There has been a lot of discussion recently about ePub and its potential for use in the classroom, especially secondary and tertiary education. There is no doubt converting secondary texts to a more visual and interactive format, which can also prove to be cheaper to purchase, is causing some serious excitement for schools and publishers. The chance to interact with the book, view videos, bookmark pages, make notes, enlarge the text to a size that suits and quickly tap into the dictionary / thesaurus make this device and ePub format very appealing.

But is this just transferring the same old way of teaching onto a different medium?

This device offers the opportunity to transform the way we work with young people. Where is the discussion about that?

So, let’s make this as simple as possible. Why not get the students to create their own ePub books on their units of study? Get them to incorporate important information they find in the way of text, images and videos, and create their own study guides. Incorporate short films they create, animations and personal reflections on their learning. Then get them to share their new understanding with other students in the school via a school wiki or learning management system. Collaborate as a class to create your very own text for secondary units. The options seem endless, and all the while we will have students engaging, creating and excited about their learning.

I would love to hear of any secondary teachers brave enough to contemplate taking something like this on with their students. It is something I plan to investigate next year with my Primary students.

Imagine the saving to the book list! I can hear the publishers shuddering already.