Saturday,   Dec. 2, 2000 at 23:03 CST
Reprinted with courtesy from Fort Worth Star Telegram

Online textbooks offer new path to knowledge

By Monica Mendoza
Star-Telegram Staff Writer 

Next fall, when the teacher tells students to read Chapter 1 in their English textbooks, some may pull up chairs at the nearest computers.

The Texas State Board of Education recently approved an online English textbook, one of two online textbooks approved for public school districts. For youths tired of carrying backpacks filled with heavy textbooks, it could be good news.

"A password weighs nothing," said Jeff Pennell, spokesman for Barrett Kendall Publishing of Austin, which designed online English textbooks for students in grades six to 12.

Not every school district will be interested in online textbooks. A 1999 state technology report indicates that 64 percent of districts have classrooms with Internet access. That number is increasing, however. Texas Education Agency officials say online textbooks could be the alternative that some districts are seeking.

"That has to be part of what we do, to allow districts to have that choice," said Robert Leos, the agency's textbook director.

The online textbook, BK English: Communication Skills in the New Millennium, is on a list of 200 textbooks from which districts can choose. It meets standards of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills curriculum, Leos said.

Barrett Kendall would provide each student with a hardback textbook, which for the sixth-grade is about 1,000 pages and weighs about 2 pounds. The electronic version of the textbook, along with supplemental materials such as quizzes and study guides, would be available online with a computer password.

Other publishers, who offer CD-ROMs and other computer accessories to complement textbooks, are expected to closely monitor how online textbooks fare in the marketplace. If a new textbook or product takes off in Texas, it can set the pace nationwide, publishers said.

"Texas is a very important state for us," said April Hettori, spokeswoman for New York-based publisher McGraw-Hill. "Because of its size and impact, trends can start there."

Texas is one of about 25 states that have a textbook adoption policy. The state evaluates textbooks, selects a list of approved textbooks and buys the textbooks for school districts. In the other states, each district is responsible for researching and buying its textbooks.

That makes Texas an attractive market because publishers can sell large quantities here. The state has a two-year textbook budget of $471 million that ends in 2001, Leos said.

Online textbooks could be a good alternative for Carroll school district, where many of the 7,000 children have access to computers at home, said Diane Frost, director of curriculum.

For those without home computers, the school offers before- and after-school hours in the technology center, which has 30 computers.

"I think it is exciting," Frost said. "Because it is a state- adopted book, there is no cost to the district. That is a big plus."

Carroll district teachers are expected to meet with Barrett Kendall representatives this month to discuss the online English textbook.

In Arlington school district, teachers use technology such as laserdiscs. District officials said they would consider online textbooks.

"It's certainly something we would evaluate," said Steven Harvey, assistant superintendent for technology and telecommunications. "The process we go through is to evaluate those textbooks TEA has put on their list, and seeing them on that list would definitely give them more validity."

In the mid-1990s, the Texas Legislature changed the state definition of textbook to include online textbooks. But few publishers were quick to offer online textbooks. The State Board of Education has approved only one other online textbook, a biology textbook that was selected in 1997, Leos said.

Educators have not been beating down the door for electronic textbooks, said Margaret Sherry, spokeswoman of the Boston-based Houghton Mifflin Co., which has textbooks on the state's approved list.

Security of the product and children's access to computers have been the key issues for publishing companies contemplating online textbooks, she said. But online textbooks are not out of the question for the company.

"We will deliver the content in the platform for which there is demand," Sherry said. "Right now, there just hasn't been the demand."

Some Texas legislators are hoping that changes as more classrooms get wired for technology. Electronic textbooks and other computer programs could be more cost-effective and provide more updated information, said state Sen. Teel Bivins, chairman of the Senate Education Committee. Bivins, R-Amarillo, and other legislators have been concerned that textbooks are outdated -- sometimes 3 years old -- even before they get into the hands of students. Since Texas approves textbooks in eight-year cycles, some textbooks could be about 10 years old before they are replaced.

"I think there is a real potential application to save costs and get higher quality material to children," Bivins said.

Texas Education Agency officials continue to study the issue and are expected to report to the Legislature during the session, which will begin in January.

Staff writer Lamor Williams contributed to this report.

What It Means To You:

Online textbooks could enable students to avoid carrying textbooks between home and school. A state lawmaker says that online textbooks could be updated more quickly and be less costly.

Monica Mendoza, 817-685-3852

Send comments to mmendoza@star-telegram.com