Top Education Articles from Last Week: Digital Content

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There is no question about it. Content has been going digital and although the use of hard copy (paper) is still prominent in Education, very soon it will dwindle. We’re not saying it will disappear, but more and more activities that used to happen solely on paper, right from media for digesting content, to media for capturing, annotating and tracking content will all be digital. Tests such as the GRE and GMAT have already transitioned from paper-based formats to being computer based. As an educator or educational organization, you need to ready to go digital and here are some recent stories along those lines that we’ve aggregated for you.

1. Nicholas Negroponte: The Physical Book Is Dead In 5 Years


Spotlight: Digital Content
Author: MG Siegler at TechCrunch

Last week at the Techonomy conference Nicholas Negroponte, best known as the founder of the One Laptop per Child Foundation, said that the physical book will be dead in 5 years. He compared today’s hard copy publishing industry to the music and film industries of the 1970s and early 1980s how the rise of digital formats have completely replaced physical music and video such as tape and film.

Takeaway: There wave of digital change is going to hit books and we all have to embrace it.

2. A New Directory of Education Blogs


Spotlight: Digital Content
Author: Richard Byrne of Free Technology for Teachers

Edublogs, a blogging platform for over 500K educators and educational organization just announced a new directory of blogs. The directory is divided into mulitple categories covering K-12 subjects, library blogs, and professional blogs. The key news to note is that the directory is not limited to blogs hosted by Edublogs. So you can submit your education blog to be added to the directory.

Takeaway: If you are in the education space, a. you should be blogging and b. if you are blogging then submit your blog to be part of the Edublogs directory.

3. 90% of Core Textbooks Available for Free via CourseMart on the iPad


Spotlight: Digital Content
Author: Nicholas Deleon at CrunchGear

CourseMart, a company that sells e-textbooks for the laptop and iPhone just launched a free, iPad app that it says has 90% of the core textbooks available. Students can take notes or annotate each text using by sticky notes. The iPad is continuing to make strides in digital content consumption and other gadgets such as the Nook from Barnes & Noble are also competing fiercely in this market.

Takeaway: The good news for consumers is that text Books are going digital and should be available cheaply.

Photo credit: mfophotos