As more higher education institutions adopt tech-savvy approaches to education, a recent report by Internet2 shows that students are bucking this digital-forward trend, preferring textbooks to e-textbooks.
The University was among five universities participating in the pilot e-textbook program last spring commissioned by Internet2, a not-for-profit networking consortium. The Internet2 pilot project sought to evaluate the cost effectiveness and general feasibility of e-textbook adoption on a wider scale — an idea previously advocated by various University officials looking to expand into e-learning.
But questions linger about the potential widespread use of e-textbooks at the University, said J. Milton Adams, vice provost for academic programs.
“One of the big questions would be whether or not it could lessen costs for students, rather than paying for a printed textbook,” Adams said.
The report, which Todd Sednak of Internet2 said is based on a pilot conducted from the beginning of 2012 until the end of the spring semester, found that students were unhappy with the readability and special digital features offered by e-textbooks.
Students agree e-textbooks could be a cheaper option.
“It could be a good idea because it’s a lot cheaper, and it’s better than having to lug around textbooks,” said fourth-year Commerce student Svea Hardwick.
Aggregated data from five institutions showed that though students praised the amount of flexibility that the e-textbooks offered, they rarely used the special digital features of the e-textbooks. Cornell; the University of California, Berkeley; the University of Minnesota and the
University of Wisconsin, Madison also took part in the program.
The University’s project team was composed of the Office of the Vice President and Chief Information Officer, which subsidized all core project costs, and Information Technology Services, which integrated the e-textbook software into UVaCollab, according to the report.
Sednak said Internet2 is currently conducting a pilot with the University and more than 25 other colleges.
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