Apple Announces Changes in Education

Apple held an educational focused event and introduced new products geared for digital textbooks by announcing iBooks 2. Here are the highlights I have gathered with the help of TechnoBuffalo:

• Tapping on a books will bring up an intro movie
• Databases will be added to textbooks that will allow for search
• Media will be integrated into the textbook such as interactive graphics and videos
• Students can tap on parts of a diagram and interact with them (i.e. part of an insect or explanations of the body parts)
• Students will receive immediate feedback from the questions at the end of each chapter
• Integrated notepad for note taking included
• All notes and highlights can be turned into study cards...which can be shuffled for random testing
• iBooks 2 is free

Also, a new tool for textbook authors called the iBooks Author. It will feature:

• Templates for books like math and science
• Drag and drop interface
• Can drag in existing text files and add images...program will do auto-wrap
• WYSISIG (What You See Is What You Get) interface
• Can put in a slideshow instead of just one image
• Will also work with Keynote
• People of various skill level can use this
• HTML5 support will be available
• iBook Author is free

Additional comments:

• Textbook store will be divided into grade level and subject
• High schools textbooks will be $14.99
• Apple is teaming up with Pearson, McGraw Hill, Houghton Miffin and Harcourt
• Pearson will have two textbooks in the store today
• McGraw Hill will have 5 books today
• DK Publishing working on things like ABCs, dinosaurs and insect books
• iTunes U now getting an app - teachers can push out notes, assignments and more
• K-12 schools can join

Exciting information from Apple today. Stay turned from more updates as they come.