What schools use traditional textbooks vs. online ones? I didn’t think to ask this question before, but I know my kid learns much better with a physical textbook and a school (like Cushing where I hear the library went all digital years ago) that uses online books only would be really difficult.
I don’t know the answer to your specific question as to which boarding schools use digital vs. physical books. But, my kids are like yours and when they had classes that used digital textbooks they bought a hard copy version (loose leaf versions were often available) or printed out the digital chapters and put in a binder themselves. I guess it depends how independent your kid is and whether you are allowed to send a printer to school, but I’m not sure I would rule out a school just because they use digital books.
Is there any school that doesn’t have at least one class with all-digital readings?
Regardless, there is nothing, other than money, preventing one from buying a hard copy and / or printing.
That would be a huge amount of printing, assuming that many hours of homework might be in reading every night. As long as printed book versions are also available, I’m OK with digital texts. Not that my son has had access to much in the way of textbooks the last few years, but he does much better with a hard copy reference.
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Often you can order a loose leaf printed copy of digital texts that can just be put in a binder. That said, I think this is something that it’s worthwhile to find other ways to tackle. As a fellow person who naturally does best with hard copy books and handwritten notes, I think digital is just going to become standard and harder to avoid. And with more and more workplaces going paperless it makes sense to find ways to work effectively with digital materials.
I’ve found that a good tablet or e-reader with settings that mimic a book is infinitely better for reading than a laptop and well worth having a second device. Having one with a stylus function lets me highlight and make notes in margins by hand, which is MUCH better than the typical typed note or auto highlight function for me when it comes to processing and remembering. And even when books are digital I take notes on paper; I’m a kinetic learner and the physical process of writing is vital for me. There’s also evidence that most students take better notes and learn more if they hand-write vs type notes. For some reason people seem to naturally link digital texts with digital notes (or no notes) and I think that does a lot of learners a disservice.
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I think you are right about having a second device for digital books. The last couple years have been tough toggling back between online materials, online worksheets, notes, etc. on one laptop. And taking notes with a stylus also is a great idea, thanks! I still prefer a paper book and less time staring at a screen, but I know it’s becoming a digital world.
@maybeboardingmom , this is a worthwhile discussion to have with your kid. There has been a fair bit of research done on how people learn best, and the process of writing notes is far more powerful than typing or dictating. Reading on a screen or on paper – I don’t know. Seems like the method of capturing what’s important matters more.
Writing with a stylus may be the same as writing on paper. Regardless, helping your kid think through this intentionally will be helpful.
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Our student has had a combination of e-books, online content (articles), and “real” hard copy books. I believe most students have had a variety of some type - Some students have large text books in the flesh, others online. The novels were all hard copy. It depends on the school and the teacher.
It might also depend on if your school provides students with their own laptop. Often materials are downloaded or you download onto the school-provided laptop. Our student likes hardcover - so we found a used textbook online for one of the math courses and ordered the hard copy sent to school.
Also, some schools will have you read over the summer - before 9th grade begins. Teachers that did use hard cover books had them waiting on the table for students at the start of the Fall term. We didn’t have to go to a campus bookstore to buy them.
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It can also matter by subject matter. Kiddo has had only one math textbook in 4 years. The rest were print outs of problem sets. I think he has only had 1-2 science textbooks, too. History they used a lot of original source material found online or in handouts, not so much textbooks. English was paperback novels. But language? Always super expensive textbooks.
So it is a very good question to investigate. It varies a lot by grade, subject and teacher, not just school.
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The hardest thing at the moment is writing papers on a laptop while referencing an online book on the same screen. The back and forth. With other tabs, thesaurus, research docs, etc., it gets overwhelming. Not to mention it is much less distracting to read an actual book away from any digital enticements to do something else. I’m hoping wherever my kid goes he can at least use an iPad or kindle as the book reader and a separate laptop. If we get in to any BS, I will ask at revisit day. The article I read about Cushing really bothered me, I don’t believe in stripping all paper books from libraries.
What you need in that case is multiple screens. There was an article in the WSJ last week reviewing some of the current options.
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My son is at a boarding school and he exclusively use digital notes and textbooks. I also teach at a higher education and we are fully digital. As a matter of fact, if students take photos of their hand written assignments and upload them, I am less enthusiastic about those submissions.
At DA, the students in Geometry are given iPads and they do their homework on those devices directly.
As someone noted above, it can helpful to have 2 screens when you are given online reading materials & text books. During COVID this became even more needed due to more e-books. We bought Golfkiddo a basic iPad that seemed to help.
Another helpful hint about online stuff……get your student a dedicated email address that is different from their school-based email to receive and send college inquiries. It was our experience that it was not only more efficient, but that the school firewall sometimes blocked materials from testing companies and colleges. Other parents have told me that this way the school email is not cluttered with junk from mailing lists kids’ names are placed on or sign up for.
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At DA, is it only some classes that have online texts, most, or all?
It was our student’s experience that English readings were with (real) books provided in class. The History classes varied from text books, paperback on special topics, and online articles, Science and math materials classes varied depending on the course - some course materials were text books, other ebooks downloaded. Depends on the course.
This is a great question to ask during Revisit days!