APD Conference 2008

Penelope Woolf - OUP, Graham Taylor - PA and Philip Kisray - WileyThe PA’s Academic & Professional Conference 2008, ‘What does Higher Education want from Publishers?’, which took place on 12th February, revealed growing consensus between academe and publishing that they must work more closely, and in tandem, to ensure a wide range of good-quality learning resources are available for students, through library systems, social networks and course management environments.

 Around 120 delegates gathered at the Institute of Physics in London to hear vox pops from students and eight speakers from universities and publishing, chaired by Professor Mike Pittilo, Principal and Vice Chancellor of Robert Gordon University.

Together they named the elephant in the room – government pressure on HE funding – and called for new business models to embody their closer relationship. 

Gunter Saunders, Director of Online Learning Development at the University of Westminster, called for ‘close co-operation on changing the model of use; there’s scope for incorporating third-party material in our e-learning model. Work with staff like me.”

Tom Davy, Chief Executive of Cengage EMEA, warned that students can get by without buying textbooks, but they will be technologically demanding: ‘The old model of the campus bookshop just won’t cut it any more,’ he said. 

Roland Fox, Senior Lecturer in Finance at Salford Business School, told publishers: ‘It’s up to you to handle the psychology of it – to persuade the market that there are costs in developing the books that are worthwhile.’

Urging HE to be realistic in its expectations of digital publishing, Dominic Knight, MD of Palgrave Macmillan said: ‘We’re locked in a rather stiff embrace - and it’s been my experience that embraces are better if they’re gentler and softer … what can we create that’s sustainable?’ 

Presentations from the Conference are available here

Find a selection of photos taken at the Conference here