Andriolo:E-Readers

This assignment, like all the others was an ongoing learning experience.  I have an iPad that I have downloaded books from iTunes onto. (Both free ones and new ones). However, I had not borrowed an e-book from a library before. E-books are newly available at the Bozeman Library; and in January the library offered a free training seminar to learn how to download e-books from MontanaLibrary2Go.  I thought it would be a good time to learn and have individual help if I needed it.  The Saturday morning seminar was well attended.  After a general overview of how to access and use MontanaLibrary2Go through our Bozeman library accounts, we broke into separate groups by the devices that we owned.  I did not have Adobe Reader downloaded onto my iPad.  Also, my iPad needed an update before it would allow Adobe Reader to load.  So I was unable to go through the process there, but I watched and listened.  After downloading Adobe Reader, I still could not get the book to download.  After a helpful call to the library’s tech support, I found out I had forgotten to download the OverDrive Media Console to my iPad.  I had downloaded it onto my computer; and the book had downloaded there. After that, the process went smoothly.  It is pretty neat to have a book to read on my iPad for a change of venue.  Although, I still prefer holding a book in my hands and feel the pages as I turn them.  I don’t think I will ever give up reading a real book, but it gives a person alternatives for trips where space is limited on a trip and one can take several books along to read in a nice, slim, neat form. 

One thing that I have noticed is that it is hard to get the book that you want sometimes.  For example, The Hunger Games is available only on OverDrive MP3 Audiobook and there are 128 people on the waiting list for one copy.  It takes some patience to find a book that is available.  We should look at this as a good thing though. It means people are reading! Although, more copies of some books seem warranted.  I like the extra features easily available for some of the books.  Besides just a summary of the book, there is an excerpt from the book; information about the author and some books even had reviews from reliable sources such as School Library Journal and Booklist.  If you know the exact title of a book, it is easier to find rather then just scrolling through the lists to find one. 

I see audiobooks and e-books as a useful tool for students with disabilities. The iPad 3 has close captioned reading capabilities built right into the computer.  It allows the student the enjoyment and freedom of reading by listening to the book that otherwise might not be as accessible to them.  I agree with the article provided by Colet Bartow on the “State of the e-book state in LJ”.  Budgets are being cut all the time in the public schools. With the high cost of devices and the uncertainty of how to distribute the devices, I think it would be advantageous to go through this process in stages.  First, provide the opportunity to borrow e-books through the school library with a school library card.  Have students learn the process through the school, yet have them provide their own device, which would cost the schools a lot less.  Perhaps, it would be wise to purchase mainly nonfiction books for research and curriculum enhancement.  Purchase of fiction novels would then be selective, because of the cost. Plus, the MontanaLibrary2Go has a wide selection..  There are a lot of different factors to consider with incorporating e-books into a school system.  The interactive books for elementary students would be awesome to have.  They would be very helpful in aiding the nonreader down the pathway of learning how to read. Although, the evidence is contradictory as to how much interactive books aid in learning to read.

Young people today prefer to interact with an electronic device.  Students are more motivated to read with an interactive device.  So, all costs aside, I think that using e-books would be a great route to choose, because this is the future of reading for the students of this next generation.