LearnerLibrary.com, a revolution in the textbook industry

We are a social enterprise dedicated to making textbooks and learning resources available to all learners regardless of their means. We have secured the support of dozens of publishers from around the world that share this belief. 

We have built a web platform, LearnerLibrary.com through which learners can access over 3,000  university and high school textbooks and learning resources (with approximately 200 new titles added every couple of months), that we are making available gratis to low income communities and at nominal cost.  

Why this matters

The price of textbooks at a primary school, high schools and university level is nothing short of outrageous. The cost of textbooks for some learners can be as much as $1,200 annually. In fact, research suggests that 65% of students don't buy all the books that they need because of the expense attaching to textbooks. Our preliminary research suggests that 40% of international students do not buy many texts because it is a choice between buying textbooks and paying for meals and basic necessities. We are shocked by this and would like to make resources more accessible and affordable.

Additionally, there is an overwhelming amount of research suggesting that access to textbooks is more important than parental income, parental employment and parental education when it comes to developmental progress. Children that have access to fewer than 10 books, have been found to be developmentally behind children that have access to greater than 10 books by 2.5 years.

Featured Content

Check out our amazing JUNIOR SCIENCE book collection (click here)

Our LITERARY CRITICISM collection (click here)

Learn about MARKETING & COMMUNICATION (click here)

Our excellent CPA PROGRAM preperation collection (click here)

Take a look at our SENIOR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE collection (click here)

The next steps

We have a robust web platform and over 3,000 publisher supplied resources, but we know that we need to enhance access through smart phone applications for iOS, Android and Windows currently users require internet access to read all of the titles which we know is not always possible in developing nations. We need a robust set of smart phone applications that allow users download and read titles even in offline mode. This will allow us to reach hundreds of millionsof additional learners in rural and remote communities that have intermittent or no internet access. It will allow us to pre load applications on smart phone devices with the books already available even without internet access.

We are a technically proficient team with competence in server side development,web development, UI/UX design and machine learning methodology. We do not however, have significant expertise in smart phone application development. So to that end, we require the expertise of development professionals from third party development firms to assist with the application builds. The reason our initial target is only $2,000, is because we have already received generous support from Optus and the Future Makers Program of $9,000. This has made our initial prototyping possible. Additionally, we will be completing as much of the build as possible internally, including all server side development and RESTful APIs. 

Project Timeline

4th August 2017 - Initial UI/UX design completion and commencement of server side development.

30th August 2017 - Completion of initial server side build and API design.

1st September 2017 - Finalisation of smart phone application and designs and developer costings.

5th October 2017 - Completion of crowd finding campaign.

25th October 2017 - Completion of iOS/Android prototypes

15th November 2017 - Completion of testing and quality assurance processes.

1st December 2017 - Commencement of rewards delivery.

15th December 2017 - Completion of rewards delivery.

Stretch goal 1

If we achieve a fundraising total of $4,000, we will apply the additional resources to the development of a gratis textbook focused on introducing scientific principles to grade 3 level students authored by specialist university academics and members of our network of subject matter experts. 

Stretch goal 2

If we achieve a fundraising total of $8000 we will apply the additional resources to the expansion of our standardised testing games in our K-12 category. The games will be made available gratis through a new free priced tier. 

We have already built the web platform and have the support of a huge number ofpublishers. Additionally, members of our team have worked on complex software deployments for the ANZ bank, NAB, EEA and a number of other projects. Additionally, we have long standing development partnerships in place withpartner firms that have expertise in smart phone application development. In relation to the provision of rewards, we already have a robust web platform in place and consequently there in minimal risk in relation to the provision of rewards. 

Moreover, our high level rewards, in relation to the creation of new books are also supported by a large network of academics and authors who shall be called uponto deliver the associated rewards. While the delivery of the high level rewards involving authorships shall present some co-ordination challenges, we haveworked with independent authors, designers and graphic artists on book projectson a number of occasions previously. We believe the overall project and reward delivery risks are minimal.