The governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger has outlined a plan to replace paper textbooks with ebooks as a way to save money.
In an article in the San Jose Mercury News the governator, as he is known, said that replacing paper books with electronic versions would save money and allow students to get more up to date information. He has issued a call for developers to build electronic books for the classroom.
“California has put out an initial call to content developers, asking that they submit high school math and science digital texts for our review,” he wrote.
“We hope the floodgates are open. We'll ensure the digital texts meet and exceed California's rigorous academic standards, and we'll post the results of our review online as a reference for high school districts to use in time for fall 2009.”
Schwarzenegger gave the example of textbooks that still refer to CRT monitors with no mention of more advanced technology like LCD or OLED screens
The use of electronics to deliver classroom texts is increasing in the US and worldwide. At least one school is now electronic readers for its classroom materials.
The move offers opportunities for developers to build textbooks that can be personalized for individual school districts and also allows for information to be kept up to date.
With Apple announcing an ebook reader yesterday for the iPhone and Amazon’s Kindle at the education market the traditional textbook’s days may be numbered.
“There are those who ardently defend the status quo, claiming our vision of providing learning materials to students for free would risk a high-quality education,” he said.
“That's nonsense. As the music and newspaper industries will attest, those who adapt quickly to changing consumer and business demands will thrive in our increasingly digital society and worldwide economy. Digital textbooks can help us achieve those goals and ensure that California's students continue to thrive in the global marketplace.”
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