No More Textbooks in Schools?

Kindle Quite possibly, Yes! And why not? The latest personal technology rage is Amazon’s Kindle, a portable electronic reader that replaces the typical hardcover or paperback book by wirelessly downloading books and select newspapers. Currently a consumer product, the Kindle’s surface area is similar to the standard hardcover book yet the depth is no larger than a pencil. It provides a great alternative for someone who doesn’t want to lug a heavy book through the airport; needs to conserve on space during their morning commute; or to download a new book on a whim no matter where they are. And the current cost of downloads is cheaper than the real book itself.

Now think about the significance of distributing a single Kindle – a digital textbook – to each student throughout an entire school or school district instead of stacks of hardcover textbooks. The benefits are huge and the applications are limitless.

Current information: instead of waiting for the next version of the textbook to be updated, printed and distributed the text in a Kindle would constantly be updated providing current information and data as often as teachers and administrators desired. Sections of books can be updated without the need for a full, and expensive, full print run.

Complete textbooks: no more pulled-out pages. No more missing graphs and illustrations.

Convenience: no more “I left my book at school because I already had too much to carry.” One digital textbook replacing a stack of hardcover books makes reading and studying more portable which in turn make the learning process an ongoing experience.

Cost savings: Thomas Friedman, of the Democratic Leadership Council estimates “school districts nationwide would save $700 million in the fifth year (of distribution to each student) and $500 million annually” each subsequent year.

Equity: A Kindle in every backpack is a great equalizer bringing poorer school districts in closer alignment to more techno-advantaged districts. The cost savings can also re-direct funds toward additional technology, or much needed increase in teacher pay. Friedman suggests that providing eReaders to students nationwide would alleviate disparities in learning.

Adoption rate by students: Immediately. Generation Y, as the first digital generation, inherently adopts technology. There is no reason to suspect the next generation will be any different. I have to believe students could read more content simply because this is cool technology which they adore.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently launched an initiative to explore greater technology in the educational environment. “California is home to software giants…but our students still learn from instructional materials in formats made possible by the printing press.”

While it’s admirable to seek technological solutions to fix the state’s financial woes, implementing change across an entire state the size of California may too big a challenge to gain any quick traction needed to influence others to follow. And traction is what it will take to gain real scale to move this idea across the nation. So let’s start with one school or one school district.

Who wants to volunteer?

(See our “purple paper” Lead Gen to Gen Y: Prepare for the new B2B Buyer which probes the communication channels we will need to utilize reaching this important consumer. Download the purple paper and you could win a Kindle)