School Books on Kindles and Nooks in Wilton's Future?

Converting Wilton's school system to electronic books might save kids' backs and their parents some money. But it's not a switch the town's likely to make any time soon.

"There is some research out there that is disconcerting about how much time teenagers are spending online and how that's affecting their ability to think deeply and thoughtfully about something," said Superintendent Dr. Gary Richards earlier this month. "Pretty soon we'll be thinking in nothing but tweets."

Richards made the comment during a discussion at a joint meeting between the Board of Education and the Board of Finance. The subject of e-books (like Kindles and Nooks and online textbooks) came up when BOF Chair Warren Serenbetz asked the BOE if they'd considered the electronic medium as a cost-saving measure.

"We certainly, increasingly, are looking at the potential of purchasing online textbooks as we move forward," said Wilton High School Principal Tim Canty. "It's certainly what the future holds...but our indications are that on the initial purchase, the cost savings are minimal."

"There are some schools that have gone that direction," said Wilton Schools Technology Director Matt Hepfer. "But do they offer a curriculum with the same rigor as we do? I don't know."

Hepfer said that, while fairly affordable at present, "the dominoes are going to fall" when state school systems like Texas and California decide to move to electronic books. That will cause prices to drop dramatically for all systems, Hepfer believes, making the switchover more cost effective and feasible.

Hepfer said another problem is that most electronic book licenses expire in 180 days after their purchase. Thus a semester's worth of a student's dilligent notes could be erased without the proper precautions.

"The nice thing is," Hepfer added about those that use e-books at present,"that if you do buy the actual book now, they usually give you the digital one for free."