California testing iPads as algebra textbooks

A pilot project in four California school districts will replace 400 students' eighth-grade algebra textbooks with Apple iPads in an attempt to prove the advantages of interactive digital technologies over traditional teaching methods.

Education firm Houghton Mifflin Harcourt has teamed up with California Secretary of Education Bonnie Reiss for the pilot, which will take place at Long Beach Unified School District, Riverside Unified School District, Fresno Unified School District and San Francisco Unified School District.

"This is a seminal moment. It marks the fundamental shift from print delivery of curriculum to digital," said John Sipe, vice president of K-12 sales at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Students randomly selected for the program will receive iPads loaded with digital versions of their textbooks for the coming school year. Their progress will be tracked and compared against that of their classmates using traditional textbooks to determine the potential benefit of a switch to digital technology.

Students with iPads will have instant access to more than 400 videos from teaching experts walking them through the concepts and assignments, rather than having to rely on the teacher's explanation in class. There is also a homework coach and animated instructions on how to complete assignments.

Sipe said the videos allow teachers to focus on individual instruction rather than walking the entire class through the same examples again and again. The iPad also allows students to take audio or text notes and do assignments right on the device itself, giving the teacher the ability to track their progress in real time.

Sipe added that the pilot project is the first of its kind, which is why his firm elected to conduct an academic study to measure the impact of digital textbooks. The hope is to have initial data on student performance in January, with more complete results available at the end of the school year when the project concludes.