Exploring Student and Teacher Perception of E-textbooks in a Primary School

Abstract

The potential of technology in digital society offers multiple possibilities for learning. E-books constitute one of the technologies to which great attention has to be paid. This article presents a case study on the perceptions held by a teacher and his students on the use of e-textbooks in a Primary education classroom. It examines students’ meaning-making practices and the perceptions that teachers and students have towards their engagement in learning activities in this context. In the analysis of the data generated, the classroom is considered a multimodal learning space, where virtual, physical and cognitive environments overlap, allowing students to negotiate meaning across multiple contexts and reflect upon it. Results show that e-textbook users’ perceptions greatly depend on the institutional culture in which they are embedded. While the adoption of e-textbooks does not necessarily mean a transition from traditional textbooks to e-textbooks, students and teachers may develop a more demanding range of criteria which must be met by e-textbook providers. By doing this, e-books become a real alternative to free internet resources. Although e-textbooks favor a communicatively active style of learning, there are still real challenges to be overcome by publishers so that e-textbooks do not become the next forgotten fad..