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STUDENTS SWITCH-ON ELECTRONIC BOOKS IN
NATION'S FIRST "eBook" CLASSROOM
Dayton, Ohio firm nation's first to put "eBooks" in school
(DAYTON) - Searchlight eBook Training, Inc. of Ohio and Franklin Electronic
Publishers of New Jersey recently announced the creation of the nation's
first all-electronic book, or "eBook" classroom.
Resurrection Catholic School in Dayton was selected from among dozens of
elementary, junior, and high schools as the pilot site for the introduction
of the innovative form of "paperless" learning.
"The idea behind the paperless classroom is to give students and teachers
more control over the learning process," said Eric Walusis, president of
Searchlight eBook Training. "Resurrection School indicated a desire to see
how our programs could aid the educational process and save them money at
the same time."
Walusis claims the intent of Searchlight is not to render paper obsolete,
but rather to leverage the vast power of digital technology for the
management of educational content. In Franklin Electronic Publishing,
Searchlight has found a strategic partner that can provide the tools
Searchlight plans to employ.
"The success of electronic publishing has created enormous opportunities
for eBook users to create, assemble, and distribute easily searchable
reference information for audiences of all kinds," said Russ Chinoy of
Franklin Electronic Publishing, a leading electronic publisher.
The eBook is a portable, electronic "reader" device that is substantially
smaller and technologically simpler than the average laptop computer.
Original text, graphics, and audio can be created by the user or drawn from
third-party providers in the form of encrypted electronic files.
According to industry research, electronic reading appliances such as
eBooks imitate the best qualities of paper in terms of mobility,
annotations, and reading comfort, while taking advantage of the
connectivity of the digital world: the ability to distribute and receive
documents, the ability to organize, search and filter, and the ability to
enhance the understanding of the structure and origins of text by showing
outlines, summaries and dictionary definitions.
Education experts are optimistic about the nation's first eBook classroom
at Dayton's Resurrection Catholic School and about the learning potential
this pilot program offers students. Ted Nellen, Carnegie Fellow and renown
"Cyber-English" teacher from New York's Murry Bergtraum High School,
expects to see improvements in the learning process for schools
implementing the eBook system.
"Since the eBooks are portable, students can take them anywhere and learn
on an individualized level," said Nellen. "School districts in every
community are always under pressure to perform and to be fiscally
responsible," said Nellen. "So there are some obvious bottom-line benefits
for the school, including savings in paper and book costs - but what's more
critical is the need for progress in teaching and learning methods." Nellen
believes companies like Searchlight and Franklin are paving the way for
what he sees as a major advance in the administration of education and the
transfer of knowledge. "I think the eBook can be a big part of the
solution."
Educators in Dayton also view this program with enthusiasm. "We are
optimistic that both students and teachers will experience the eBook as an
enhancement of traditional learning," said Debra A. Johnson, principal at
Resurrection Catholic School. "By streamlining the amount of paperwork that
both students and teachers must manage on a daily basis, the hope is that a
more concentrated effort can be placed on learning."
According to Searchlight's Walusis, eBooks are also an ideal extension and
management of the technology already present in the classroom. "We believe
the eBook is ultimately about leverage and empowerment. Students can work
with a medium they find attractive, highly user friendly, and that improves
learning. Teachers can draw from an incredible array of knowledge from
traditional sources, and - to some degree - rein in the vast unedited
content of the Internet. The eBook will help teachers make lesson plans
highly relevant, topical, and appropriate."
The pilot program in Dayton starts September 1 and will run a minimum of
one grading period. Consultants from Searchlight will monitor the program
and record feedback from students, teachers, and administrators.
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Searchlight eBook Training, Inc.
www.eBook-Training.com
Info@searchlight1.com
Searchlight eBook Training, Inc. provides strategic consulting services to
the education, corporate training, legal, and business markets. Searchlight
specializes in providing customers with the core technologies, related
applications, and support to achieve successful migration from paper-based
content delivery to digital formats.
Franklin Electronic Publishers, Inc.
www.Franklin.com
russ_chinoy@franklin.com
Franklin Electronic Publishers, Inc. is the worldwide market leader in
handheld electronic books. Franklin has sold more than 21,000,000
electronic books and currently publishes more than 200 titles, including
dictionaries and bilingual dictionaries, encyclopedias, Bibles,
entertainment titles, education and tutorial publications, and medical
reference works.
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