More schools are considering the move to e-readers over textbooks. The benefits are many. Less weight, less cost, convenience, just to name a few. But I have been trying to come up with a reason why this shift would not be a good idea. And then it hit me. With an e-book you can’t highlight passages or write notes in the book. But then I realized this is wrong on two fronts. First, you can write notes and highlight passages with many e-readers. Second, we fine and punish students for damaging school property if they mark a single page in a traditional textbook. Oops. So e-readers are cheaper, lighter and offer a more interactive reading experience (without fear of punishment). And to top it off, due to e-reader apps most of your students have one in their pocket, purse, backpack or locker right now. It’s just that most schools make their students hide them during the day. A number of you in the LYS Nation are now using your own bootleg technology devices to follow Twitter. If you haven’t done so yet, we want you to join us. To let you see what you are missing, here are the Top 10 LYS Tweets from the week of March 25, 2012. 1. The “genius” of the Texas Legislature: Make students take a high stakes “End of Course” exam with two months left in the course. 2. The RTI success formula: 1. Teach the right thing (Foundation Trinity) 2. Teach it better (Fundamental 5) 3. Teach it longer (Tri-mester) 3. The GT success formula: 1. Teach the right thing (Foundation Trinity) 2. Teach it better (Fundamental 5) 3. Teach it at depth (Tri-mester) 4. North Forest ISD will not have to close and merge with Houston ISD. Education commissioner changes mind and grants reprieve. (By @e_mellon) 5. NFISD remaining open is bad news for kids but great news for incompetent education leaders across the state. 6. If North Forest ISD gets to survive there is no meaningful consequences in Chapter 39 of the Texas Education Code. It’s over. (By @txschoolsupe) 7. We all agree that the quality of educators varies. So why do we fight to maintain a system that allows a poor teacher to decide what is taught? 8. A college student costs the state $8,667 per year; a prisoner costs it $45,006 a year. (By @FareedZakaria) 9. Our choice in the voting booth is pro-public education or anti-public education. The choice is that clear. 10. I am a public school guy.
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