From: The Courier Post, May 22, 1999

Students learning with new tools

CHERRY HILL -- The school yard chant "no more pencils, no more books," is taking on new meaning at Carusi Middle School, where online textbooks and computer-based presentations are becoming the learning tools of choice.

The school district is testing a new Internet program called Beyond Books, which allows students to navigate their way through a virtual American history book, clicking on links to everything from the "Iroquois Tribes" to "Societal Impacts of the American Revolution."

Still in its infancy, the program offers two main areas of study -- "From British Arrival to British Departure" and "Jackson through Reconstruction."

And while the concept of using cybertexts in the classroom is fairly new, school administrators are predicting it is the wave of the future, saying it will allow students a more detailed look at issues than the traditional textbook.

"I think in many places it can replace the textbook as a resource," said Dick Levy, the district's assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction. "The potential is great, not only to learn more, but to learn more in-depth."

The Beyond Books program is a division of New Forum Publishers, Inc., an electronic publishing company based in Ardmore, Pa. The company is testing the program in five school districts nationally. It plans to launch electronic literature courses by the fall and intends to offer 40 subjects during the next three years, said Jim Cassano, president and chief executive officer.

While there now is no fee for the program, Cassano said the company hopes to offer it at one-fifth of the cost of a textbook.

Eighth-graders in Dallas Heinemann's class have been using Beyond Books to explore areas of American history that interest them. The students are required to turn in a a project that reflects an understanding of their study area.

Using facts they gathered from the Beyond Books program, Maria Giannopoulos and Sammi Lieberman developed a trivia board game about Andrew Jackson's presidency.

"We get to pick what we learn about," Lieberman, 14, said. "I think that makes me learn better. Textbook work is so boring."

Other projects included a computerized slide show of period art and a report on early American fashions.

For Heinemann, the program is a tool to boost student interest in history, but she still gives traditional lectures and texts. "You're not going to get a kid interested just with a book anymore," said Heinemann, who has worked for the district for 31 years. "What I'm looking for, is for them to look at history sand say, 'Wow, this is wonderful.' They're learning at a higher level than getting a work sheet and spitting it back to me."

One of the best features of the program, educators say, is its timeliness. Until 1997, Heinemann used a textbook published in 1981. The Beyond Books site is updated daily. Additionally, students have all sorts of information at their fingertips, allowing them to spend less time searching through encyclopedias and outdated books and more time learning.

Like any new technology, however, electronic textbooks have their shortcomings.

Most classrooms aren't equipped with enough computers, forcing teachers to fight for time in computer labs. There are also some families that don't have computers of Internet access, making it difficult for students to do work at home.

"We have to deal with that issue," Levy said.

For now, the district has no formal plans in place to continue with the project, although it is being considered, said Levy, adding that he would like more teachers to become involved.

"It's obviously in the very early stages," Levy said. "This is a very exciting step forward."