Entrance of eReaders and Digital Books in the Classroom
Compass Intelligence does not think we are anywhere near the extinction of the traditional textbook, but eBooks and digital textbooks are making its big entrance in 2010. The announcement of the iPad by Apple's Steve Jobs has spurred a huge buzz in the Education marketplace when it comes to eReaders, digital books, and electronic learning. Below is a short list of the available eReaders that are being used in the classroom (even more in Colleges and Universities):
• Amazon Kindle
• Apple's iPad
• Sony's Reader
• Barnes & Noble's nook(TM) e-reader
• Foxit's eSlick e-reader
• Ectaco's jetBook LITE
Compass Intelligence expects this 1st half of the year to be an exploratory phase for most schools in K-12 and Higher Education. Understanding the full adoption aspect will be crucial...costs, implementation, software, compatibility, security, integration, management, battery life, usability, applications, benefits, use in classroom instruction, replacement of textbooks, etc. Educational and textbook publishers are already making deals with the top vendors, with Apple making some big recent announcements that I read in the Wall Street Journal. McGraw-Hill, Houghton Mifflin, Pearson and Kaplan are working with ScrollMotion Inc. to build applications for the iPad that bring test preparation, study guides and new types of instructional materials to the classroom. Others will follow this lead. These education publishers are fleshing out the various business models, rental fees, timing, updates, and more. In the next 6 to 18 months, this market will ramp up and many offerings will be made available specifically for school districts and high-tech colleges. In fact, Compass Intelligence believes college campuses will begin to entice college students by offering free e-Readers to students similar to what they have done in the past with laptops, smartphones, and netbooks.
Use of eReaders in the Classroom
Compass Intelligence believes electronic books and eReaders will change the education landscape for the better. Higher Education will first adopt and it will eventually be picked up in K-12. It is not expected to totally replace traditional textbooks, but will introduce a new way of teaching, reading, and learning, especially once the next editions of these eReaders add more features such as multiple applications, USB, video, and more. A List of some of the most mentioned uses of eReaders in the classroom are listed below, what do you think?
• Reading Textbooks, Study Guides electronically
• Review Assignments
• Taking Notes
• Highlighting and Annotating eTextbooks
• Chatting with the Teacher and other students (collaboration)
• Browsing the Internet to do research
• Reviewing Class Lectures or Presentations
• Reviewing Lab experiences and exercises
• Group Projects
• Replace Textbooks in Colleges
• Email
• Test Preparation
• Download materials/additional reading for a class exercise
• More+
To contact the analyst, contact Stephanie Atkinson satkinson@compassintelligence.com
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