Adoption of digital textbooks has moved at a snail’s pace on most college campuses. But at Trine University’s School of Professional Studies, that shift is being jump-started with a new collegewide mandate to adopt e-textbooks in all courses by January.
The School of Professional Studies—which has 500 adult students enrolled in 10 degree programs online and at branch campuses across Indiana—hopes the e-textbook push will help students save money, boost sustainability, and enhance classroom and online instruction.
Starting next semester, faculty members will be required to teach from digital editions of their textbooks using the CaféScribe platform, operated by the Follett Higher Education Group. The Web-enabled e-textbook system allows students to highlight and take notes on the text while they read as well as compare notes and discuss their reading in online forums.
Faculty members can also embed comments, links, and discussion questions into the digital text. “The faculty are really excited about it,” said David Wood, the school’s dean. “The e-textbook really provides a lot of interactive opportunities for students.”
But the switch to digital textbooks will not come without growing pains. The school is working closely with officials at Follett, which also runs the university bookstore, to run faculty workshops and Webinars to prepare professors and students for the switch. “I think any kind of change is challenging, but once they start using it, it’s very easy to use,” said Jen Eveslage, an intellectual-property manager at Follett. “They’re going to become much more engaged with the text.”
According to Ms. Eveslage, the switch to e-textbooks has not required faculty members to change their curricula all that much. CaféScribe collaborated with faculty members to make sure that textbooks they normally use are made available in their online textbook store, and have worked with publishers to get traditional textbooks converted into e-textbooks where necessary. Faculty “will have the materials that they are used to using,” she said.
Having all required reading in a digital format, Mr. Wood said, will also make keeping up with coursework much more convenient for the school’s adult students, many of whom have to balance college and career. “Our students are out working, traveling at conferences, and all over the world,” he said. “E-textbooks allow them to have access wherever they may be.”
7 Responses to Trine U. School Requires E-Textbooks for Entire Curriculum
emmadw - December 3, 2010 at 8:40 am
I’m assuming that if they’re mostly professionals who’re studying, they’re fairly likely to have reasonable IT skills, and good access to the Internet – but will the books be using any odd sort of ports etc. ? We’ve had issues with professional development students who can’t access the VLE etc., from their workplaces due to Firewall issues.
Is the material printable / available offline if students want it? (Can you get the printed book / web enabled version together for a special price) – was just thinking that if they’re attending conferences all over the world, they’ll be in planes a fair bit (and/or hotels with v. expensive internet) – can’t get online & do work if it’s too pricey / you’re on board the plane)
22097237 - December 3, 2010 at 9:46 am
Given the National Federation for the Blind lawsuit against ASU and other schools, how are these digital texts accessible to blind students?
mforce1 - December 3, 2010 at 11:22 am
How does an ebook address the needs of a kinesthetic learner? Also visual acuity is very different from reading a book v.s. the computer screen.
dank48 - December 3, 2010 at 12:47 pm
One more example of people with an overarching vision of the future imposing that vision on those they can impose it on, because they can. (N.B.: Self-described liberals, this is one reason self-described conservatives find you irritating. Just one, though.)
Survey after survey shows student preference for paper books over e-books is about three or four to one, if both are priced the same. If there’s a significant price difference, they prefer the cheaper version.
This is perceived not as data about the market but as a problem to be solved, since the assumption has already been made that e-books are the future and paper is passe. Another assumption is that one’s vision of the future is correct. Yet another is that people, students included, will put up with one’s “I know what’s best for you” outlook.
Maybe this will be a complete success, a model for all to follow. E-books, imo, are here to stay, but I don’t see how that authorizes, justifies, or even rationalizes what strikes me as a procrustean approach to education.
rhershman - December 3, 2010 at 1:42 pm
There are many very valid academic reasons to carefully move towards greater use of digital course materials, while also preserving choice for students in what format they prefer in consuming content, but I am always surprised at the argument and assumption that digital is more sustainable then paper which is a renewable resource. If anyone who has followed the problems with e-waste, batteries, and hardware built obsolescence it seems like a hard sell, not to mention the electricity today that fuels e-readers and computers primarily comes from coal. Now last month word comes that China may cut off the supply to other countries of limited earth metals as early as 2012 used in many of these electronics as we start running out of these metals. You know what that will do to prices.
I recently came across this presentation from a journal paper from Sweden looking at printed textbooks versus digital and how they stack up against each other on impact of carbon dioxide emissions. http://www.iarigai.com/presentations/2009/1-02.pdf
While there are good arguments to be made for going digital, the sustainability issue needs more independent study.
realtyannie - December 3, 2010 at 7:32 pm
For the blind students, couldn’t they convert to audio by linking the text to a voice simulator?
wmartin46 - December 4, 2010 at 2:46 pm
> Given the National Federation for the Blind lawsuit against
> ASU and other schools, how are these digital texts accessible
> to blind students?
If a school is not taking Federal Money, would it be required to listed to anything the Dept. of Education has to say on this matter?