Digital Efficiency
Justin Bathon on Wednesday, June 10, 2009 at 7:44AM That's what Governor Schwarzenegger wants.
It's nonsensical — and expensive — to look to traditional hard-bound books when information today is so readily available in electronic form. Especially now, when our school districts are strapped for cash and our state budget deficit is forcing further cuts to classrooms, we must do everything we can to untie educators' hands and free up dollars so that schools can do more with fewer resources.
We're seeing an interesting shift here where the digital is now seen as more efficient than the textbooks. That's a key shift in perception because conservatives now have an argument from which they can support such broad digital transitions, as we see the Governor doing in this article. You look at the healthcare debate for instance, where digital records are guaranteed to be a big part of this package. Because it is being sold as an efficiency in the healthcare system, no conservatives are voicing strong opposition to it and many support that aspect of reform. We could well see the same thing in education where digital becomes equated with efficiency.
For a long time digital advocates have been trying to sell the digital transition on the basis of global competition, job readiness, student receptivity, and a bunch of other very good arguments - which you can see summed up in great videos like the one Scott McLeod helped produce. But efficiency ... well, that argument sells itself. I don't need a great video to sell someone if the digital is seen as the cheaper option - what I need is an economist to total the savings and testify in front of the subcommittees and we can get whatever digital transition we want.
Reader Comments (2)
I said in an interview a few years ago that we'd only get 1-to-1 nationwide when the marginal cost of a laptop was $0. That prediction is looking pretty good.
Whenever one looks at an issue like this, doesn't one wonder if people will purposefully underscore the complexity of the issue at hand?
People who promote the efficiencies will usually leave out many of the costs or complications because it really sounds pretty darned reasonable at face value. Under the hood, it is much more complicated than most will admit. The vehicle for going to all-digital has been around for years - not just in schools. It could be presumed if efficiency was the only consideration, that we would see massive bookstore closings or reinvention along with the disappearance of print media in libraries. While I cannot claim to study any real numbers on this, it certainly doesn't seem to be the case (anecdotally).
Why not?
On the other hand, people who claim this will never happen are also just as guilty of underestimating or ignoring certain components of this issue as well.
Would I like to see it happen - absolutely. With all of the benefit of the capabilities of connecting content-to-content, the experience could be so much more than what a standalone book could provide.
The question Governor Schwarzenegger should be working on is how to get schools ready when this does happen. Unfortunately, some of the choices being made around massive budget deficits in California are not really making these initiatives any easier.