EBooks & ESOL

Presenter: Dr. Terry Cavanaugh

Email: tcavanau@unf.edu

According to Project Gutenberg there are now over 20,000 eBooks available.

A library in every classroom.

Recommended eBook format: MS Reader http://www.microsoft.com/reader

FL Reading list & eBooks: http://www.drscavanaugh.org/ebooks

Ø Advantages:

o Cost

o Size

o Weight

Ø Readability features

o Highlighting

o Note taking

o Interactive instant dictionary

o Bookmarks

Ø eBook accommodations

o Read aloud

o Text size & shape

Libraries:

Ø Project Gutenberg Official Home Site - Index - http://www.promo.net/pg/

Ø Children's Books On-Line For FREE: http://www.editec.net/

Ø Blackmask: http://www.blackmask.com/

Ø Baen Free Library: http://www.baen.com/library/

Ø E-Book Library at the Electronic Text Center, University of Virginia: http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/ebooks/ebooklist.html

Online Conversion

EBook Express: http://www.ebookexpress.com/

What? It's just a book without the paper.

eBooks are books or other forms of text that have been converted into digital format.

eBooks can be ordered online or downloaded for free.

Why

Many eBooks allow you to control the look of the text.

Some eBooks can be read aloud with Text-to-Speech.

Distribution: eBooks can be copied and sent via the Internet.

Ease of use: Adaptable: eBooks can contain helpful enhancements, and the text size and colors may be adjusted for comfort.

Accommodations: Factors such as controlling text size and color, and having a book read aloud

EBooks are forms of electronic text containing many features that can be classified as accommodations. The eBook itself has three different components, an eBook file, software to read the eBook, and a hardware device to read it on: computer, laptop, or handheld. EBook are available through online libraries, bookstores, or can be created from common forms of electronic text with readily available programs, which are often available free. Examples of accommodating features that some eBooks currently have include: light weight (in comparison to other texts), adjustable text size, highlighting, bookmarking, note taking, interactive dictionaries, and even reading aloud. By using these features instructors can create pre-accommodated eBooks for student reading that can include items such as advance organizers and reading guides.

Reading is considered to be one of the basic activities in all educational situations, and as such it is one of the most common activities requiring accommodations or modifications for special needs students. A tool exists that can provide many possibilities for assistance with reading: electronic text and the eBook. Consider the option of using eBooks as a form of accommodation for students with special needs, by using the eBook’s abilities and functions that are already built in and methods that we can use to create additional accommodations. With eBooks we have on hand an effective resource to meet the needs of our students.

The model of eBook that I have found to have the greatest number features for ease of use and most advanced in interactive abilities is the Microsoft Reader eBook. MS Reader uses a display format called “ClearType” which makes text displayed on a screen look like words in a printed book (Microsoft 2001). Some of the other features of MS Reader include a graphic that displays location within the book and a navigation system that remembers where the user stops reading and the last place that was viewed allowing for instant return. The text is adaptable allowing users to select from a variety of sizes and font styles to set the most comfortable display for the user. The MS Reader eBook also creates an annotation file that stores reader created bookmarks, highlights, drawings, and notes, interactive dictionaries, and searching for within the book for specific words and phrases. Along with these interactive features, the page display of the eBook itself is well designed, including margins to increase reading comfort, and a portrait page layout that displays a whole page at a time (no scrolling), with the option to black out the rest of the computer screen. While this eBook program may be the most user-friendly eBook available today, other formats are sure to follow in abilities. The ability to carry books, references, notes and other resources electronically allows users to make better use of the information, along with the additional just-in-time learning advantages of options like the interactive dictionaries (in the target or native language).

Interactive dictionary highlighting ability note taking text-to-speech