Innovations in technology have brought about tremendous, positive changes in each and every industry, including education. Digitization of textbooks is helping to enhance the teaching and learning experience in many ways. The use of ebooks has significantly improved the access to and efficacy of education both at the school and higher education levels.
Conversion of text books to e-book format is gaining momentum as it makes content more easily accessible by a large group simultaneously. According to the U.S. Department of Education and recent studies by the National Training and Simulation Association, “Technology-based instruction can reduce the time students take to reach a learning objective by 30 to 80 percent”. Mobile learning solutions based on cloud storage is yet another improvement. In this system, data stored in cloud can be accessed via a tablet. In many countries, students can read their materials on a variety of electronic devices including smartphones, PCs, and laptops.
Digitization for ‘Smarter Education’
Scanning and converting text books to digital format offers many advantages for students as well as teachers.
- Interactive learning experience: Digitizing textbook makes searching out a particular content within a textbook much easier.
- Improves learning: Digital books not only improve the teaching experience but also enhance learning by allowing online collaboration among students and between teachers and students.
- Globalization and adaptability of knowledge: Electronic books allow students to wok together, regardless of physical location. It also provides them with the opportunity to stay up-to-date on information, unlike traditional books which sometimes contain obsolete information.
- Individualized learning experience: E-books individualize the student’s learning process. Students no longer need to worry about their learning speed and strengths, and do not have to rely solely on the teacher to acquire information.
Computer-based Learning in South Korea
A few years ago, South Korea’s Education Ministry announced plans to digitize all textbooks by 2015 and make them accessible on tablets for school children. As per the report, the ministry had planned to complete digitization of primary school materials by 2014 and secondary and high school material by 2015. This will allow Korean students to enjoy their new digital textbooks with multimedia presentations, interactive documents (like FAQs), and all the other trappings of modern digital education.
Many educational institutions in countries across the world are welcoming automated solutions to improve the teaching and learning experience. Many have outsourced their ebook conversion projects to professional document conversion companies to achieve their goals efficiently and affordably.
