Re: E-Books: high cost of textbooks

[David Campbell]

Horton, Joseph J. wrote: I have asked my students about e-books. They say they spend enough time looking at computer screens and do not want e-books. If I were to assign an e-book they said they would just print it out. <>    I agree with Joseph's students--reading books on a computer screen sucks.  The screen is fixed (even laptops aren't moved around as easily as printed books) and the sense of staring at a direct light source (as opposed to reflected light) is annoying after a long session (at least, to me).  And the actions of marking up your book, writing in the margin, highlighting passages, and writing down separate study notes are activities that aid memory.  Attempting to do these same actions with keyboard/mouse and a computer screen amounts to a different (and possibly inferior) form of active reading and rehearsal.     As for Don McBurney's suggestion that we arrange for a copy of the text to be available in the library, I have a problem with this as well.  Given our limited library budget, I don't want the library to spend it on course textbooks (which have a short useful life).  But even placing a personal copy on reserve presents a problem.  It encourages students to spend little time in contact with the book since it has to be shared.  I want my students to have several sessions with their text each week; I want them to read actively by marking up and personalizing their text.  I expect the material in the book to provoke them to initiate conversations with roommates over the topics.  Serious study as I see it cannot be done by visiting the library for a hurried 2 hours with the text once a week or less.     For the serious student who wants to experience the content of a course fully and actively, I think a personal copy of a printed text is the best option currently available.  For students who just want to get a course requirement out of the way, the other options are probably adequate.   --Dave     ___________________________________________________________________ David E. Campbell, Ph.D.        [EMAIL PROTECTED] Department of Psychology        Phone: 707-826-3721 Humboldt State University       FAX:   707-826-4993 Arcata, CA  95521-8299          www.humboldt.edu/~campbell/psyc.htm --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: archive@jab.org To unsubscribe send a blank email to [EMAIL PROTECTED]