Monday, November 18, 2013

eBook Reflection



E-Book Reflection
Digital learning is about to overtake education and change the way we distribute and interact with information and, ultimately, the way we learn.  EBooks are ideal for the academic environment.  First of all, eBooks provide a means for non-textbook adoptions.  EBooks can enable daily, weekly, or monthly updates via the Internet, eliminating out-of-date textbooks.   Another distinct advantage of eBooks is the equality of access to learning materials. Students who are literally anywhere in the world will have access to the same content that is available to the student in the classroom.  EBooks can be enriched with a broad range of media types to help with the learning process.  Ebooks would help the student and instructor stay on top of developments relevant to their curriculum.  EBooks along with the use of interactive whiteboards, makes the class mobile and no longer tied to the room. This allows the school to better utilize the spare classrooms in any given period and therefore able to provide more content for their pupils. This means that the school is able to target more suitable curriculum to a pupil. From a student’s point of view they are unlikely to forget something that is required for every lesson. If they do, then it would be possible to lend a pupil a spare device from the school’s library and load it with the content required for the day.  So, the use of eBooks could provide a practical solution to schools’ dilemma of having to offer more content directed towards the “average” pupil to help them achieve better scores without the need of more classrooms. Schools which are early adopters of this new technology also benefit from the added marketing value as being seen as innovative and “hi-tech”.  It should be less expensive for schools to use eBooks as textbooks. Perhaps the future of education isn’t as bleak as it appears today. Perhaps the future will include enhanced, customized instruction that enables each student in a classroom to learn at his or her own pace and depth. 
Uses for the Ebook
Big Books-Using an eBook and a video projector a teacher can instantly create a digital “Big Book” on a screen for use with a class. He or she can use the eBook to illustrate passages or demonstrate how reading samples may be used in the literature circle.  Teachers and students can create their own talking electronic books. These books can be “played” on a computer or printed and bound. Another classroom application of the PowerPoint eBook is to use technology to create digital “Big Books” for class reading and other activities. 
Audio Library-Students and parents can donate audiobooks that they have listened to and create an audiobook library for a class or school. The use of audio text with print text has been found to increase learning by 38%. If student have created their own audiobooks, place the student created audiobooks as MP3 files onto the school or class web site for download. This will allow students to download the class books in audio format to listen to on their MP3 players.
Digital Reading List-Teacher can take their current reading list and search to find what books are available for free as eBooks, also search for the authors, in case other works that they did are available for students who might want to read more. Publish a set of hyperlinks on a class web page so students can assess the list from home or school.
Home-School Interaction-Teachers can develop reading relationships between home and school. Place selected eBook or links to online books on the school, library, or class web site. Students read the books from home or school.
E-Books in the Future
Ebooks will eventually be the most popular form of books. Kids e-read a lot via tablets, Kindles and iPads. Even though many people still like to turn the pages and use a book, I think that eBooks will increase in use in the future. I’m not sure if they will become the top dog in books but I am sure that they will become a very close #2.

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