arnold_governatorNumerous media outlets are reporting that Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California is pushing forward with his agenda to digitalize the state’s high school classroom textbooks. From the BBC:

The BBC’s Rajesh Mirchandani says Gov Schwarzenegger believes internet activities such as Facebook, Twitter and downloading to iPods show that young people are the first to adopt new online technologies, and so the internet is also the best way to learn in classrooms.

…

But our correspondent says the real reason Gov Schwarzenegger wants the change is money.

Last year California spent $350m on textbooks and can no longer afford it.

Say what you will about the governor’s motives, he is ahead of the curve on this soon-to-be trend. Open source textbooks are already being formulated in several locations on the internet. Given the massive amount of money that can be saved by going digital, the move is a no-brainer. Once the open source textbooks are widely available and properly vetted, I, as a principal, will be very interested in jumping on the bandwagon as well.  What are some benefits?

  • Cost. Printing will be the main expenditure, but it will be a lot cheaper than what the publishers are asking.
  • Accessibility and convenience. Heck, as a student you could download all of your class texts onto your iPhone and study in the palm of your hand on the bus on the way home from school.
  • Students keep the material. They don’t have to return the book at the end of the year.
  • No problem with book graffiti. Students can doodle or write notes directly into the ebooks. In fact, they’ll be encouraged to do so.

There are detractors and obstacles here and here; however, this is another one of those situations in which you can get on early and save money, or lose money and get on later.

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