Bookstream: A Wider Reach than Imagined

After reading "The Prophet of Cheap," which describes Negroponte's efforts to build a tablet PC for impoverished school children that uses very little power and is unbreakable, I became curious about what innovative technology has been used to advance education in the United States. In the course of some fun Googling, I came across Bookstream - a new cloud-based library. In sum, students can receive their textbook material, worksheets, and quizzes through computers, iPads, and smartphones.

Interestingly, Bookstream evolved in a manner somewhat backward from Negroponte's innovations. Whereas part of Negroponte's genius was placing downward pressure on the market (as he said, "You want to compete with us? Go ahead. Compete with us to save the world"), the idea behind Bookstream is similar to Amazon's Cloud Drive and Apple's iCloud, two products already in existence. The creators of Bookstream did not start out with the goal of placing this product into every student's hands, however.

The product was initially designed to help educators comply with IDEA 2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) which requires schools to provide curriculum to students with disabilities in an accessible format. Bookstream now can offer greater curriculum accessibility to any student and also provides a simpler way for teachers to manage digital content without the worry of violating copyright laws. First year costs for Bookstream are generally $1749 with an annual maintenance fee of $529 per site. Don Johnston Incorporated, Bookstream's developer, is currently offering two years of use for the price of one. For more information about this technology, please click on the title of this blog post.

Reading about Bookstream leads me to the following questions: Do you think that exposing United States' students to even more technology than they already encounter in their day-to-day lives is a good thing? The use of advanced technology in education is often novel and exciting for students (heck, for all of us), but can over-exposure diminish this effect? Is Bookstream a responsible use of school district funds? Can the average school district save money by utilizing Bookstream more than traditional textbooks?