I once overheard a colleague
state that textbooks are outdated; that flat images on paper are going the way
of the dinosaur—extinct.
Okay, so admittedly, that
educator was me, and perhaps the statement is a bit premature, as many students
do not yet own laptops or tablets. But
the revolution is coming! I’ve got my “end of the world as we know it” sign ready
to display, and R.E.M singing in my head.
Our students need interactive textbooks with images and words that can be
manipulated, books that encourage them to be active participants in their own
education. Just think what Google has
done for homework help. If you can name
a subject, chances are that somewhere on the internet is a website or even a
tutor to help. Students can Facebook, Tweet, or Skype with anyone, anywhere.
This new generation is permanently connected to media, growing up with their
digital devices as additional appendages.
Even preschoolers are now learning on tablets. If there is any doubt,
just take a look at the new Disney’s AppMATes or Mattel’s Apptivity.—these new apps allow partnered toys to be moved
about on the face of the iPad while the app interacts with those toys.
So, the question is: shouldn’t our textbooks allow the same interaction
with content?
With iBooks Author and iPad,
educators are able to create their own textbooks for their courses, to make those
books interactive by adding pictures, graphs, links to websites and activities;
we can add lecture files and videos, even reading checks and quizzes at the end
of each section. For the first time, a teacher can step away from what the
textbook companies think her students need and explore what she knows her
students need. And perhaps the most
impressive feature—iBooks Author and the iBooks app are FREE.
In August, I had my first
experience with iBooks Author. I
co-authored an iBook for a conference-- #Reaching the Tweeps- The Role of Social Media in
Education. As with any new endeavor, I worried about the
difficulty of using the iBooks Author software, but it is much like Pages or
Microsoft Word. With just a few clicks,
teachers are able to copy, paste, and insert from documents that they’ve
already made and load everything into an iBook template. Pictures, videos, and
audio clips can also be added with a few swipes of the mouse. Author software is so intuitive, your inserted
passages and objects will be automatically positioned for you. The end result will be a professional ebook.
Use
iBooks Author to publish your own course materials:
1. curate a variety of content—websites, documents, pdfs, pictures, sound clips, or videos
1. curate a variety of content—websites, documents, pdfs, pictures, sound clips, or videos
2.
share your content with students, parents, and co-workers for free—even
publishing with a password requirement
3.
embed interactive models for students to turn, twist, spin, and manipulate
4.
include links for any websites—e-magazines, e-newspapers, online quizzes, and
games
5.
content can be made available anywhere for students on-the-go
6.
publish quickly and easily, and update your book after it is published
While
iBooks Author is a great tool for teachers to create content, it is also an
excellent way for students to publish their own work. For example, one of my classes is currently
writing a novel. Each student is
composing one chapter of a fictional story. We will be publishing this work as
an iBook when we’ve finished, and to say that my class is excited is an
understatement! The quality of work that is being produced is far superior to
assignments I’ve received in the past. Why? Because their story will be
published—officially “purchasable” by others as an ebook. It gives their effort meaning; their hard
work, reward.
Use
iBooks Author for student publications:
- 1. Your students can create an iBook of their coursework and publish it as a portfolio or final project.
- 2. Your students can collaborate to create study guides for other students.
- 3. Your students can publish a literary or arts magazine for your school with no publication costs.
- 4. Your students can work together to create their own novel or anthology of original short stories.
As with any new software or
device, there are drawbacks. Your students must have iPads to view the books;
the iTunes processing time can vary (our #Reaching
the Tweeps ebook took less than 24 hours), and your content must be original
or royalty free.
For my own courses, it is the
juggling of online vidoes, Youtube clips, ancillary reading, newspaper and magazine
articles, art, and other media and text that creates confusion in class. As I work on my iBook for next year – to use
as the “textbook” for the course—I begin to realize that my students will be
able to locate everything in one place.
The balancing act will be a bit easier.
Isn’t that what technology is really meant to do: make our lives easier
and better organized? I’ve spoken with a lot of people who disdain ebooks and
iBooks—vowing that the paper versions will always be their choice. But as a
teacher today, I know I need to reach my students where they live.
And many of them have never even stepped foot inside a library.