I attended the presentation today (April 4) about Apple iBooks and how to publish your own iBook to use as a textbook. The technology is exciting and I think that is the direction textbooks are headed. It goes beyond posting a pdf file of the pages of a paper book, the books are interactive with a combination of text, video, audio, photos, 3D photos and others. I can see this technology to go beyond being a book. I can see it become the class itself with each "book chapter" becoming a unit of a course. The course designer can add all components needed for the course and the students can navigate through the content. There are even quizzes embedded. It is missing the social piece of a course, but with plenty of social media choices students can connect with each other in another forum. These types of books also have the danger of turning into ebook with videos stuck in them here and there. I find it interesting to see how learning materials are evolving.
A thread I've seen through this course is how a designer needs to be intentional with their course design. Technology is cool and fun and using the latest technology is exciting and brings with it some prestige, but what is the student learning? How does it move the student forward? Does the component of the unit meet learning objectives or is it just the latest tech trick of the week. This is the direction I am going with my project because I am interested in knowing how design can help students succeed and what kinds of designs can not only provide learning content, but can help motivate students.
