Declining sales have Lecture Notes slipping off shelves

Lecture Notes ““ one of UCLA students’ most effective
weapons against going to class ““ could dwindle to just a
memory next year as the Associated Students of UCLA considers
“phasing them out.”

As the Internet becomes more user-friendly, more professors are
placing their notes online, said Keith Schoen, UCLA retail store
director. As a result, the student demand for Lecture Notes in
recent years has been steadily plummeting.

Despite Lecture Notes’ sales being at a five-year low,
ASUCLA is not purposely trying to eliminate the note-taking
program. Instead, the notes are gradually fading on their own,
Schoen said.

“We don’t want to do away with business, but
it’s doing it to itself,” he said.

If and when Lecture Notes disappear permanently, some UCLA
professors said they wouldn’t be sorry to see them go.

“It’s a business that supports ASUCLA,” said
psychology Professor Andrew Christensen. “It’s not
endorsed or reviewed by me.”

At the program’s peak selling point in 1999, nearly 6,000
Lecture Notes were sold per quarter; students bought half that
amount during last fall quarter.

Since Lecture Notes comprise only a meager amount of its sales,
the association won’t be significantly affected if they
become nonexistent in the future, Schoen said.

Neil Yamaguchi, academic support director for the UCLA Store,
said ASUCLA is currently discussing the uncertain fate of Lecture
Notes.

Possible outcomes for the notes include eliminating the notes
completely, providing Lecture Notes for selected subjects, or
limiting availability only to subjects that were sold in the past,
Yamaguchi said.

As Lecture Notes start gradually disappearing, their ultimate
fate will become a cause for concern to many UCLA students who
depend on them.

Jay Won, a third-year molecular cell development biology
student, said he liked the academic convenience of the notes.

“Sometimes my professor goes too fast and I think the
Lecture Notes are a great way to compare class notes with something
else,” Won said.

Other students said Lecture Notes could be an effective
supplement to academics, especially if they have unorganized
professors.

“A lot of professors can be potentially really bad, so
it’s a big help for people who don’t get much from
lecture,” said fourth-year economics student Russell
Silao.

Professors ““ who receive a 50 cent commission for each
subscription sold ““ say the notes should be a supplement to
class rather than a replacement.

“Having kids read lecture notes when you’re trying
to get through to them is a disaster,” said economics
Professor Earl Thompson. “They’re expected to puzzle
over (material) and think, and with lecture notes, that’s not
possible.”

Students also attributed Lecture Notes’ high cost to their
reluctance to purchasing them. The notes usually cost $20 in
Ackerman’s textbook store.

“Twenty dollars for old notes is a lot,” Won said.
“It’s like buying another course reader.”

Silao, who also works in the textbook information department,
said he has noticed a significant increase in the price of Lecture
Notes over the years.

A few years ago, they were about $14, he said.

To students who still purchase the notes, forking over the $20
is still worth it in the long run ““ especially if it saves
them the hassle of going to class.

According to many professors, when students purchase Lecture
Notes, their faces are usually never seen in lecture halls
again.

To motivate students to come to class, Thompson said he tells
his note taker to purposely leave out significant pieces of
information from the lecture.

“Lecture Notes are OK as long as the (hired) notetaker
understands that not everything in the lecture will be in the
notes,” Thompson said. “Because then the kids
don’t come to class.”