A very interesting concept — game-like reading on tablet devices — from Walrus Epub:
Walrus Epub Demo#3 – Kadath— my thanks to Mr. Steven Chevalia for this resource
Excerpt:
From DSC:
A good example of how books are moving to ebooks which are then moving to applications.
Khan Academy integrates with digital textbooks — from Mashable.com by Sarah Kessler
Excerpt:
E-textbook maker Kno announced Monday that it will integrate thousands of tutorial videos from Khan Academy into its books.
Also see:
From Brett Victor’s “Kill Math” page
The power to understand and predict the quantities of the world should not be restricted to those with a freakish knack for manipulating abstract symbols.
When most people speak of Math, what they have in mind is more its mechanism than its essence. This “Math” consists of assigning meaning to a set of symbols, blindly shuffling around these symbols according to arcane rules, and then interpreting a meaning from the shuffled result. The process is not unlike casting lots.
This mechanism of math evolved for a reason: it was the most efficient means of modeling quantitative systems given the constraints of pencil and paper. Unfortunately, most people are not comfortable with bundling up meaning into abstract symbols and making them dance. Thus, the power of math beyond arithmetic is generally reserved for a clergy of scientists and engineers (many of whom struggle with symbolic abstractions more than they’ll actually admit).
We are no longer constrained by pencil and paper. The symbolic shuffle should no longer be taken for granted as the fundamental mechanism for understanding quantity and change. Math needs a new interface.
Also see:
Teaching secrets: Teaching students how to learn — from Edweek.org by Cossondra George
Excerpt:
Awareness of common pitfalls and effective strategies can support your efforts to help students “learn to learn” throughout the school year…
From DSC:
I sure wish instructional designers, subject matter experts, professors and teachers could annotate their “books” to give concrete, practical ideas and strategies that would help students to better study, understand, and remember the relevant materials. My early take on this might be achieved via a multi-layered, digital textbook approach that would hopefully address metacognition and help students learn how to learn:
Amazon rolls out textbook rentals for Kindle, promises discounts up to 80 percent — from by Donald Melanson
Check out:
Also see:
From DSC:
This also nicely illustrates why I believe we need to use teams of specialists to create and deliver our learning materials (June 2009).
Royal Holloway to validate publisher Pearson’s degree — from the BBC
From DSC:
Many of the publishers already have teams of specialists in place; i.e. they’ve already set their tables (see the graphic I created below that represents where I believe ALL institutions of higher education need to get to — and as quickly as possible).
