Technology Makes Textbooks Lighter for Future Elementary Students.

Essay by FarsidemindUniversity, Master'sA+, October 2005

download word file, 4 pages 0.0

Downloaded 33 times

Future Textbooks:

Textbooks have changed much over the past century. We have evolved from the

early primers, to Dick and Jane, to modern textbooks that cover today's abundant supply

of curriculum standards. While the numerous amounts of standards have increased over

the past few years, so has the weight of the textbooks.

Today's elementary school textbooks are the size and weight of college level books of

a few years ago. Along with this extra weight comes a burden that might not have been

envisioned twenty-five years ago. Today's young school children are being subjected to

injuries that have brought about much controversy over the past several years. I am of

course talking about backpack injuries.

Since 1997, Weekly Reader magazine has conducted studies on the average weight of

backpacks of fourth graders in the United States. The average weight during this

period has been close to eight pounds. (Weekly Reader March 2002) Some fourth graders

have even said they have carried as much as fifty pounds of textbooks and school

supplies in their backpacks at times.

(Weekly Reader March 2002)

When you consider the average textbook weighs over two pounds and each student has a

textbook in at least five subjects, it is easy for the weight of the textbooks to total over the

recommended weight of fifteen percent as stated by the American Occupational Therapy

Association in their recommended guidelines (Backpack Strategies February 18).

There is a solution to these problems related to heavy textbooks. We are at a point in our technology that we can start the process of converting our textbooks to digital media sources. There are many schools and districts that have done just that.

Warren Consolidated Schools in Sterling Heights, MI is one of the school systems taking this modern approach to learning.