Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

There once was a Steve Martin joke (yes boys and girls, Martin used to be a standup comic) where he told about what a great deal he had gotten by buying a used set of encyclopedias. “I have learned so much…for instance, the population of New York City is ALMOST 1,000,000 people, and that someday, a man will land on the moon!”

Martin’s joke (told during the mid-1980s when the population of New York was closer to 5 million and mankind had been to the moon and back multiple times) demonstrated humorously, prophetically and unknowingly, the trouble with education textbooks in the times of the internet: Information is updated at a rate that is so rapid that a textbook, no matter how well written or intentioned, is out of date by the time it is published, grows more out of date by the time it reaches students, and becomes the equivalent of moldy bread that has been sitting on the shelf too long by the time it ends it’s lifespan, usually 7-10 years after being “adopted.”

Textbook companies over the years have tried to address this problem by providing additional add-ons and perks with their textbooks, such as CDs or DVDs with information that had been added since the book was published, websites that kept the content current by providing “up-to-date” information about a topic, or by trying to get states to adopt a quicker refresh cycle. None of these tactics have been successful. CD’s are, like texts, out of date by the time they are published, the websites are hit-and-miss: updated at first, but then neglected as publishers move on to other books. Of course, no state in the U.S. would tighten the refresh cycle. As a matter of fact, Texas extended the adoption cycle from 7 to 10 years for many of the texts in order to save money. Some publishers have digitized their content, but still charge the same amount to states and districts.

In the late 1990s, I remember speaking to a colleague of mine who had attended a meeting in Austin where the speaker had held up a “ruggedized” laptop. He dropped it on the floor. He poured coffee on the keyboard. He abused the thing like no piece of equipment should be abused. It kept running. “This,” he said, “is the future of textbooks in Texas.” I don’t know who it was, but I remember the quote. “The future of textbooks in Texas.” Indestructible laptops. More profundity. (Now computer manufacturers are diving all over themselves to produce “Netbooks,” lowcost, low powered mini-laptops that are designed nicely for little hands and surfing the web. Google “Netbook.” The trend started with the “One Laptop Per Child” program designed to bring $100 computers to children all over the world, especially in areas where the cost of a higher-priced laptop could easily equals ones yearly salary.)

Since that time, there hadn’t been too much of a statewide movement to get textbooks onto laptops, but perhaps if one Dallas legislator and one El Paso state senator have their way, the movement will begin soon. According to the Austin American Statesman, state Rep. Dan Branch, (R-Dallas), is proposing that Texas begin moving away from the textbook-as the-main-means-of-delivering-content-to students “ model, which was adopted it as part of the Texas Permanent Fund, established in 1854. Branch, who is on the Texas Public Education Committee, thinks that some of the $913,000,000 spent in the next biennium on textbooks should go towards moving the state’s students to a content vehicle that can be used for more than just reading information.

According to Branch “A textbook is a vehicle for content” and he feels that the current “vehicle” is outdated. And he isn’t too far from the mark: A recent survey by the Pew Charitable Trust found that during the last election cycle, more people got news about the Obama/McCain race from the Internet than from any other source, and IBM found that more tough times are in store for television, as more and more people get entertainment from the Internet. The general public is using the web for information; the state is still not allowing students the same privilege.

Many district are now instructing teachers to use textbooks not as the main source of information, but as “a source” of information that can be used with web, and other resources such as experts in a field that in many cases can only be reached via computer. The old delivery methods are becoming anachronistic, but the state still clings to the idea of traditional methods of delivery. The Texas Attorney General ruled in 2006 that textbooks funds have to be used only to “convey information.” Laptops, it appears to the Attorney General, cannot be used to convey information. Only textbooks.

Branch correctly counters that content is content, and that students need the latest information. The delivery method should be secondary in to the argument. Adding fuel to the fire is the Texas Legislature itself, that established the Texas Virtual School Network in the last legislative session, which, when complete, will be able to deliver online classes for students from Kindergarten to Grade 12. By definition, online classes have to be delivered via computer. Go figure.

The state allows for $30 per year per student to be used, as part of the “Electronic Textbook Fund” but that is hardly enough to purchase laptops for every student even though the price has dropped precipitously in the past few years, now starting around $350 per unit. Only 7 percent of schools in the state have achieved the one-to-one computer-to-student goal that most districts have stated as a long-term, albeit expensive, goal. Most campuses have Internet connectivity, but connectivity is worthless without a content receiving method, i.e. laptops. State Sen. Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso) has offered that money be moved from textbooks to technology to begin to cover the cost of providing laptops to all students in the state. That kind of forward thinking has to be encouraged if any kind of movement is expected.

Although the legislature has final authority about moving monies, not everyone is behind the move. According to the Statesman, State Board of Education chair Don McLeroy is leery of buying technology that quickly becomes outdated. He has no qualms however, about providing students with outdated textbooks. We will soon land on the moon.

Other states such as Maine, have had success in rolling out large scale one-to-one laptop initiatives, and although there have been growing pains, the results have been promising. Texas does not have to look too hard to see a successful one-to-one initiative. Abilene Christian University provides Apple iPhones to every single student to keep informed about campus activities, submit homework assignments, review class lectures from every professor, track grades and even get emergency notifications. These devices are mini-laptops that have most of the functionality of a full laptop. The technology is there today for our students. Whether we have the foresight and will to provide it is another story.

So, New York has almost 1,000,000 people. Next time you need information quickly, consider this: will you access a book, or will you first try to look it up online? My bet is that you go online. So should our students.