What is the Global Text Project?

The Global Text Project, with plans to create a free library of 1,000 electronic texts for students in developing world. The library will cover the range of topics typically encountered in a university’s undergraduate programs. The global academic community and global corporations will be engaged in creating and sponsoring this library.

Who are the principals?

The Global Text Project is a joint project of the Terry College of Business of the University of Georgia and The Daniels College of Business of the University of Denver. The project is housed in the Terry College of Business, which also handles administrative matters.

The Global Text Project Core Team includes Co-Project Leaders Richard Watson of the University of Georgia and Don McCubbrey of the University of Denver; Marisa Drexel of the University of Georgia, Wayne Huang, Ohio University; Franz Lehner, University of Passau; and Andres Sepulveda, Universidad de Concepción Chile.

Why did you start the Global Text Project?

The developed world’s textbook business model does not meet the needs of those in the developing economies. We need a publishing model that can meet the needs of developing nations. Textbooks are considered expensive in Europe and the United States, but they are beyond the reach of many in developing economies. For example, a USD $108 Biology textbook sells for USD $51 in Africa. Gross National Income per capita in the United States is $41,400 – the figure for Uganda is USD $250 (World Bank).

How will the Global Text Project select its titles and content?

The library will cover the range of topics typically encountered in a university’s undergraduate programs. The global academic community and global corporations will be engaged in creating and sponsoring this library. The first two textbooks will cover Business Fundamentals and Information Systems and will be written collectively by academics and practitioners. Other books on subjects such as Biology, Economics, Agriculture, Physics are in various stages of development.

Global texts will incorporate knowledge and examples from a diversity of regions. They will be successful when there is a two-way flow of knowledge between the developed and developing world.

A panel of scholars in and from developing countries will advise on required books and their content. Presently, the committee has members from developing countries with university appointments in South Africa, Colombia, Egypt, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Indonesia, Uganda, United Kingdom, and China.

Existing books

I own the copyright to a book, it was returned by the publisher when the book went out of print. Now, I want to give the book to the project for release under the Creative Commons License. Do I he have to get permissions for the figures, table,  etc. again or  are these covered under the original publisher's agreement?

The publisher would have obtained all those rights prior to publishing and so you should be OK if the items were in the original assigned manuscript.

Creating books

How will you produce the textbooks?

A scalable Internet-based infrastructure to support the creation of free, open content, electronic textbooks has been established. We use O3Spaces for publishing and Drupal for distribution.

How will you distribute the textbooks?

Open content electronic books can be made freely available via a Web site. The Internet will enable global distribution of books to universities, who can decide how to handle local distribution. As well as the Internet, they will be able use paper, CD, DVD, or e-book. The initial goal is to focus on content development and Web distribution, and to work with relevant authorities to facilitate dissemination by other means when bandwidth is unavailable or inadequate.

An open content model eliminates the physical distribution issues associated with paper-based books and also permits responsiveness to local needs.

What is an “open content model”?

In an open content model, all content donated to or generated by a publisher – in this case the Global Text Project – is made freely available to all, for all time. Books are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

Will the textbooks be translated?

Books will be translated into Arabic, Chinese, and Spanish, but nothing will prevent translation into other languages.

Funding

How will the Global Text Project be funded?

Start-up funding has been provided by the Zurich based Jacobs Foundation.

What is the cost of sponsoring a Global Text Project textbook?

We welcome those wishing to sponsor a specific book. Sponsorship of a textbook will be approximately USD 50,000 for creation of the initial version and approximately USD 25,000 per year to sustain it thereafter.

How will my company benefit from sponsoring a Global Text Project textbook?

Several benefits will accrue to those who sponsor a Global Text Project textbook.

• The sponsored textbook will carry a prominent acknowledgment of sponsorship, identifying the sponsor as a supporter of higher education in developing economies.
• By sponsoring a Global Text Project textbook, corporations will directly support the foundation of an educated workforce and more affluent markets in developing nations.
  • A World Bank report estimates that the return on educational instructional materials is up to 14 times higher than the return on physical facilities. An open content model eliminates the physical distribution issues associated with paper-based books and also permits responsiveness to local needs.
• The Global Text Project community includes leading educators and experts in a wide range of disciplines, in both the developed and developing economies. By participating, corporations will have access to leading-edge information and ideas on best practices in higher education and workforce development globally.
• The Executives-in-Residence at the Terry College of Business, University of Georgia, have agreed to advise the project. This group includes senior executives from companies such as Coca-Cola and Proctor & Gamble. Some of these executives have been company chairmen and CEOs.

Besides financial support, what do you need?

We need people with a variety of expertise to produce quality books. We need authors, illustrators, proofreaders, and exercise creators.

We need help in making the world aware of the textbooks. We need to ensure that all those who might gain from the books learn of their existence. Sponsors can use their networks to make others aware of the project and its goals. It is important that we build a global brand and distribution network so that professors everywhere are aware of the availability of global texts.

Sponsors can also put us in contact with appropriate personnel who are in a position to advocate support of a book.

Out of print books

If you are an author who has an out of print book, please consider releasing it under a Creative Commons License. We can then add it to the library. You must first ask the publisher to return the copyright to you. 

Volunteering

I want to help. How do I get started? Who do I contact?

Join the group for the project to learn what is happening. You can review prior postings to get up to date. Contact Rick Watson or Don McCubbrey to let them know of your particular skills and interests. You could also review the list of books and contact the editor-in-chief for a book where you would like to help. Request for volunteers to work on a project are posted to the general group.

If you are a student, you might be able to help move a contributed book into the global text library, or you could create some exercises for a book on a topic you have studied or are studying.

If you are current or retired university professor or professional, you could become an editor-in-chief, a chapter editor, a contributor, or reviewer.

I was in school five years ago. I made an A in Introduction to Information Systems, and. I am now working as a Systems Analyst. I know all the concepts, however, I might need to refer to Global Text book on the topic. Can I borrow concepts from the text? Would that be plagiarism? What constitutes as plagiarism?

The same principles of plagiarism, citing, and so forth apply to Global Text books as to all other books. You can freely make and distribute copies of any Global Text book provided you obey the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License. Furthermore, we would like you to consider becoming a contributor and improving the book in some way. Maybe you have an interesting project you have worked on that would make a good case study for other readers.

Who assigns the editors and writers?

At present, Don McCubbrey or Rick Watson recruit editors-in-chiefs to lead the creation of a particular book. The editor-in-chief then recruits chapter editors, or in turn might write the chapter or seek contributors. As the project grows, we expect to have section editors (e.g., history) who will manage recruiting volunteers for their topic area.

I have experience in operations, IT, general business management. How do you know what I will be capable of? Should I send you a resume? Should I send you a draft of what I wrote on a particular topic?

Contact Rick Watson or Don McCubbrey to let them know of your particular skills and interests. They will likely follow up with a phone call or direct you to the editor-in-chief of a particular book.

I have a lot of knowledge, but I don't know how to write effectively.

Maybe you could start by writing small chunks (e.g., some exercises for a book), and as you writing skills improve, take on larger chunks.

While I might be writing chapter 1, Peter from Kenya might be working on Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 is done by Kumar from India. Since each of us have different styles, how do we make sure the book flows together. For example, my chapter might have 10 figures/pictures, while Kumar might use none. Would this not interrupt the flow/style of the end product?

This is a major problem for all books which have multiple authors, whether they are open content or proprietary. However, an advantage of our model is that many people can be involved in improving the book. Students can point out inconsistencies to editors. Maybe we can get some students learning copyediting to improve the text. The first release is a starting point for continuous improvement.

Once I write a chapter, how do I send it to for correction?

All chapters will be reviewed by someone who is an expert in the general area or the particular topic. This the common practice for textbooks. Also, because we are seeking continuous improvement of all books, we expect students to contribute corrections.

FAQ for "Diseases of Children in the Subtropics and Tropics

Is there some "qualifications / basis" for choosing contributors?

It will be up to Dr. Stanfield, the lead editor of the book, and his colleagues to decide who will be involved in the revision. They will have the final say on what is accepted. We need the usual high level editorial control for a medical book.

Do you have permission from the original publishers for this project?

Yes.  Dr. Stanfield regained copyright when the book went out of print and has agreed to release the book under a Creative Commons License.

Broadly what kind of updates would each volunteer be required to do?

Maybe it would be appropriate for people who are interested in helping to send their resumes to Dr. Stanfield so he can assess how they might help.