Cushing Academy, a New England prep school, has taken the first supposed steps into "the brave new world." It is one of the first American schools to shelve what used to be considered a fixture in the halls of education: its library.In its place? A sleek laboratory of learning that features a flat screen TV and the book of the future: 18 electronic readers (the Amazon Kindle and Sony Reader). Oh, and a coffee bar.
Books-those comprised of spines, pages, and covers-are all gone.
Through an alignment of resources (Cushing Academy reportedly shelled out half a million dollars on the venture) and vision (Cushing's headmaster sees this as a 'model for 21st education'), Cushing has been able to create a new technological framework for American schools.
I think this is problematic for adequate education. It caters to speed, efficiency and, basically, instant gratification (you want a book, push a button, you have it). It deprives students of the search for knowledge, a physical action that I believe mirrors the inward one. The electronic library narrows the exposure students will have to various topics. Browsing through an actual library allows students to stumble upon other titles and, also, other interests.
Some may wonder if electronic books will take over our bookstores. I don't think so.
There is a culture of book lovers who will always love books: the tangibility, the connection to previous readers, and the mobility (who hasn't curled up with a book on a rainy day?). There is something beautiful about books, something seductive in their smell, feel, and look. There is a sense of context when watching your bookmark make its slow journey from the front cover to the back cover. Because of this, I don't think books will go away. They are moving and they speak to the human soul in the way that a brightly lit Kindle cannot.
Because of this, I don't think books will go away.
But will other schools follow the Cushing model? I want to say no. But it is undeniable: the Cushing movement was simply a response, an answer, to their aliterate students: for their previous school year, at a school of 435 students, only 30 books were checked out.
And most were children's books.
-Autumn
I love this post. We are book collectors. I would say they are our greatest material possessions. Literally, I think we have more books than anything else we own. Sometimes I wonder how disappointed a thief might be if he came into our home and discovered we have enough books to fill a small library, but no tv, jewelry, or other costly things.
ReplyDeleteBooks are gifts that keep on giving. We love them so. I couldn't agree with you more, and would be sorely disappointed if a day came in my lifetime that books were replaced by computers...