A survey for high school students (or former ones)

Pre-College Issues High School Life
1

<p>How many of you think high school textbooks are too heavy? Lockers don't help when we have to take 5 books home for homework.</p>

<p>There are 2 options that publishers are thinking about in making textbooks easier to carry (lighter).</p>

<p>1) Give the textbook separate "partitions" that students can remove and reinsert with a zipper (at the spine). This way, students can take only the relevant section since a student never need a complete textbook at any time. (A class can spend weeks on a single chapter) Each partion is like a magazine and can be put into a student's folder and be used just like a regular book. Later, it can be reinserted easily once a whole book is needed. (for selling, borrowing, studying for finals..etc) For example, you can separate a 700 page book into 5 sections and each section is bound to the spine with a tiny inconspicuous zipper that can be used very easily (or none at all,and still be like a regular textbook). Students can just put a whole chapter into their folder and leave the rest of book home and still be able to participate in class, or do homework in school, or study with friends. </p>

<p>2) Make a electronic version e-book, sort of like PDAs that allow textbooks to be downloaded and be read on a screen. New technology allows the screen to be "paper like" so it's easy on the eye. Student can turn pages by pressing "next page" buttons. There is a advantage since students can put many textbooks into the device. Device cost $200 at first but digital textbooks may be 20% cheaper than regular textbooks since there is no printing and distribution. </p>

<p>Advantages of option 1. (real book) : simplicity, robustness, easy of use, no need to worry about battery or data lose, more familiarity, tangible book in your hand</p>

<p>Disadvantages of option 1. : real books will be more expensive than e books since you need manufacturing and distribution.</p>

<p>Advantages of option 2 (e book): can put multiple textbook into the device, newer technology allow the screen to be easy on the eye (like paper) e-textbooks are cheaper.</p>

<p>Disadvantages of option 2: not as "familiar" as a real book, need batteries, not tangible, can't "flip" pages, could be lost or stolen, digital data not as reliable as printed page, could be destroyed if dropped/bumped/wetted, e book reader device will cost $200 or $ 300, not as simple as a real book.</p>

<p>Your opinion is appreciated. Please say which option you prefer. Thanks.</p>

2

<p>I can handle text books. But then again, I am an all-state Tight End.</p>

3

<p>I have a huge problem with textbooks. Every single book I have this year is massive, like 3" thick or more and they all are extremely heavy. My backpack is so heavy that if you pick it up wrong and put it on your back you'll fall backwards. </p>

<p>I love the first idea, just making a book into smaller paperback sections is a good idea.</p>

<p>Everyone's talked before about the E-book and I think that's kind of stupid. While from an environmental standpoint I think it's an OK idea, since it's a LOT less paper to fling around. But I think learning from a PDA-sized device is silly. Laptop may be better. I would love to carry around a tablet PC and have all of my books in PDF format, with microsoft OneNote so I could still take notes on top of them. That would be sweet. But PDA?</p>

4

<p>Uh definitely not the second option. Traditional textbooks are fine. And paper textbooks are a LOT less durable than hardcover ones. I'd stick with what I have right now; three of my classes never require us to bring our books to school, two classes require it once in a while with advanced notice (and they're paperback books), and one doesn't have any.</p>

5

<p>umm...all of my textbooks stay at home so its not an issue for me.</p>

6

<p>I don't really have a problem with textbooks. At my school we don't really use them in class so we just keep them at home or in lockers. I really only have like 2 of them. And they come with a CD so we can use them on the computer. I think that works fine.</p>

7

<p>I'd go with option 1. Why? Because I can't stand reading off a screen. I can't concentrate that way. And 2... I don't know, I'm against the whole "technology" thing because I don't want the world to end up being a machine.</p>

8

<p>Option 1 for me. It sounds like less of a hassel. I get into many trouble with technology. Plus I like flipping around pages quickly and yeah. If the PDA thing is like the internet thing, and it loads pages slower than flicking through, I'd become very stressed out because im usually impatient.
.. and I like textbooks.. I like the weight of knowledge it holds. Call me a weirdo but carrying around massive textbooks make me feel smart.</p>

<p>Currently, I only have to walk a short distance from my locker to the car, so massive textbooks arent much of a problem for me anyway..</p>

9

<p>I'm fine with textbooks.</p>

<p>But, I don't have very big ones this year.</p>

10

<p>i heart textbooks
especially history
i like having a house copy (a set at home) and then having all the teachers keep a class copy for use in class when needed. i would die if i didnt have a paper hardcover book though....</p>

11

<p>it's ok but paperbacks really won't last considering how people handle them. E-book? i don't like it. Anything i read on the internet is much different from even bad writing on paper. i like paper print much better. Besides i like to ramble around the textbook. While we study gravity i like flip the textbook and study leptons. I love it and hope to continue that. so no to both options.</p>

12

<p>my textbooks aren't so bad. i usually carry them in my hand and i buy secondhand copies of the textbooks the summer before the year i get them so that i can preview the material on my own and also have a textbook at home for homework and one in my locker at school to take to class. and a few of my teachers have invested in class sets :). </p>

<p>its mainly the 2 inch binders that stuff my backpack and make it really hard to carry. i think teachers should ask us to carry around smaller binders or an accordion folder for each subject; because the covers on the binders always rip off and the cardboard gets bent because of rough handling..and its only the end of first semester. -__-</p>

13

<p>meh. i dont like either of those solutions</p>

<p>just makes them physically smaller. whatever it takes...</p>

14

<p>yeah, I don't really like either option. I mean, I have heavy books and all too, and I have the same problem of falling over backward if I pick up my backpack wrong - my back aslo constantly hurts, but there's something about textbooks that I do like. I don't mind so much if I keep them at home for use...I just think that should be an option - two sets or something.</p>

15

<p>Last year, 2 of my classes had class sets. This year none of them do. And sometimes the books are so heavy that I only take the ones I absolutely need that night. And then do the other hmwork during the day in another class. Yes, it's not "good" but I can't stand carrying heavy textbooks all the time. It could ruin posture forever. </p>

<p>Another alternative is using "roller" bags, and with our expanded lockers this year, they would actually fit and I've seen college kids do this. And the only disadvantage I can really think to that is that it may look sorta awkard carrying a roller bag around. A teacher did that last year and she was constantly made fun of, and also had to get a male student to always help her take the bag downstairs. But it still may not fit ALL the books you needed, unless you got a mini suitcase.</p>

<p>I like Option 1, reading anything on the computer is very distractive and definently "different". This is why I can't study "online", if there's a study guide or something, I print it out. That way i can underline stuff, highlight, make arrows, do whatever it takes for me to learn the material. So Option 1 sounds good except for teh fact taht in some classes like Chemistry, we have to flip to a completely random page for...electronegativity values for instance. But if that was made into its own section too, all "charts and tables", then I have no problem at all with Option 1.</p>

16

<p>Sell two volumes of a single text book. Volume 1 has half the chapters. Volume 2 has the second half of the chapters. That's what they did w/ my physics book (Halliday, Resnik, Walker).</p>

17

<p>^ I hope they cut the price in half! Or that would just be a ripoff</p>

18

<p>It's your choice if you "don't care" about textbooks. It's fine if you never carry your textbooks or if you don't mind carrying 30 lb of books, or if you don't mind going to your lockers often, etc... But apparently, a lot of students DO mind, in fact plenty of them get bad postures. So put yourself into their shoe before you make a choice.</p>

<p>For those of you that "don't like either options", you should realize that option 1 is not mandatory. If you choose not to use the zipper, then it'll be exactly like a regular textbook. The zipper is very small and inconspicuous, and it's hidden in the spine. Think of it like those tiny clear zipper on those "zip lock" sandwich bags. So it won't affect you at all. But it can do a big favor for tons of other students. I know a lot of mid school small kids who have to carry books that approches 25% of their body weight.</p>

<p>So maybe I should ask the question in another way:</p>

<p>if you school district is going to choose one of the options and implement it, which one would you prefer?</p>

<p>option 1: students who love the zippers can use them and get a load off their back. Student that prefer regular books or don't see the use in it can simply ignore the zippers. </p>

<p>option 2: everyone gets some sort of a cheap laptop or display. But there is technology in development that can enable the display to be just as "eye friendly" as a regular printed page.</p>

19

<p>I like option one.</p>

<p>But then again, having two sets of books (one at home and one at school) beats both options, doesn't it? There's a school nearby that has been using this idea for several years now.</p>

20

<p>Anyone seen the textbooks in Asia? They're like less than 1.5cm, and they're free. lol</p>