Textbook Deathwatch

Textbook Deathwatch

May 1, 2009

Project Tomorrow’s latest Speak Up survey, released in March, shows an increased desire among students to ditch the papyrus. Currently, 29 percent of middle- and high-school students say that they are using some kind of online textbook or online curriculum as part of their regular schoolwork. That number will inevitably grow. What would their fantasy digital textbook include?

SOURCE: WWW.TOMORROW.ORG/

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COMMENTS (13)

Jim - 06/16/2009

The question isn't the textbook versus the computer. The real question is how best to store information and make it available to students in the most effective way. In the long run, it's no contest: textbooks are expensive, inflexible, cumbersome, and by definition, out of date as soon as they're published. They're way better than stone tablets, but can't compete with computers as a way to store and use information.

Anonymous - 06/07/2009

As a teacher in Texas, I can only comment that my high school students HATE textbooks and would love to have everything available to them either online or in an electronic format with access to all those thing shown in the graphic.

karen - 06/03/2009

An important part of why textbooks should/are dying is their inability to be customized for differentiation, caused both by physical format and legal reasons. Open resources, including textbooks, are one solution to this. Here is a way that federal funding can be used to start moving down this path: http://www.k12opened.com/blog/archives/166 Federal and state governments are starting to look seriously at open textbooks as a solution to many problems, both budget-wise and instruction-wise.

Susan B. - 05/31/2009

Gary, I have to agree with Anonymous - 05/18/2009. Computer technology is not for everyone but how convenient is it to be able to carry a number of books within one device. I think it is a boon for students and an individual does not necessarily have to be computer savvy to work an eBook device. I do believe textbooks and novels still have their place but, let's face it, technology will surpass those of us who do not choose to be a part of it.

Anonymous - 05/18/2009

Gary -- The future of textbook replacement is not to require students to use or have access to PC's. E-Books are making rapid progress (see Amazon Kindle line, including the new Kindle DX which is replacing textbooks in college already). I believe devices like this will be the replacement of traditional paper textbooks. It certainly doesn't have ALL the features yet, but it is darn close and about 90% toward replacing everything a textbook does have. You also have the advantage of flexible availability. Perpetual content licensing, advance content licensing and simpler distribution will all add value even with today's devices.

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