Kindle e-readers to be tested as textbook alternative at Seattle U

Tired of lugging around a backpack full of books? Just imagine everything you need conveniently stored in a device smaller than a laptop.

Tim Wilson, director of Student Activities and a professor in the College of Education, will trial Kindle DX e-readers in one of his spring quarter graduate classes.
The Kindle is an electronic reading device created by Amazon that can store up to 3,500 books, articles and documents that can be downloaded from the Amazon Web site. 


Wilson first started the project in January and has been working during winter quarter with other project team members, including Daniel Duffy, chief technology officer for the Office of Information Technology, Chuck Lawrence, associate Provost, and Bob Dullea, from University Planning.


Wilson is ordering the Kindles and preparing them with the e-books students will need for the course. Because the Kindles will be bought at the $489 retail price, the trial project will cost roughly $4,000, with most of the funds going to purchasing the e-readers.


Up to five graduate student volunteers from Wilson's Student Development class will test the Kindle devices throughout the quarter.


"This will be a learning opportunity for the university, the faculty, for the students," Duffy said. "The results would help to determine if there will be a future offering of courses with electronic readers."

According to Duffy, some Seattle U professors have been introducing new technology into the classroom with the use of remote control-like clickers (devices used to submit answers to a professor's computer) and hybrid learning models, utilizing both online and in-class teaching. Wilson corrects his students' papers electronically via e-mail and uses podcasts in one of his final projects.


Wilson said he has been intrigued by the idea of using a Kindle in the classroom for a long time, but is aware of the potential disadvantages that come with introducing the new technology.


One of the advantages is a nearly paperless class experience and the ability to carry all textbooks in one device, so students would not be required to carry a lot of weight. Another advantage of Kindles is that they have the potential to save students money in the long term. 


"The traditional version of the textbook that I'm using costs $48, but the Kindle version is $38," Wilson said. "So over the course of time, if there's enough content there on an e-reader format, you could see potential savings there."


A disadvantage of using Kindles, Wilson said, would be teaching a class to navigate the device. Highlighting and writing in margins is more complicated on the Kindle than just picking up a pen, he said.


In the future, Wilson would like to expand the use of e-readers in other courses and see how they could be utilized in different subject areas and perhaps also experiment with other forms of technology, like Apple's new iPad.


"I wouldn't be surprised to walk into an office 20 years from now and see very few or any books at all," Lawrence said. "If music is of any indication, we are just going to be downloading things."

Kate may be reached at kganiron@su-spectator.com