Mr. Bulgrien's Class
10 Reasons Why You Should Buy An E-Reader For SchoolBy Brad MoonWhen it comes to high school and college, September usually means a rush to stock up on a range of items from binders and highlighters to textbooks, iPods and designer jeans. In recent years, computers and laptops have been aded to that mix. Increasingly, e-readers are also being included and this may just be the year that these devices begin the transition from 'nice to have' to 'must have' back to school accessories. If you're not sure if dropping $140 or so on an e-reader is a worthwhile academic investment, here are 10 reasons why a Kindle1, NOOK2 or other e-reader is worth considering.1. WeightCarrying just three textbooks in a backpack can be a 15 pound burden, one that gets pretty old by the end of a long day. Even a laptop is likely four to five pounds. Choosing an e-reader for your texts means 'lugging' around anywhere from 6.5 to 10 ounces and you can probably slip it in a pocket. As an added bonus, with your library in your pocket, kiss the old college standby of bookshelves made of planks and cinder blocks goodbye.2. Hardware CostA multipurpose device like an iPad may make a decent e-book reader (so long as you don't attempt it outdoors or under reflective lights), but the cheapest iPad 23 starts at $499. Most top-selling e-readers are priced under $150, and you can pick up an ad-supported Kindle4 for $114.3. Save Money On BooksI undertook a quick review of a random Grade 12 English class reading list and from their "A" list, took the six required novels and plugged them into . To buy printed versions (paperback where available) would cost $69.07, while buying the Kindle versions instead came out to $23.73. Mileage will vary depending on subject, but e-books tend to reliably offer savings5 compared to printed versions. For some students, the e-reader may literally pay for itself.4. ConvenienceSurveys have shown that e-reader owners tend to read more6 than they did before taking the plunge. The convenience of having a wide variety of e-books in their pocket is a big reason for this. Students who carry an e-reader have the opportunity to easily catch a few minutes of reading while riding transit, taking a break between classes or at lunch; and with an e-reader, it's not limited to the one or two textbooks they happen to have in their backpack. When it comes to school, reading more is definitely a good thing.5. Highlight At WillWith traditional paper textbooks, many students are reluctant to make notes or highlight passages for fear of ruining the book. If you make a note, then change your mind, those scribblings can become a real clutter. Most e-readers offer the capability of highlighting text and making notes without worrying about permanently vandalizing the e-book.6. Free E-MailYou can't do this with every e-reader, but the truly budget conscious will appreciate the fact that it's possible to send and receive e-mail for free7, without a Wi-Fi connection if you invest in an Amazon Kindle 3G (which includes free, global 3G access).7. Get SocialE-reader manufacturers are increasingly adding social media functions to their offerings. Kobo has 'Reading Life', while Barnes & Noble offers 'NOOK Friends,' for example. Using these tools, you can engage in conversations about e-books, share thoughts, make recommendations and in some cases, even lend or borrow titles. It's a lot easier than trying to round up a group of people for a study session.8. Skip the Bookstore LineupsMost e-readers are available with Wi-Fi connectivity. Which means that while other students are undergoing the annual ritual of standing in line for hours at a time with armloads of texts, you can effortlessly shop online and have your purchases show up on your e-reader almost instantly.9. Library SchmibraryLibraries are continually growing their e-book collections and if you'd rather relax at home than make the trip to borrow a book, an e-reader lets you pick up many titles for two weeks without spending a dime or setting foot out the door. Better yet, no trudging back to the library to return borrowed books, no late fees and copies are pristine. Amazon's Kindle has been shut out of this party for the past few years, but will gain the ability8 this Fall.10. Battery LifeWe all know that students are notoriously forgetful. Most e-readers can go a month (even two months in the case of the NOOK Simple Touch9) without recharging. That means —unlike a tablet or laptop— no having to remember to top up the charge every night and only having to locate the recharger or USB cable a few times each semester.2014 , Inc. All rights reserved. pros and cons of e-readers vs. textbooks: Cost and usability may hinder e-reader from being the best choiceBy Cynthia Boris updated 7/17/2012 7:56:36 AM ET When you compare the size and weight of a dozen textbooks to the size and weight of an e-reader with the same textbooks loaded onto it, there's no denying that the e-reader wins. But when you add in cost and usability, the portable e-reader may not be the best choice after all. Here's a rundown on the pros and cons of swapping textbooks for digital versions. 1. Ease of use In 2011, Alex Thayer of the University of Washington conducted a study on e-reader use for academic purposes. Each student was given a Kindle DX loaded with books in the fall; by spring, just under 40 percent of them had stopped using the reader. Why? Usability issues.Though the Kindle does allow you to annotate some books as you read, 75 percent of students in the study still used paper to take notes. The students also found it difficult to locate information in the text while taking tests or writing papers. Part of the problem, says Thayer, is that e-readers don't allow for "cognitive mapping," the process of using cues to remember where you saw the information in the first place. Navigation and search functions are also notoriously poor on most e-readers.Thayer concluded that e-readers aren't built for academic reading, but many of the issues students encountered could be solved by switching to a tablet, such as an iPad. Since tablets more closely replicate the experience of using a computer, you can search, take notes, and even pick up page cues while reading a textbook.2. Textbook availability It doesn't matter if you're studying art history, nursing, or political science — there's an e-textbook out there to suit your needs. Amazon has a huge selection of books available for download to a Kindle or Kindle app on a computer, tablet or smartphone. You can buy the text outright or, in some cases, rent the book for the semester.Apple also sells textbooks for iPad via iBooks 2. Books for high school students begin at $14.99, but don't forget that an iPad 2 costs at least $399 and the new iPad starts at $499. Chegg rents e-textbooks as well, but unlike Amazon's books, they're not downloadable. Because it only rents, Chegg streams the books, so you have to have an active internet connection in order to access a text. This means you can't use an e-reader, but you can use a tablet or a desktop or laptop computer.The best thing about downloading a textbook is that you don't have to stand in line at the university bookstore or wait for a package to arrive in the mail. When you purchase an e-textbook, the file is accessible within minutes, so it’s perfect for those who leave class prep to the last minute.If you’re an English Lit major, bookmark Project Gutenberg. This online digital library has links to all of the classics, completely free of charge.3. Portability Portability is the one area where the e-readers and tablets really shine. Studies show that carrying a heavy backpack can cause serious damage to the spine, but textbooks still continue to rise in size. Then there's the issue of bulk. You can easily load a whole semester's worth of textbooks onto an e-reader — but try doing that with a backpack.E-readers like the Kindle can hold up to 3,500 books yet weigh less than a single paperback book. Tablets weigh approximately one and a half pounds, but "Calculus: Early Transcendentals" weighs more than five. Unless you're taking weight training as your P.E. requirement, you're better off lightening the load.4. Cost A typical college textbook costs anywhere between $40 to $200. Multiply that by the number of classes in a semester, and books can be a real budget buster. You'd think that an e-book version of a hefty text would be a big cost saver, but it's not always true. "Fundamentals of Forensic Science" by Max M. Houck and Jay A. Siegel sells for roughly $83.95. The Kindle price is $70.53 to buy or $32.74 to rent for four months. The e-book still sounds like a good deal — except that you can sell the print version back to Amazon for $40.68 credit. You can also rent a print copy of this same book for 125 days from BookRenter for only $33.53.If you have to factor in the cost of buying a new e-reader or tablet, it could take a year of schooling before it pays for itself.E-reader or print? Buying e-versions of textbooks will save you some money on the cost of your books, and you won't strain your back carrying them to class. But using an e-reader isn't always the best choice. If the text is going to be used as your main reference for a semester or more, you'll find the print version is easier to search and annotate. What you'll gain in ease of use might make it worth the extra money and weight.The biggest con could be the process of reading electronically itself. As the University of Washington study seems to indicate, reading a print textbook may lead to better recall of the material when it's time to take the exam. ................
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