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ZTC Course Reporting & XB12 Coding

ZTC Course Reporting in Banner

Per California Senate Bill 1359, each institution must:

"Clearly highlight, by means that may include a symbol or logo in a conspicuous place on the online campus course schedule, the courses that exclusively use digital course materials that are free of charge to students and may have a low-cost option for print versions."

Currently, Allan Hancock College uses the following icon in course search to indicate that a course is Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC):

                                                Open textbook with a crossed-out dollar sign in the middle of the book

 

How the ZTC Icon Appears in Course Search

 

An example of online course search results with the ZTC icon

 

XB12 Codes for Instructional Materials Costs

 

  • XB12 Codes were part of a Senate Bill passed in 2018 and implemented in Fall 2024
  • XB12 requires colleges to label ZTC, OER, & LTC (low textbook cost) courses and indicate the cost of instructional materials in their online course search by using the XB12 coding system
  • Courses with instructional materials that cost up to $40.00 are considered Low Textbook Cost (LTC) courses
  • XB12 codes should appear in course search in the same place where the ZTC icon is displayed in the following format: XB12-A, XB12-C, XB12-D, XB12-E, XB12-F, XB12-G, XB12-Y

                               Data Table with different letter codes for instructional materials

Xb12 codes depicted in pictures

XB12 Code

 

State Chancellor's Office Definition

 Definition from Consumnes River College OER Toolkit Examples Class Schedule Designation
A

Section has no associated course material

 No instructional materials are used, including assigned readings or videos
  • A fitness lab section with no readings
  • A lab section supporting a writing course

Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC)

Open textbook with crossed-out dollar sign
C

Section has course material costs, none of which are  passed on to students

 All or some instructional materials have an associated cost, but have been purchased by the college
  • Library-licensed materials such as streaming videos, ebooks, or articles
  • A set of print books that was purchased by a specific department, the college library, or another college entity
  • Software or homework systems licensed by a department or the college

Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC)

Open textbook with a crossed-out dollar sign
D

Section has low course material costs ($40.00 or less)*

 

 

 

 

 

 

 All instructional materials have a combined price of $40.00 or less based on the pre-tax retail price of new material at the college bookstore
  • A required novel or popular non-fiction book that retails for $40.00 or less at the bookstore
  • A section that uses free digital materials, but requires students to print some or all of the course materials may be designated as Low Textbook Cost if the printing costs can be reasonably expected to be under $40.00

Low Textbook Cost (LTC/LCT)

Arrow pointing downward in front of an open book with a dollar sign in the middle

 
E

Section uses only no-cost, OER course material

 All primary required instructional materials are available under a Creative Commons License (e.g., CC BY, CC BY NC) are freely available online (no AHC login required)
  • Open Educational Resource Textbooks (e.g., OpenStax, LibreTexts)
  • Open homework systems (e.g., MyOpenMath or ADAPT)
  • An OER textbook plus other free materials that are legally available to all (e.g., YouTube videos, Khan Academy, Poetry Foundation, etc.)

Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC)

Open book with a dollar sign crossed-out
F

Section uses only no-cost digital course materials that do not meet OER guidelines

 All primary required instructional materials are freely and legally available to students, but are not openly licensed
  • Open Access articles or ebooks found online and not through the library databases
  • Free materials that are legally available to all (e.g., YouTube videos, Khan Academy, Poetry Foundation)
  • Instructor-created materials that are available through Canvas

Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC)

open book with a dollar sign crossed out
G

Sections uses a mix of no-cost OER and other cost-bearing resources, but no costs are passed to the student

 A combination of instructional materials that are available under a Creative Commons License (e.g., CC BY, CC-BY-NC) and that were purchased by the college
  • An Open Educational Resource Textbook (e.g., OpenStax) and library-licensed materials such as streaming videos, ebooks, or articles
  • An Open Educational Resource Textbook (e.g., LibreTexts) and a set of print books that puchased by a specific department, the college library, or another college program or entity
  • An Open Educational Resource Textbook (e.g., OpenOregon) and a department-created lab manual that is printed for all students
  • A class set of all textbooks purchased by a specific department, the college library, or another college entity and an open homework system (e.g., MyOpenMath, ADAPT)

Zero Textbook Cost (ZTC)

Open text with a crossed-out dollar sign
Y

Section does not meet no-cost or low-cost course material criteria

 Instructional materials that have a combined new pre-tax cost of $40.01 or more at the bookstore and are required to successfully complete the course
  • A commercial textbook (physical or ebook) costing $40.01 or more at the college bookstore
  • Textbook + homework system or access code costing $40.01 or more at the bookstore
       Dollar sign

XB12 Data Element Code Infographic & Definitions © 2024 by Los Rios CC District is licensed under CC BY 4.0 and was adapted from XB12 Codes Infographic by Caroline Hallam, Glendale Community College and XB 12 Data Element Codes & Definitions at GCC by Glendale Community College, both licensed under CC BY 4.0

*$40.00 or less is currently the AHC Low Textbook Cost (LTC/LCT) designation. The Chancellor's Office will officially standardize LTC courses as $30.00 or less (pre-tax retail price) by summer 2027.