$200 Textbook vs. Free. You Do the Math.
Peter DaSilva for The New York Times
Scott G. McNealy, with his 12-year-old son, Dakota. Mr. McNealy is trying to bring open-source textbooks to classrooms, from kindergarten to high school.
By ASHLEE VANCE
Published: July 31, 2010
INFURIATING Scott G. McNealy has never been easier. Just bring up math textbooks.
Mr. McNealy, the fiery co-founder and former chief executive of SunMicrosystems, shuns basic math textbooks as bloated monstrosities: their price keeps rising while the core information inside of them stays the same.
“Ten plus 10 has been 20 for a long time,” Mr. McNealy says.
Early this year, Oracle, the database software maker, acquired Sun for $7.4 billion, leaving Mr. McNealy without a job. He has since decided to aim his energy and some money at Curriki, an online hub for free textbooks and other course material that he spearheaded six years ago.
BIG CITY
Summer Camp for the Cool and Career-Conscious 13-Year-Old
By SUSAN DOMINUS
For some children, vacation season is a time to be hip and “aspirational.”
David Alexander, Overseer of Rhodes Selection, Is Dead at 77
By DENNIS HEVESI
Mr. Alexander, a former president of Pomona College who changed the face of that campus and its student body, also pressed the Rhodes Trust to grant scholarships to women.
Obama Defends Education Program
By JACKIE CALMES
President Obama on Thursday sought to deflect criticisms from some minority and teachers groups.
Getting Into Med School Without Hard Sciences
By ANEMONA HARTOCOLLIS
A program admits students if they study humanities instead of the traditional pre-medical school curriculum.
Confusion on Where City Students Stand
By SHARON OTTERMAN
Doubts arise as the benchmarks of proficiency change for New York City’s public school students.
Standards Raised, More Students Fail Tests
By JENNIFER MEDINA
The results indicated a dismal performance statewide, after years of significant gains.
