"How often do schools really not give out textbooks because of fear they may get lost?"

I taught math at Marshall Middle School in HISD back in the '90s. Excepting the prealgebra and algebra classes (a handful in the school), we only had classroom sets of books, kept in locked cabinets--we were supposed to count them out and in every period. And thus, most of us didn't really use the books.

Homework was usually a copied worksheet, if the copier were working. Or a couple of problems copied off the chalkboard or overhead, although hand-copying was seen as a waste of instructional time.

A big part of the reasoning was the lost/stolen point, but also, our students were not allowed to use the lockers--so if the had textbooks, they would have to carry them all around.

This is rather silly. First, I've never heard of schools afraid to issue textbooks to students for fear of loss or damage. At my school, students are required to pay for lost or damaged textbooks or they don't get their transcripts released and they don't graduate. We do have a lot of textbooks in storage, but, at least in the Science Dept they are books for courses that are on longer offered.

As for electronic textbooks, I have my doubts, especially if they are just .pdf versions of the paper books. The publisher of the book I use (Glencoe) already provides complete .pdf files of the textbook and all the ancillary worksheets and workbooks. One can already log-in and read them on the publisher's web site or pull them off my own class web site where I uploaded them all for student use.

For the most part, I have my doubts about the utility of electronic textbooks. Students generally do not read the textbook chapter by chapter. Instead they are given an assignment for which they will need to use a section of the book to complete. So students typically are sitting at a desk with a worksheet in front of them and flip through the text as they do their work. A laptop or kindle would probably be more cumbersome.

Now if we're talking about interactive web sites where students can work problems, play games, etc. on topics related to the subject matter. Then that's a different thing. We already use computer games for some of our review work. But it seems from this bill that they are really talking about electronic textbooks not web sites, which I interpret to mean .pdf or other similar copies of the paper texts.

Frankly, there better uses of educational technology dollars. One of the best teaching tools I know of is the clicker systems produced by companies such as eInstruction

http://www.einstruction.com/products/index.html

Each student is given a remote control that they use to answer questions and interact with the teacher's lesson. It's a FAR more engaging way to teach than to sit each student down in front of a computer. I've tried that plenty of times in the school's computer labs and half the students spend all their efforts trying to surf, IM, download music, play games, or generally subvert whatever task they are assigned. Unless you are teaching an actual computer-based class such as web design, I've found computers to be more trouble than they are generally worth. And too much temptation for students to mess with.

I taught math at Marshall Middle School in HISD back in the '90s. Excepting the prealgebra and algebra classes (a handful in the school), we only had classroom sets of books, kept in locked cabinets--we were supposed to count them out and in every period. And thus, most of us didn't really use the books.

Good lord, did you really have a problem with middle school kids stealing MATH textbooks? Calculators, OK I can see that. But MATH textbooks?

So the solution to the problem of this theft of math textbooks is to give the kids laptops or Kindles? Yep, that's going to work.

When Cardle says, "Do laptops or technology in the classroom raise academic achievement? NO!" he is exactly correct. It is all about instruction and engagement. The best tool used poorly will garner to improvements. What he fails to ask is the opposite question. Can outdated textbooks hurt academic achievement? Yes, they can. History changes MUCH faster than the textbook can be updated. Ten year cycles on updates, mind you. Now, the electronic textbook or resource can be updated daily and the student can see the change immediately. Interactive resources added as part of the content will also serve to be a HUGE benefit. Students being able to check for understanding with auto-graded quizzes as they read through a chapter or work through formulas is wonderful feedback for them as learners. Factor in the lower cost of electronic resources with NO storage fees like paper books, and the state is much better off in the long run. Will things be better immediately? No way. It will take 3 to 5 years for schools to be able to ready themselves for the resources and publishers to create them. But we have to start somewhere. This is not a vendor bill. This is a student bill of rights in some respect. They have the right to portable, up-to-date, cost-efficient, learning resources. This is the start to that end. This is a small bill with a big future. Congratulations to the House for realizing that.

Only one problem: who's going to buy them?

Buying them is not the only problem. Who's going to MAINTAIN them? If the kids I teach were all given laptops, about 1/3 of them would do just fine with them. The other's? Not so sure. A whole bunch of kids would set out to crack whatever security system was installed so they could use their school laptops for gaming, messaging, music downloads, etc. It would be a nightmare of enforcement and maintenance.

As for interactive web sites, self graded quizes, etc. All that is already out there. I already have all those resources for the Chemistry classes that I teach. I have the software to create self-graded quizes. I do this sort of interactive stuff all the the time. And there are dozens if not hundreds of good FREE online web sites with Chemistry tutorial material. My students are relatively affluent so most have home computers. But few ever take advantage of the online material I already provide.

Speaking just for the subject I teach--chemistry. If you want to make it more engaging for the kids then start over with state-required curriculum (the TEKS) and start over with the science TAKS test. We are still teaching 1950s style chemistry because the state forces us to. And the TAKS tests that sort of thing. Develop a real-world based curriculum with lots of interesting labs and longer-term projects and the students are going to be more engaged. None of it requires computers. Right now, every single sophomore in my school (except for the severe special ed cases) takes either general chemistry or pre-AP chemistry. Both classes follow the standard college prep type of curriculum which means they are basically just watered down versions of a Chem 101 course in college. You race through an enormous quantity of material to cover all the required TEKS by the TAKS test at the end of April with little time for reflection and no time at all for any long-term projects. The best computers in the world are not going to fix that. Nor are electronic versions of the current text books.