Embracing E-Readers in the Classroom
by Keri Tisher and Karen Kindle
While attending a technology conference last spring, one speaker was discussing the current generation of students and how seamlessly they work with technology. He discussed the replacement of traditional books with e-readers and mobile devices. I cannot tell you who the speaker was now or what the rest of the talk was about, but this point really stuck with me. After the conference, those from my district who had attended discussed this idea. My opinion was that traditional books would never disappear. I am an avid reader, and there is something about the weight of a book, the smell of a book, and the satisfaction of turning a page that I cannot imagine doing without. A colleague who also attended the conference challenged my position that traditional books would always be used, suggesting that my feelings about books was generational and that current students do not feel the same way about books. He posited that my current and future students may not feel the need to have a book in their hands and would learn how to read without traditional printed texts. This challenged by ideas of the processes of teaching reading and learning how to read.
There are many ways for students to read books today. There are traditional books, of course, but there are so many more options today including reading books on e-readers and computers (Del Siegle, 2012). Americans are reading more e-books every year. In 2011, Amazon sold more e-books than hardcover or paperback books (Bloomberg News, 2011). In 2012, 20% of American adults indicated that they had read a book on an e-reader in the past year, which is a 3% increase from 2011 (Rainie, Zickurh, Purcell, Madden, & Brenner, 2012). Many of our students have access to computers with e-book availability, electronic e-readers, such as Amazon's Kindle or Barnes and Noble's Nook, and other devices with e-book applications, such as iPads and iPods.
Our students live in the digital world, and many have never known a world without computers and devices that are interactive and provide immediate feedback. The emerging research in this field suggests that the interactive features of digital books help keep our students engaged and give teachers another tool to meet individual needs (Korat & Shamir, 2012).
Benefits of E-readers
E-readers may offer many benefits over traditional books. These benefits include portability, cost savings, broad availabil-
ity, interactivity, embedded features to
support learning, app availability,
and motivational aspects.
E-readers are portable and allow
students to have access to many
books without having to carry
them around. This saves room in
their backpacks as well as makes
them convenient for travel.
The cost of these devices has gone
down substantially in recent years, and
the e-books themselves are often less expensive than a traditional print-based version of the same book. Teachers do not have to worry about an e-book being damaged, lost, or destroyed. As an added benefit, a specific text can even be downloaded again to a difference device.
The convenience of e-books is undeniable. E-books are always available. There is no waiting for someone to return the book to the library (Miranda, Johnson, & Williams, 2012).
"The interaction between the e-book and the student advanced reading skills in both word reading and word meaning because of the multimodal presentation of visual, audio, and print support."
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