3. “Digital textbooks offer various interactive functions, and provide the learner with a combination of textbooks, reference books, workbooks, dictionaries and multimedia contents such as video clips, animations, and virtual reality, both at school and at home, without the constraints of time and space.” Wikipedia Textbooks Storybooks What is a digital book?
4. Read on E-Book Readers or Laptops They are lightweight “Open source” software What to do with the media College Benifits How do they work?
5. How going digital is good! How students use it Teachers benefits Environmental Adjust to fit students needs. (board, laptop, print outs)
6. Certain software Outdated computers Purchase E-Book Readers Harder to read Digital divide How going digital is bad!
7. Looking into K-12 What is Legislature doing? State funding Approval/Dissaproval Directions this is taking them. All schools 2013 Rich/Poor Certain courses online
9. Trials Few online courses Teachers using it in their classrooms instead administrators What schools are doing now.
10. The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/09/education/09textbook.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1 The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/18/AR2009101802360_2.html Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Textbook Web References
Digital story booking and etextbooks are taking over the world by storm. It is making classrooms easier for some teachers but harder for others.
Read definition. This media can come in forms of textbooks and storybooks. In many ways it will save a company money but in some other ways it will not be beneficial to the user.
A digital story has to be read on a E-book reader. They also can be read on some software for laptops but this software has to purchased to be compatible. The e-book readers are very lightweight and are easy to carry around. Most of the books come from open source software on the internet. This open source software comes from most of the companies that come with the book reader or also the textbook companies are coming out with their own software now. The sorties can be projected onto a big screen, printed, edited, and also you can embed videos or sound into each story if you want. This is nice for college students because they can study by highlighting something, also if they take their book to class and they want to catch something they think the professor is going to say that’s important about a topic they could record them and have something to refer back to.
Students can highlight and take notes right on their computer screen. They can enlarge a picture or words if it is needed. Also study guides can be done right on the computer. This makes things for teachers easier. They are saving paper because they don’t have to make copies of something if a student doesn’t have their book or worksheet one day. Also it saves the environment because it can be updated anytime. Teachers and students will not have to get yearly books because of this. Only one version of the book will ever be made, and edits will be made to it if needed and an update will be sent out. The adjustments can be made by the teacher in each students situation to whatever best fits him or her.
Schools will have to purchase the E-book readers and also the software for their main computers if they transfer to digital books. Some of the computers they already own may not be compatible with this software and therefore they would have to update their computers. This costs them more money that some schools may not have. For some students reading on an e-reader will be harder than just reading out of book. If you get the print outs there not the same for that student since they cannot edit it the same as their fellow students. Also the digital divide will be much more prominent with this addition to schools. If a student does not understand computers or does not have access to things at home to do their homework it will be a problem.
The state is getting funding for these digital storybooks. They are trying them out in schools and seeing how teachers, students, and administrators approve or disapprove. Instead of putting as much focus on the paper copies they are resorting to the digital books. Some rumors for the futures are that each school is going to become digital. They hope to have this accomplished by 2013. There will be a defense between the rich and the poor and it will show in the schools. Hopefully schools will only decide to have some curses online so students who may be less fortunate don’t have to take those classes.
In an Elementary classroom you can record things for students to do with each activity. Also many of the books tell you right what to do. If a student needs help reading the book can read to them. Also they can do the activities that come with each story. They can dray with them and highlight things they may not understand.
Some schools are trying out some online courses especially in California. They are allowing students that need some extra credits or just want a new kind of elective to chance a class that involves a digital storybook. Most student are enjoying it and administrators seem to love the idea.
