Yolanda LyonsEDUC 7101- 8841Walden University

Electronic Textbooks

S- Curve

S- Curve

1990-The first electronic textbook was adopted.

1999- The Company Dolphin purchased an educational software company. There focus was on electronic textbooks.

S-Curve explanation

2004- Students at Wake forest will not be able to download an entire book, but they can print out sections of it, accessing it on the Internet for six months or a year via a pass word-protected system.

S-Curve explanation

2006- Universities and colleges start using electronic textbooks.

S-Curve explanation

2009- Kindle is launched an e –reader. This makes it easy for students to read textbooks on the go.

S-Curve explanation

2010- A world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, announced it will provide four key electronic textbook titles for UC Irvine.

S-Curve explanation

A new electronic textbook was introduced. It allowed instructors to modify content, and students would have the option of purchasing the revised book. The software, is called Dynamic Books.

S- Curve explanation Cont.

Need

Research

Development

Obstacles that have slowed down the electronic textbook are poor resolution, price for e based paper readers, and suitable content.

The product will be marketed to public and private school systems.

Commercialization

An “eBook reader” is a device used to display electronic textbooks. Technically any device that can display lengthy text can work as an eBook reader.

Knowledge

Persuasion

Electronic textbooks continued to gain in their own underground markets. Many publishers began distributing books that were in the public domain or hard-to-find. Later catalogs of books became available over the web, and sites devoted to e-books began spreading the word to the public. Textbooks at this point where still non existent on e books.

Persuasion

It wasn't until the summer of 1998 that specific devices for reading e-books, as well as e-books themselves, became available at the retail level. Both Nuvo Media Inc. and Soft-book Press Inc. developed e-book readers at that time.

Persuasion cont.

The major publishing companies finally took notice of the electronic textbook movement around 2001. The publishers, at first frightened of the capabilities of the new medium where starting to better understand, and ultimately take advantage of, the new e-book formats. They established online stores and partnered with e-reader manufacturers to establish themselves in the e-book market.

Persuasion cont.

With all of this activity by major publishers and electronics companies, e-books are achieving global distribution.

Implementation

Digital Owl, a Winter Park, Florida-based software company, is one of the first to venture into the fledgling digital textbook market. The company is sponsoring a Florida Digital Textbook Initiative, replacing traditional textbooks at several Florida schools with e-textbooks on laptops and eBook reading devices.

December 1999. Dolphin was an established, fourteen year-old developer of educational software for many of the world's leading textbook and electronic publishers.

Implementation cont.

Matt Gomez, marketing manager at Digital Owl, believes that schools are ready and eager to introduce electronic textbooks to the classroom. Since announcing the initiative, Digital Owl has received inquiries from around the U.S., and around the world, from schools who want to learn more about the opportunity.

Confirmation

If Oprah says it’s a good thing, it must be. Oprah announced that Amazon's Kindle e-book reader was her favorite gadget. E-books met popular culture. Amazon couldn't keep enough Kindle's in stock to meet the demand.

Today consumers can find all types of literature on eBooks from best-sellers, established authors, to cutting-edge material by daring new authors, as well as textbooks.

Electronic textbooks are now in Riverside Unified in California, University of Phoenix, and St Mary’s Public Schools to name a few.

Early adopters

The early adopters for the electronic textbooks where colleges and universities.

Public high schools, middle, and elementary schools have not adopted the electronictextbook as quickly asthe inventors would like.

Laggards

Attributes of Innovations

Relative advantage with focus on economic factors have slowed down the rate of adoption. Secondly, the complexity of the innovation. The fear of having to train students and parents

Attributes cont.

on how to use the electronic textbooks slows the adoption rate. In reality, students are very quick in learning how to navigate technology. The real fear comes from teachers letting go of the old and embracing a new way of teaching.

Decentralized

Top management should not be the only ones making decisions. Employees should be involved when making key decisions in order for this innovation to work.

Teachers will have the pleasure of seeing the positive effects of electronic textbooks and witness what students can do in terms of technology.

Decentralized

Key Change Agents

The key change agents in getting this innovation into public schools are other public schools such as Florida and Indianapolis who have already implemented electronic textbooks. The other key change agent will be local school board members.

Achieving critical mass

As of yet, electronic textbooks have not meet critical mass. Highly respected individuals in the education system will have to come forth and promote the positive effects electronic textbooks have and will make on students education.

Why electronic textbooks work:

References

Dillon, N. (2008). The e-Volving Textbook. American School Board Journal, 195(7), 20-23. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Coolong, A. (2001). Electronic Textbooks: Changing the Way Professors Teach and Students Learn. Community College Journal, 72(2), 8. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Shepperd, J. A., Grace, J. L., & Koch, E. J. (2008). Evaluating the Electronic Textbook: Is It Time to Dispense with the Paper Text?. Teaching of Psychology, 35(1), 2-5. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.