Electronic Textbooks

Computer labs and science labs could be merged successfully to save space and time. In the work force computers are used as a tool to better understand the task at hand. Merging the power of a computer into a science lab will make children and teachers realize the power that computers can bring into their world. Students will not only learn computer skills but will develop an understanding of how computers will someday merge into the very fiber of our society. Researchers call this ubiquitous computing.

As computer technology evolves, the Math/Science Nucleus tries to research what is best for children. Our current research is exploring the use of browser technology as a means to deliver science content. This allows interactivity that current textbooks cannot provide.

We are also investigating the use of "pen computers" to increase a child's fine motor skills.

Educators, parents, and students have long complained about science textbooks that are too encyclopedic. The endless new terms, page after page, fact after fact. Students are bored and learning is compromised.

Of course you need a curriculum that acts as a baseline to use the technology. The Integrating Science, Math, and Technology Reference Curriculum is an ideal curriculum to see if technology can enhance learning for both the teacher and the student. It has been proven in a 10-year study, that when science is taught in a spiraling manner, science content comes alive through hands-on materials, reading, art, and history. The program, which was designed by scientists, continues to be one of the most rigorous curriculum on the market. However, in the study we found that administrators and teachers prevented the students from a fully engaged science program. Most are not trained well enough in our universities to handle the rigors of teaching science.

Technology can help create an interactive textbook that includes educational games and quizzes that challenge a student’s ability to read the material. The technology can also assist the teacher to help guide their instruction. Pictures, video, and sound can enhance any presentation.

Technology K-6