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I was reading an article titled "Online textbooks moving into Washington area schools", from [i]The Washington Post[/i] talking about how more and more schools in the Washington area are considering adopting online textbooks. Several schools have already transitioned to using online textbooks for Social Studies. Other counties in the area are waiting for the cost to go down while others are simply discouraged because of the fact that not every student has a computer at home or even access to a computer outside of the classroom. My question is do we think that online textbooks are a good idea and how will it affect the science curriculum? I think that online textbooks have pros and cons. Online textbooks would be the next step in keeping up with our technological world. Students in Maryland take their MSA for science on the computer. In fact, a majority of their MSA practice is spent in the computer lab. Emma Brown reported that is takes a "heavy load" off of the students back because now they don't have to carry around all of the textbooks. When I think about online science textbooks, simulations and interactive activities come to mind. Online textbooks are more than just reading on the computer, the students are able to interact with different lessons. I think that the online textbooks are a great idea and the students can benefit from it. However, on the other hand, how ideal are the textbooks. How much will it cost the student and their families? What happens if the students don't have access to a computer at home? I'm sure there are ways around these road blocks. For instance, the teachers don't have to assign computer assignments for homework. Fundraisers may be a good way to raise money for the textbooks. These ideas may not be realistic. I think that there should be more schools that do a trial of these online textbooks and see how beneficial they are. Then possibly, if they are beneficial the government will allot money to online textbooks for schools. Brown, Emma. (2 October 2011). Online textbooks moving into Washington area schools. [i]The Washington Post[/i]. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/online-textbooks-moving-into-schools/2011/09/27/gIQAwn0KGL_story.html

Interesting article! Thanks for sharing. Just this year, I am using a new textbook series (Interactive Science by Pearson) and my students have an online textbook in addition to their paperback write-in version of the text. Students and parents seem to really like that they have the option of accessing the text online, but I think it would be difficult to have only an online version. I imagine it would be hard for a large family with multiple school-age kids to enable each child to get onto the family computer to read and complete homework each night. Also, there are some days, when I want my students to refer to their text in class, and I would not have computer access for everyone in my room unless I acquired laptops. In addition, what about eye strain from reading off of a computer screen all the time? Those are just some of my thoughts right off the bat.