J. Goldman (law), law firm of Goldman & Goldman, and William D. Sigismond (law), Monroe Community College, wrote the sixth edition of Business Law: Principles and Practices (Houghton Mifflin). Susan D. Greene, (business), Marketing and Advertising, and Melanie C.L. Martel (business), New Hampshire Technical Institute, wrote the fourth edition of The Ultimate Job Hunter's Guidebook (Houghton Mifflin). Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Arizona state adoption proposed PHOENIX, Arizona, January 3, 2004 -- A bill to centralize Arizona school book adoption will be introduced in the Legislature in January, said State Senator Robert Blendu. He said local district adoptions has created a mish-mash in what pupils learn. "United States history, for instance, should be the same for everyone," said Blendu, a Republican from suburban Litchfield Park. "It's crazy to have different versions of the same thing. No wonder they can't pass the test." Blendu wants the state Board of Education to select books for children in kindergarten through 12th grade. The ultimate goal: stricter regulation of what students learn so they will improve their scores on standardized tests. EL-HI BLENDU 20 other states already have central adoption TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE AUTHOR VOICES THE DUMBING-DOWN DILEMMA Robert Hood, a business communication author, offers evidence that terms within a student's existing vocabulary facilitate learning. For effectice teaching, he says, authors need to combine generally understood terms with discipline-specific vocabulary. Students experience less stress and more quickly understand the text. Learning and teaching become more efficient because students face fewer quandaries as to understanding. HIS COMPLETE COLUMN HOOD TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Holt offers social studies supplement NEW YORK, January 2, 2004 -- El-hi publisher Holt, Rinehart & Winston released a special education social studies product called I.D.E.A. Works! Special Education CD-ROM. It is comprised of teaching resources from the Holt social studies textbook series. EL-HI TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE SA2: THE VOICE OF ACADEMIC AUTHORS Position: Free jailed Cuban librarians WINONA, Minnesota, January 2, 2004 -- The Society of Academic Authors added its voice to the call for librarians in the United States, through their American Library Association, to encourage the restoration of free libraries in Cuba and the liberation of the jailed librarians who set them up. In a message to ALA President Nancy Kranich, at New York Univerity, SA2 founder John Vivian called for the librarians, consistent with their historic commitment to free inquiry, to strongly condemn the repression of Cuba's independent librarians, call for their immediate release from prison, and insist on the return or replacement all the books confiscated from their libraries. The issue is on the American Library Association winter agenda. Said Vivian: "Academic authors, like librarians, are committed to freedom of inquiry. It is my hope, on behalf of the Society of Academic Authors, that the American Library Association takes a firm position ... against practices of the Cuban government to suppress the open library movement." Vivian noted that abuses of freedom of inquiry in Cuba are well documented: "Shipments of books addressed to volunteer libraries, including academic and textbooks, have been confiscated by government agents. There have been book burnings. Volunteers who staffed these libraries have been jailed, in at least one case to a 26-year sentence after a quick trial." FREE INQUIRY POSITION PAPER SA2 letter to ALA EARLIER ARTICLE Cuban leader faults U.S. librarian group TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Varsity eyes more online shops WASHINGTON, January 2, 2004 -- Textbook vendor Varsity Group said it completed its transition out of web sales successfully and now generates virtually all of its sales from the eduPartners program through which its serves as the online bookstore for private high schools and small colleges. The company operates online stores for about 210 institutions, up from 140 last year. In the most recent quarter, textbook sales generated $19.6 million while shipping charges added $1.8 million. With the third quarter, Varsity said it expects its financial performance in 2003 to be "significantly" better than 2002, when it had sales of $16.6 million and the first profits in its history -- some $661,000. Dan Rush, chief executive, said the motivation for schools to sign with Varsity is that they don't want to be in the retail business. Rush said Varsity has "aggressive plans" to adding more online stores. VARSITY TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE DATA BANK November book sales again weak WASHINGTON, January 2, 2004 -- Sales of books in the genres in which academic authors write look weak for 2003, according to data through November compiled by the Association of American Publishers. Even university press sales, while up from a year earlier, are far from the genre's peak. Here is the year-to-date data through November as extrapolated from 92 reporting publishers: University press (hard) University press (soft) El-hi Professional, scholarly College 10.7 percent 6.8 percent 2.1 percent 0.3 percent 0.2 percent EARLIER DATA TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE WORTH READING William J. Bennetta. "A History Book It Isn't," Textbook Letter (September-October 2000). Pages 5-14. Bennetta, editor of the Textbook Letter, sees political correctness gone too far in the 2000 edition of The American Nation, a Prentice Hall high school textbook. There is nary a mention of Christmas, which he notes is immensely significant holiday culturally in U.S. society, even in only the secular realm, he notes, adding that Kwanzaa, supposedly an African holiday but one that was contrived only in 1966 with no cultural basis, finds a place in the book. He faults as simplistic the portrayal of the United States as a blending of Amerindian, European and African cultures as if each were a monolithic entity. He cites dubious, unattributed assertions, like 5,000 blacks fought the British in the Revolution and that mortality rates on slave ships was steady at 10 percent. Robert R. Hood. "A Solution to the Dumbing Down Dilemma," Society of Academic Authors (September 16, 2003). Hood, a business communication author, offers evidence that terms within a student's existing vocabulary facilitate learning. Lynn Truss. Eats, Shoots and Leaves: Zero Tolerance Approachto Punctuation. Gotham, 2004. Truss makes the point that punctuation is important with myriad examples of how minor punctuation shifts change meaning. Her book's title speaks for itself. AUTHORING BIBLIOGRAPHY TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE ACADEMIC AUTHORING PEOPLE Darcy Gifford (counseling) wrote PeaceJam: How Young People Can Make Peace in Their Schools and Communities (Jossey-Bass). Terry Hirschberg (anthropology) wrote the fifth edition of One World, Many Cultures (Longman). Barbara D. Miller (anthropology), George Washington University, wrote the second edition of Cultural Anthropology (Allyn & Bacon). Please tell us about your latest project: EDITOR More academic authoring people TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE Probe sought into text pricing WASHINGTON, January 1, 2004 -- Congressman David Wu, who has objected to college textbook pricing, hopes that his bill for a federal investigation is added to the Higher Educational renewal act in January. Wu, an Oregon Republican, said there is no reason that textbooks sell in the United States at twice the price in other countries. His bill would ask the U.S. General Accounting Office to determine why American college students are charged more than students overseas. "The bill is basically going to see why this is going on, and what exactly is the disparity because there seems to be potential for price gouging," Wu said. In addition, the bill wants answers to textbook companies' standard for bringing out new editions. He also wants price differences between new and used textbooks investigated. TEXT- BOOKS TO EARLIER NEWS TO TOP TO HOME TO NEWS ARCHIVE