Technology continues to change school classrooms
by Mary Scott Nabers
CEO of Strategic Partnerships, Inc.
. . . continued from page one
The Forney district's electronic schoolbook program began at the beginning of the 2004-05 school year with a pilot project in the fifth and sixth grades. A bond issue that passed in 2006 provided laptops to all students in grades 5 through 12.
One of the major advantages of using electronic textbooks is the ability to make changes in historical information as it changes. When electronic textbooks became part of the everyday learning experience for Forney students a few years ago, the late Ann Richards was still listed as governor of Texas in some of their hardbound social studies textbooks. That was no longer true.
In West Virginia, education officials predict that textbooks as we know them today will soon be a thing of the past. State officials hope the switch will drive down the cost of learning materials and prepare students for future learning and work environments.
In Texas, the use of electronic textbooks was suggested as long ago as 1996 in a Texas Performance Review conducted by the State Comptroller's Office. At that time, Texas was ranking first or near the top among the states for expenditures for school textbooks.
Textbooks for core subjects such as math, social studies and history are reconsidered every six or seven years. Some book manufacturers say they could make corrections and edits quarterly to electronic textbooks.
The state is moving in the direction of electronic textbooks and legislators are currently debating the issue. One bill, HB 4294, has already passed in the House and is expected to clear the Senate. If so, it's possible that school districts will speed up conversion from paper to electronic books.
The bill would allow school districts to purchase electronic textbooks with funds provided from a supplement to the technology allotment from the state. Textbook money then could be spent on more current electronic content instead of hardbound paper volumes.
In classrooms today, teachers are using hand-held technology for a variety of uses - writing, reading, note-taking, research and more. Students are creating podcasts and videos. It seems only natural that students hooked on technology tools will better learn with electronic tools similar to the ones they use at home.
Texas students are tech-savvy. Adjusting to laptops and electronic books for them will be as quick as the click of a mouse.
