E-Textbooks revolutionize studying

Meilan Steimle

Damon Aitken (12) studies for a test using physical textbooks, while Nicky Semenza (12) opts to use an iPad instead. Digital textbooks have become more prevalent among Upper School students since the administration allowed e-readers to be used in classrooms one year ago.

As the digital world expands and e-books become increasingly popular for both recreation and education, many students at Harker are now choosing to use online textbooks and PDF files instead of physical copies.

E-books are often more convenient than physical textbooks, as they are weightless and save space in backpacks. Online copies are also difficult to lose, eliminating another potential problem for students. At the Upper School, where many homework assignments are now computer-based, e-books are often more immediately usable.

“Using a digital version of the chemistry book is so much more efficient, as people can compare the problems and the solutions side by side without needing to flip back and forth throughout the book,” Ameek Singh (10) said.

Some students also found navigating text on computers easier than on old-fashioned paper.

“Online textbooks are helpful because I can search up important terms, record them, and later use them to study,” Sina Mehran (12) said.

Calculus teacher Anthony Silk noted that the easy accessibility of e-books also indirectly benefits teachers.

“I think PDF textbooks are of great advantage to students as they are are able to bring them to school by iPad, by iPhone, laptop, or some non-apple product,” he said. “That way, students will have easy access to them all the time. At least you can expect them to have [their books].”

However, the legality of e-books, especially PDF copies of textbooks, remains a concern. Some students seek to save money by using peer-to-peer file-sharing websites to download their textbooks. This is almost always illegal and problematic for both publishing companies and authors. Other students share files among themselves via USB or AirDrop.

“I think the concept of digital textbooks is good, but there are always people who will misuse it by pirating the materials online,” Justan Su (10) said. “But that’s pretty much true for any technology that happens to appear on the market.”

Library assistant Victor Squillacioti sympathized with students who choose to download their books, citing rising textbook prices.

“I wouldn’t say that it is a completely morally correct thing to do, and I’m not sure I support it,” he said. “[But] I understand people who are driven to do that, as textbook prices are outrageous.”

Digital textbooks have been a recent edition to this ever-expanding technological world and are making learning more and more convenient for many. On the other hand, just as anything can be abused and used the wrong way, digital textbooks are not exempt from malusage.

This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on May 16, 2014.