Introduction
The article under analysis reveals the problem of the implementation of the new technologies in the process of education. In this particular case, the author of the article points out all the advantages of e-books usage in comparison with the traditional printed books. The author emphasizes the fact that the differences between these two sources of information are rather obvious, though may seem imperceptible at the first sight.
The author describes the case study in which two girls have been involved. Both these girls were given the same device (Amazon Kindle) with the same text. The girls were given the opportunity to use all the features of the device such as the built-in dictionary, the text-to-speech feature, the changing of the font size. Researching the girls emotions from the reading and their perception of the text, the authors tried to find out the opportunities of the e-books for its possible implementation into the process of education. The results of the experiment showed that the usage of the electronic books had positive impact on the girls cognitive development.
During the process of reading, the girls have been making some notes directly in the text. They used the built-in dictionary to look up the meanings of the unknown words. The possible changing of the font size promoted the better text perception. The girls also used the text-to-speech feature, though they did not appreciate it. In general, the author concluded that due to all the above-mentioned features this modern technology had a lot of advantages for its implications for the classroom.
What emotion did the article evoke in you?
As for me, having read this article I have a mixed feeling. On the one hand, the authors arguments sound rather convincing. No one can deny the fact that the development of modern technologies has a great impact on contemporary life and particularly on education. I agree with the authors point of view concerning the benefits of the e-book in comparison with the paper source. But on the other hand, being a user of the e-book, I appreciate it mostly for its portability and storage capacity. I must admit that I also use the different features of this device, such as the built-in dictionary or the text-to-speech feature. However, as for me, no one device can replace the vivid paper book and its sound of the turning pages
Did the article cause you to change your thinking in any way, if so how?
At the same time, I must admit that this article makes me think. The article revealed the tendency for the replacement of the ordinary things of our daily living with the technologies that several years ago had appeared to be the miracles. Moreover, it might well be that in several years the paper book would be a rarity. Nevertheless, it is impossible to stop the progress, and willing or not paper books will be replaced by electronic sources.
How does this impact your life?
I do not want to say that it is bad. Being a user of the e-book, I have an opportunity to read whatever I want. And I must admit that without the e-book I would not have such a possibility.
How is this article relevant to education?
I think that it is possible to agree with the author of the article that the e-book offers exciting possibilities for education. As it is described in this article on the example of the case study, the usage of this device gives pupils the additional motivation for studying and helps them to overcome the difficulties.