[a] need text and images in durable print form in order to learn, remember, and enjoy. Print matter can augment temporary glimpses, audible content, or audio/visual presentations. It can serve as easy-to-find references or reminders.
[b] want to touch material with their hands. In addition to just looking at it, people can benefit by physically handling, cutting out, pasting up, arranging, discarding, organizing, and/or supplementing printed content.
[c] be so used to—and adept in—the features of “real reading matter” that they no longer have the patience or energy required to use ever-changing software, mobile devices, tablets, apps, I-pods, animation, and whatever comes next. Reading/learning strategies like appropriate eye movements; surveying, scanning, skimming; turning (down) pages; marking text; using sticky notes; jotting down and organizing data; and the like are already in the repertoire of effective educators/learners. Detracting “techno challenge” could injure or kill their interest.
[d] require a sense of “comfortable security” to engage or perform optimally. Teaching and learning occur in a variety of real-life situations, such as on the road; while waiting indoors or out; under differing degrees of lighting; seated, standing or in another body position; while moving or being still. Print materials of a handy size, shape, and weight tend to be more useable not only by special-needs learners but also by “regular people under special circumstances.” They also give real folks a “non-technoid break.”
[e] be able to teach, learn, and remember better with printed material, at least when it is combined with other media methods. Some people may tend to “hear” only what they want to hear or understand only what they already believe is “true.” Also, info merely perceived by the ears or senses may not be received at all, and it is likely to be misinterpreted. Printed text and images appeal to many learning styles, contributing to the effectiveness of many other delivery modes.
On the other hand, whether it consists of textbooks, handouts, cards, or complete game sets, printed matter can be expensive for publishers to produce and ship or for end-users to purchase. It is illegal or unethical to reproduce many of these items; other materials require laborious copying of various kinds to be accessible to more than one teacher, learner, or group simultaneously. And such physical transfers take time—time for orders to be received and processed, time for packages to make their way from one place to another, and time for products to get into their hands of their end users. What if you really need (access to) such materials, sources, and resources right now?
An obvious solution is for writers, publishers, and other materials developers to deliver text and visuals to instructors or learners online. Then administrators, resource specialists, instructors, helpers, and students can choose how they want to perceive, receive, distribute, and make other productive use of them.
What are some advantages to combining the capabilities of digital technology with old-fashioned, durable books, pages, cards, and other print matter?
1. Creators of materials save on time, expenses, and warehousing. A major publishing expense is producing print matter in large quantities, especially in color on quality paper or card stock. Next comes warehousing; another high cost is packing and shipping. With online delivery, professionals can offer a lot more and charge a lot less.
2. Customers save on effort, money, and storage space. It can be complicated to get together and track the necessary paperwork to place orders the outmoded way. When products are received, they require room to store and organize. By simply downloading, people that need things can get what they require or want directly and right away.
3. End users of materials get to choose how and when to use them. Presumably, some teachers/learners will want to view pages on their computer screens and/or their hand-held mobile devices. Others will prefer to download PDF’d files and print out only what they need at present. With technology, there’s little waste and maximum flexibility.
4. Downloaders get best value without the “guilt” of freeloading. No matter how products are ultimately used, online delivery is likely to cost much less in cash and trouble than traditional shipment by parcel post. Paying a reasonable amount for a good bargain satisfies buyers and sellers alike.
5. Downloaded materials are adaptable with less effort and know-how. They simplify the creation of custom-designed or collected “course packs,” individualized lessons for students of different abilities with varied learning styles, and/or a reference library. It’s as if the tools needed for “cut, paste, and arrange” are inherent in the right-now delivery mode.
2. Customers save on effort, money, and storage space. It can be complicated to get together and track the necessary paperwork to place orders the outmoded way. When products are received, they require room to store and organize. By simply downloading, people that need things can get what they require or want directly and right away.
3. End users of materials get to choose how and when to use them. Presumably, some teachers/learners will want to view pages on their computer screens and/or their hand-held mobile devices. Others will prefer to download PDF’d files and print out only what they need at present. With technology, there’s little waste and maximum flexibility.
4. Downloaders get best value without the “guilt” of freeloading. No matter how products are ultimately used, online delivery is likely to cost much less in cash and trouble than traditional shipment by parcel post. Paying a reasonable amount for a good bargain satisfies buyers and sellers alike.
5. Downloaded materials are adaptable with less effort and know-how. They simplify the creation of custom-designed or collected “course packs,” individualized lessons for students of different abilities with varied learning styles, and/or a reference library. It’s as if the tools needed for “cut, paste, and arrange” are inherent in the right-now delivery mode.
We appreciate your getting back to (or back at) us with your answers, wishes, preferences, requirements, and requests.
For a list of titles with (many of) the above listed features, you can click here: Alphabetized Authors & Editors Product List. More information about products is available in the print or Online Authors & Editors Creative Language Teaching & Learning Catalog and at the Authors & Editors Online Store. No-cost materials can be downloaded from Teaching Tools, Tips, & Techniques--as can the
Try-Before-You-Buy samples attached to product descriptions.
Try-Before-You-Buy samples attached to product descriptions.
