The Pros and Cons of Replacing School Textbooks with Individual Student Laptops (Essay Sample)

The Pros and Cons of Replacing School Textbooks with Individual Student Laptops [Name of Author] [Institutional Affiliation]The Pros and Cons of Replacing School Textbooks with Individual Student Laptops Historically, the greatest achievements made by humanity in attempting to improve life and solve problems relate to science and technology. Successive innovations in these fields have assisted in creating more efficient academic and healthcare systems. One of the most outstanding of such is the invention of computers. Besides the fact that computers provide a faster and more efficient means of accessing information, they remain the most ideal for academic research and have the highest ability to multitask as opposed to other gadgets and analogue printed books. It is because of these abilities that the idea of replacing printed school textbooks with individual student laptops has elicited controversial arguments among scholars and professionals in educational institutions. According to Thompson (2013), computers have current information, are elegant, and present numerous advantages which make them more suited for academics compared to school textbooks. Despite the common belief that computers are costly, an analysis by Pavlik (2008) indicated that the cumulative cost of buying textbooks across the year exceeds that of buying a laptop and maintaining it over the same duration. Notably, individual laptops can still last beyond five years and eliminate the renewed cost of annual purchases. Besides, computers can link individuals across the world through web connections, have superior ‘search and find’ options in relation to academic content, and have full time access to numerous online libraries all day and night. In the same way, it is worth noting that an individual cannot buy all the printed books they need. This is due to financial limitation and the fact that it would be cumbersome to keep thousands of books. The process of accessing printed books from physical libraries may involve travelling from one library to another in the event that some books exist in one and not the other. Other advantages of computers presented by Johnstone (2003) indicated that they are mobile and have a larger carrying capacity. A student could easily store thousands of digital ebooks on one laptop. When printed, these could require a whole warehouse. Printed textbooks may present useful information but get outdated soon after they are published. In the view of Pavlik (2008), the greatest advantage of individual laptops is their ability to avail all book publications for direct comparison while giving quicker and more proficient access options. Other elements in computers that do not exist in printed textbooks include access to audio and video presentations. As argued by Thompson (2013), these enhance learning and make classroom activities more realistic. Conversely, many scholars still prefer printed books to student laptops because of some evidently advantageous elements. For those students studying fewer subjects, textbooks remain quite cost effective. Again, Johnstone (2003) explained that they offer tactile experiences and present the true meaning of text...