How do you feel about electronic textbooks for kids?

[NotUrsula]

The Washington Post has an article today about schools that are migrating to electronic textbooks, including mention of some mandates that California is adopting: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/18/AR2009101802360.html?hpid=topnews

The article really doesn't talk about the use pattern that I think is going to become most common in the near future: schools that only buy one set of physical books to store in the classroom, expecting the kids to use the electronic version for homework. So, instead of 80 copies of that social studies textbook for 4 sections of 20 students each, the school buys just 33 or so, including a few extras for the kids who can't access the web.

We already use this pattern where we can because DS has executive function problems that make it a real challenge for him to manage to always bring home the correct textbooks to match up to his homework.
For us, having the electronic version available works very well, and the textbook companies are OK with it because they still sell books to the school, so they license the electronic version at no extra charge. (Right now the number of simultaneous users needed is still fairly low because the kids do each have an issued hardcopy book.)

So, what do you think? Is all-electronic the way to go, or is a mix better? If you go all-electronic, is it classist and discriminatory toward families who don't have home internet accesss, or is it just the reality of our time?

One thing I will say: I think that the prediction that going all-electronic will turn out to be much cheaper than paper in the long run will almost surely turn out to be wrong. I deal with electronic resource negotiation at work, and IME, prices for maintaining access to electronic ALWAYS go up much faster than comparable rates for hardcopy. Electronic resources are really not something that you own, they are something that you lease, and publishers very quickly determine that managing that state of affairs and gatekeeping access gets very labor-intensive very quickly.

 

[C.Ann]

My only concern would be for the kids who don't have access to computers or the web at home.. If they cover that base, then I guess that will be the wave of the future..

Hard for us here on the DIS to think that there are still many, many families that don't have computers or access to the web at home, but there are..

 

[BriarfoxinWA]

I think it would be a great idea...probably because it takes an act of Congress to get my DS's school to allow him to take a book out of the classroom. Try making up late assigments with no text book available

 

[Becky2005]

So, what do you think? Is all-electronic the way to go, or is a mix better? If you go all-electronic, is it classist and discriminatory toward families who don't have home internet accesss, or is it just the reality of our time?

Our school district basically already does discriminate if electronic only is considered that. Starting this year, they no longer send the high school progress reports home because we have access to the grades on-line. The lunch menu for the grade school is now being sent via e-mail (and that is new but not being done very well -- last month they cut off 1/2 the days, so I just went on the main site to find it), for Middle School they send the PTO announcements via e-mail. The HS Newsletter is only sent via e-mail.

Basically in this town if you don't have a computer, you really have no clue what is going on at the school.

For me, personally I love, love, love the electronic version of the textbook. Mostly because I have a son with a reading disability and some other issues. Last year he kept 2 sets of textbooks. This year he doesn't have to PLUS the computer reads him the textbook vs. ME having to sit there and read him the textbook.

The only thing I would NOT like an electronic version of is Math. It's a whole lot easier to have a textbook with the problems in it than attempting to do that at the computer desk (they normally do their written stuff at the kitchen table which doesn't have a computer anywhere near it). This year's Math teacher keeps a set of books in her classroom and has all the kids take home their math books. It's fantastic. Also makes it great for if you are out sick!

You can call the homework hotline, since you already have your book at home, you can do the work vs. having your book still be in your locker.

 

[LisaR]

Our school district basically already does discriminate if electronic only is considered that. Starting this year, they no longer send the high school progress reports home because we have access to the grades on-line. The lunch menu for the grade school is now being sent via e-mail (and that is new but not being done very well -- last month they cut off 1/2 the days, so I just went on the main site to find it), for Middle School they send the PTO announcements via e-mail. The HS Newsletter is only sent via e-mail.

Basically in this town if you don't have a computer, you really have no clue what is going on at the school.

For me, personally I love, love, love the electronic version of the textbook. Mostly because I have a son with a reading disability and some other issues. Last year he kept 2 sets of textbooks. This year he doesn't have to PLUS the computer reads him the textbook vs. ME having to sit there and read him the textbook.

The only thing I would NOT like an electronic version of is Math. It's a whole lot easier to have a textbook with the problems in it than attempting to do that at the computer desk (they normally do their written stuff at the kitchen table which doesn't have a computer anywhere near it). This year's Math teacher keeps a set of books in her classroom and has all the kids take home their math books. It's fantastic. Also makes it great for if you are out sick!

You can call the homework hotline, since you already have your book at home, you can do the work vs. having your book still be in your locker.

OT: Is this part of the electronic textbook package or do you have special software that allows the text to be read? I just started looking at a few programs that are available to read the text to my dyslexic son. So far the reviews on the couple I have looked at have been so-so.

 

[BCDisneyFanatic]

I have electronic copies of the textbooks for the students I tutor (high school math). Although they are great for homework (i.e., not having to lug a textbook around), I don't like them for learning new material. It is very hard to "flip" through the pages, and you don't get the same sense of continuity between the units that you do when you can browse through a chapter quickly.
The screen on my laptop isn't big enough either to show the whole page (at least in a text that is legible!), so it can be a pain scrolling down each page.


The textbooks we use do have some great resources, though. It's nice to have hot-links for keywords, and there are often extra guided practice exercises/reviews offered on the electronic versions.

Overall, I think they are a great addition to the regular textbook, but I hope that they never do away with the originals. Yeah, I'm an old fogey

 

[Becky2005]

OT: Is this part of the electronic textbook package or do you have special software that allows the text to be read? I just started looking at a few programs that are available to read the text to my dyslexic son. So far the reviews on the couple I have looked at have been so-so.

It comes with the textbook the school gets -- so I'm assuming they license it or it's part of the overall program. Last year they started with the Science book, this year the Social Studies book has it. It's great! It's literally identical page to what is on the text book so he could follow along as it was reading it.

It's not any special program, we just go on-line to the textbook site, pick out the book and it's magically there.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

Ok, I just weighed 4 of my DD 5 text books. Those books alone are 23lbs, add in her other book, notebooks, calculator, lunch etc, her backpack is close to 40lbs(thank goodness for block scheduling so she only has 4 classes). She and I would both be thrilled if she could access the books at home on the computer and have a class set that stayed at school and some books that could be checked out as needed.

 

[LisaR]

It comes with the textbook the school gets -- so I'm assuming they license it or it's part of the overall program. Last year they started with the Science book, this year the Social Studies book has it. It's great! It's literally identical page to what is on the text book so he could follow along as it was reading it.

It's not any special program, we just go on-line to the textbook site, pick out the book and it's magically there.

Thanks for the info. I'm jealous!

 

[Ppufi]

Ok, I just weighed 4 of my DD 5 text books. Those books alone are 23lbs, add in her other book, notebooks, calculator, lunch etc, her backpack is close to 40lbs(thank goodness for block scheduling so she only has 4 classes). She and I would both be thrilled if she could access the books at home on the computer and have a class set that stayed at school and some books that could be checked out as needed.

This. I'm sure at least some more kids would do their homework if they didn't have to lug heavy books home and back.

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

This. I'm sure at least some more kids would do their homework if they didn't have to lug heavy books home and back.

Not to mention much healthier on the backs of growing young kids.

 

[Imzadi]

Not to mention much healthier on the backs of growing young kids.

I was just going to post this. Young kids should not be having back problems lugging books around.

The only problems I see are if kids are in economically impoverished areas and other kids are stealing each other's eReaders to sell or get for themselves, the way they were knifing & stealing iPods a when they first came out.

Also, these eText Books should be capable of typing companion notes in the margins and highlighting certain passages, for those who like to do that.


I have had vision problems after getting Lasik eye surgery. I went from extremely nearsighted, where I could read screens & small print easily, to extremely farsighted. I don't read paper books anymore. Too much of an eye strain. The ability to change font size on screen has been invaluable to me. This may solve many learning difficulties for some kids.

 

[Tiggeroo]

I believe it is wonderful. The enhanced texts with links to dictionaries and expanded content are even better. I believe we are going to see something similar to a Kindle in the near future for school books. This will have note taking capability, the ability to send homework electronically from it, sample tests and quizzes and the ability to put work you have done up on a smart board to show the class. I know many older teachers who are very resistant to it. But the current generation of new teachers have been raised to get their info electronically. They will be thrilled with this format and quite comfortable with it. College students will benefit tremendously. The textbook companies continually force new additions for much higher prices on students with only a few simple changes. Then they claim the need to reprint the whole book.

 

[WDWBarb]

As a mother of a daughter with Scoliosis, I have to say that I wish electronic textbooks had been mandated years before.

Her backpack has stayed around 50 lbs since the 6th grade. I pay for physical therapy to help her overcome the damage being done to her every day, simply because she has to carry so many books around.

Sorry... I'm going to stop. I get angry every time I talk about it.

 

[NotUrsula]

I was just going to post this. Young kids should not be having back problems lugging books around.

The only problems I see are if kids are in economically impoverished areas and other kids are stealing each other's eReaders to sell or get for themselves, the way they were knifing & stealing iPods a when they first came out.

Also, these eText Books should be capable of typing companion notes in the margins and highlighting certain passages, for those who like to do that.

Oh, I think that PORTABLE access to e-textbooks on e-reader devices is not really the goal right now for the K-12 market, and probably won't be unless the handling of pdfs and color capability becomes the standard default. This is strictly laptop and desktop country for now.

I just don't think schools will ever go for a situation where they have to provide hardware to read the books on. That will cost them more than the paper versions, because as you've pointed out, there is a huge potential for theft for the resale market. I could MAYBE see adopting something akin to a dedicated read-only MobiPocket device, because you wouldn't be able to put anything else on it.

 

[monarchsfan16]

As a student, I do NOT like electronic books, articles, etc. I'm 22 and in grad school, and chose the more expensive real textbook over an e-book in a couple cases this semester because I just don't get anything out of what I'm reading when I'm reading academic stuff on a computer screen. I have no idea why this is the case, but anything I'm working with needs to be in hard copy. It has always been this way (and no, there's nothing wrong with me; I've always been an honors student, so I DO absorb material). I would have survived elementary and middle school alright without real texts, since I generally just used class notes and didn't read my textbooks anyway but I can't imagine high school, college and grad school without real texts. As it is, my school is very "green" and assigned non textbook readings (articles, etc) are posted online. I can't tell you the amount of paper I go through printing them, because it's the only way I can absorb the material.
Schools really need to consider things like this. I KNOW from talking to my friends that I'm not the only one this happens to.

 

[tar heel]

I LOVE, LOVE them. My 15-year-old had some in middle school and now has some in high school. I'm so happy he's not carrying around 5-pound science and history books in his backpack. He also goes to a large school with a zero tolerance tardy policy (you're late -- you go to after-school detention the next day), so there often isn't time to go to a locker. He didn't even get one this semester.

Of course, there are regular books for kids who need them, too.

 

[Stacerita]

DD had the option of getting the e-book for science or a traditional book. I was happy she wasn't going to have to carry it around, and just thought of how great the access would be. But she hated the idea. She loves using her text book and stated she does not want to read the book online. Some students just prefer the text book to learn.

 

[clh2]

DD gets issued a textbook for every class, and a couple of the classes (Math and History) have on-line versions as well.

For Math - it works out fine. DD will bring her book home if there is a lot of homework. She'll use the online version if she just needs it for a little bit.

For history, the online version was hard to read, and if the page was printed wasn't much better.

I always try at the beginning of the year to see if any of the books she needs are available on ebay...we scored her chemistry book (~7.00 including shipping) and her history book for about $10 including shipping. This only works because our school district often has textbooks longer than other districts.

Back to a concern about the original post...I would NOT like it if our district went to "all-electronic" versions. What would parents do if they had 1-computer in the house...with several students? It would be hard to get stuff done, IMHO!

 

[golfgal]

Our school district basically already does discriminate if electronic only is considered that. Starting this year, they no longer send the high school progress reports home because we have access to the grades on-line. The lunch menu for the grade school is now being sent via e-mail (and that is new but not being done very well -- last month they cut off 1/2 the days, so I just went on the main site to find it), for Middle School they send the PTO announcements via e-mail. The HS Newsletter is only sent via e-mail.

Basically in this town if you don't have a computer, you really have no clue what is going on at the school.

For me, personally I love, love, love the electronic version of the textbook. Mostly because I have a son with a reading disability and some other issues. Last year he kept 2 sets of textbooks. This year he doesn't have to PLUS the computer reads him the textbook vs. ME having to sit there and read him the textbook.

The only thing I would NOT like an electronic version of is Math. It's a whole lot easier to have a textbook with the problems in it than attempting to do that at the computer desk (they normally do their written stuff at the kitchen table which doesn't have a computer anywhere near it). This year's Math teacher keeps a set of books in her classroom and has all the kids take home their math books. It's fantastic. Also makes it great for if you are out sick!

You can call the homework hotline, since you already have your book at home, you can do the work vs. having your book still be in your locker.

A friend of DS17's life changed completely when they introduced the text reading capabilities for computers. The program he has you can scan in anything and it will read it to you. It used to take him 3-4 hours to get his homework done in ELEMENTARY school. He got this program in about 5th grade and cut his homework time down to about an hour/night-most of the other kids in his grade had about 15 minutes/night.

Our schools have been using the online version of their textbooks for years. Most of the teachers give them the choice of getting a textbook or just using the online version. Some of their classes have a few sets of the text book for classroom use and then they can either check one out to take home or just use the online version. Some of their math classes don't even have classroom versions, they use the Smartboards for all their classroom learning and online versions for homework. We have a few hundred computers at school in the labs that kids can use if they don't have access at home-school is open an hour before classes and until around 6:00 at night-they have a bus for kids to take at 5:00 if they need to but most kids can either get a ride or walk home.

Our twins bring their books home at night-I keep trying to get them to just use the online versions. Their backpacks have to weight 50 pounds. DS17 keeps his textbooks at school and uses the online versions at home.