The textbook of the future
Electronic Books
Electronic books have great potential for the classroom. They generally use more paper to create than a student will go through over the entire course of the semester. With eBooks, students can painlessly search through hundreds of pages of text for specific information in a matter of seconds. They can highlight information and recall it later for effective studying. Content can be made interactive by embedding audio and video, and this content can even be updated on the fly. eBooks are often cheaper than their printed counterpart and are considerably lighter. Weighing in at 10.2 ounces, the Kindle 2 being popularized by Amazon has enough storage for over 1,500 books! The advancement in this technology is quickly making this one of the most important platforms for the green classroom.
Unfortunately, there still remain a number of obstacles that have prevented the eBook from becoming mainstream. Most students today, studies show, will only pay around half of the price of the physical book, for the same exact digital copy. Many eBooks are still priced higher than this perceptual barrier, and you can't easily resell them at the end of the term. In addition, a plethora of usage rules exist surrounding ownership and control. Some you can print. Others you cannot. Models exist that allow you to keep the book forever, while others act more like a subscription and expire at the end of the term. In some cases, you can highlight and save changes. You might need to be online to access the content. A few allow for free sharing, and pirating is rampant as ever.
Despite these challenges, with digital, weightless, and interactive eBooks, you are well on your way to a more sustainable classroom.
Advantages Snapshot
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