Tech. Tuesday- Oct. 23

"The educational environment isn't exploiting digital content for all of the benefits that can accrue for today's learners.  The gap is widening for what we do in our lives- how we communicate, work, learn, and play- and how we're educating our kids."  (SEDTA, 2012)

The State Education Technology Directors Association (SEDTA) in the U.S. has recommended that all schools shift away from printed textbooks by 2017.  This shift would be done gradually as schools rotate through their natural textbook adoption cycles.

More and more, schools and universities are researching the benefits of and moving towards the use of e-textbooks instead of the traditional print texts.  As part of the 3-Year I.T. Plan at Ashbury, I am beginning to do this as well.  So far, my reading has yielded mixed results. Here is a summary:

• The benefits of moving to digital resources include:
• Digital resources can be updated easily and more frequently than textbooks- without reprinting costs
• It is possible that digital resources can be much less expensive than print textbooks
• They can be available for students, parents and teachers anytime and anyplace
• They allow for multimedia content, interactivity and online assessments
• Digital resources allow teachers to individualize content for all types of learners and even create their own content
• Students can annotate resources without damaging the the materials
• Reduces the need to drag heavy backpacks to and from school
• Options for resources, content and providers are increasing exponentially

 Those opposed to moving to e-textbooks and digital resources make the following arguments:

• Using e-books makes it harder to remember what was read.  An article published in Time.com proposes that:
•  studies have shown that on-screen reading is measurably slower than reading on paper
• While an additional study in England found that there is no measurable difference in student performance when using e-texts compared against printed text, there does seem to be a slight difference in need to read the material more than once.
• Context and landmarks are important when learning material.  These include remembering where on the page the material was read and what it was near.  Opposers contend that there are fewer spatial landmarks in digital content than in printed content
• Smaller screens may make material less memorable (Hmmm, what does this say about novels?)
• Physically flipping pages is less mentally taxing than flipping online pages

• There aren't enough options for digital textbooks yet.
• Purchasing e-readers makes the cost savings of e-textbooks a mute point
• University students are concerned that they cannot resell digital texts
• Students are worried that they might lose their notes if done digitally
• Some e-texts require so much storage space that most of today's readers do not have enough memory to provide any functionality beyond storing texts

 Within the same article, however, the writer admits that these issues probably boil down to the fact that students are simply not used to using e-text yet and that students who grow up using e-textbooks and resources will have far fewer difficulties.

So then I ask you...isn't this just another case for "What's new is less comfortable at first?"  Don't we just need to deal with it?

Just like we must face the fact that the time has come for us to all embrace new technologies in our classrooms, provide online resources by using course management systems and refuse to allow our fears to polarize us as lifelong learners vs. stagnaters, the time has come for us to really explore and consider the move to opening the doors to digital devices and the tools/resources that come with them into our classrooms. After all, if it is best for kids...isn't it just plain BEST?
I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic.  In your opinion, what are the benefits and drawbacks to embracing these emerging options?

References:

• Out of Print:  Reimagining  the K-12 Textbook in a Digital Age- SETDA:  www.setda.org

• Report:  Schools Should Move from Print to Digital Content by 2017- Education Week:  http://blogs.edweek.org/marketplacek12/2012/09/tranistion_from_print_to_digital_2017.html?cmp+ENL-II-NEWS2

• Report Recommends Shift to Digital Educational Resources Within 5 Years-- THE Journal:  http://thejournal.com/articles/2012/9/24/report-recommends-shift-to-digital-educational-resources-within-5-years.aspx?admgarea=News1

• 10 Reasons Students Aren't Using Digital Textbooks- TeachThought:  http://www.teachthought.com/technology/10-reasons-students-arent-using-digital-textbooks

•  Do E-Books Make It Harder to Remember What You Just Read?- Time.com:  http://healthland.time.com/2012/03/14/do-e-books-impair-memory/?iid=hl-main-feature