The school publishing industry appears to be reaping benefits from rebounding state and local budgets, increased demand for materials aligned with the common-core standards, and the continued evolution from print to digital products.
Sales for print and digital instructional materials in schools jumped 25 percent in September and 9 percent in October over the previous year, according to the Association of American Publishers. Overall, year-to-date sales for 2013 were up 7 percent.
In 2010, shortly after the official end of the Great Recession, sales of instructional materials crept up about 1 percent. But they plunged 12 percent in 2011 and 15 percent in 2012, according to the association.
