ESU2 Initiates E-Library 'sweet' is the student reaction

Here is an article published by Joan Wilson from the ESU 2 website http://www.esu2.org/vnews/display.v/SEC/Technology|Current%20Highlights. The e-books can be accessed from school or at home. Mrs. Hawk can assist students who would like to access books. The 8th grade students will be instructed in the process tomorrow. From the Axis 360 Magic Wall, in the Blio of an eye, the Shadow Hills book cover appeared on my Droid RAZR. With a swipe from my finger, a page corner virtually furled and turned. In minutes, I was living the life of Persephone "Phe" Archer at an uptight East Coast preparatory school in Shadow Hills, MA, and, already at page 38, was 10% of my way through a 388-page novel for young adult readers by Anastasia Hopcus --her first. "Sweet," I reiterated, remembering the smiling reply of Yutan junior Lilly Kult, who was first at her school to get the story on the e-books --and who has had her smartphone since Christmas. Two is the first Educational Service Unit in the state to launch a regional digital school library partnership. The initiative is designed to supplement --not supplant-- existing library collections and to promote literacy by utilizing technology already in the hands of many students and families, said project facilitator Diane Wolfe. It is Wolfe's job to know about instructional materials and educational technology that will enhance classroom instruction and further student achievement. "We live in a Wi-Fi world. Schools realize students reluctantly have to unplug when they cross the threshold and, so, are increasingly looking at feasible options that will engage students in learning through captivating technology," said Wolfe. "Moreover, especially in our more rurally situated districts, students exposure to books --not textbooks, but to quality age-appropriate literary fiction and nonfiction-- may be limited to their school's collections." Wolfe initiated project discussions last March with an ad-hoc committee of six library-media specialists representing urban and rural member districts to determine the feasibility of a partnership and to identify a satisfactory vendor. Members researched e-book distributors and circulation services attuned to the needs of educational institutions. Their investigation included factors such as abundant electronic K-12 content, appropriate file formats and delivery platforms, as well as licensing and pricing models. Baker & Taylor Publishing Group emerged as the best fit. In addition to its own imprints, B&T has negotiated agreements with other publishers and is able to offer about 230,000 titles to libraries through 198 publishers on a one-book, one-user model. About 112,000 of the titles have been converted for use on the Blio e-reader app that is part of the Axis 360 service. 1 Axis 360 is its user-friendly, cloud-based book circulation system for shelving and checking digital content in and out. Blio is its free-to-download e-reader software, chosen because it installs on a broad range of electronic devices consumers already own: * on personal computers with Windows Vista, 7 or newer operating systems, * on tablets (iPad, iPod Touch) and smartphones with Apple iOS (iPhones) or Android 3.1 operating systems, * on a Kindle Fire (special instructions necessary) but not on Nooks, at present. Blio offers an interactive, graphic e-reading experience for emerging young readers and text-to-speech capability, a plus with regard to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance. The text-to-speech software syncs the book and the audio and a cursor moves along so you can read as you listen. 2 Thus far, ten ESU2 school districts have signed a modest buy-in agreement that has enabled an initial K-12 purchase of almost 1,000 e-book titles, cooperatively selected by their library-media specialists. Elementary titles currently number 417; middle school, 332; and high school, 192, with more expected. Participating districts include: 1. Bancroft-Rosalie, 2. Logan View, 3. Lyons-Decatur, 4. Mead, 5. North Bend Central, 6. Oakland-Craig, 7. Wahoo, 8. West Point, 9. Wisner-Pilger, 10. Yutan.