Arizona High School Will Stop Using Textbooks(Will Use Laptops,Online Articles Instead of Books)

aolnews.com ^ | 7 11 05

[moog]

The issue is, the book publishing companies won't be able to run their little racket anymore if this catches on.

Most textbook companies have big online presences too. They would probably start some subscription service for accessing academic content. I have seen some sites do that already.

[moog]

Uhh... the same thing that happens if they sell their textbooks for drugs, booze, or sneakers?

I wonder if a bunch of nerds have ever gotten into a gangfight.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Aren't all the textbooks these days outdated, too expensive and owned by foreigners?

I kind of agree with this. Textbooks may be going the way of the spool-film projector.

[moog]

I kind of agree with this. Textbooks may be going the way of the spool-film projector.

They are getting scarce in the younger grades.

[SpaceBar]

This is an incredibly stupid idea. The ability to use traditional dead tree sources of information is a central skill. We will be educating a new generation of tech saavy functional illiterates without any appreciation of the permanence or intrinsic value of books, and a breadth of knowledge only limited by the charge duration of a laptop battery. Research will be replaced by "googling". I treat my books like others treat their guns. From my cold, dead hands. This also sounds like a convenient, roundabout way to transfer the high cost of toner to the parents of students.

[TXnMA]

When I was in the 5th grade the class was using encyclopedias that said albert einstien was still alive

Same for me. (But he was still alive at the time...)

'-)

[radiohead]

I wonder how much they will have to pay for copyright royalties.

Aha! It paid to read thru the thread before posting! This was my thought exactly. College libraries are already having a terrible time keeping up with the costs of licensing online products while trying to maintain a physical collection. I don't know how a high school is going to do it over the long haul.

The demand for online materials is growing, but it is a nasty habit. If you purchase the physical journal for the library, it's there practically forever. If you purchase a journal in Yr 1, but don't pay for it in Yr 2, you still have the Yr 1 issues sitting on the shelf. If you license access to the online version, once you stop paying the license, you no longer have access to the journal, even the years for which you previously paid.

I don't know what types of material this school will be accessing, but I bet they have to pay a fee for it and at some point, some hard choices are going to have to be made.

[bannie]

I'm glad they used a careful and scientific method to ensure such an expensive decision is worthwhile.(Sarcasm recognized)

...not to mention that a group of children are being used as guinea pigs. The kids in the study groups don't get to RE-DO school if this doesn't work.

[bannie]

In California, the state is selecting which texts can be used. This is quite a departure.

[N. Theknow]

Just got your book yesterday.