No more bookshelves in libraries?!? Beanbag chairs!?!
Yesterday I went to RIT for an event sponsored by the RRLC where David Lewis spoke about the future of media centers (libraries). Very interesting.
Essentially the Google’s Digital Book Project, (check out the Writing Road blog) will have all published works digitized within 5 years. Noting the rise of popularity of portable reading devises like Kindles, eBook,and iPod touch with our students, media centers will be able to offer reading materials to their students 24/7….millions of books/periodicals can be offered…
David Lewis encouraged us to think about letting go of old paradigms…ie. buying encyclopedias…and embrace new paradigms…ie. create social/physical spaces in libraries that are conducive to mobile technologies that can access this “digital library” and facilitate student collaboration…..
I was excited about this presentation as it validated our capital project efforts to engineer the media centers for this new era of media centers (libraries) in schools….particularly the wireless plan.
I imagine having my social studies class with Kindles in the media center and I could have my students read excerpts from The Jungle, Grapes of Wraith, and Fast Food Nation…all within the confines of a class period…without having to buy entire class sets of these books…each student reading content at their respective reading level…writing their reflections on-line…all while in a beanbag chair … 
Link to NY Times Article on Google Books
I also attended this presentation and agree with Bret’s comments. I can see this library of the future. I doubt we would get rid of every book because I still believe people (even Teens!) like the experience of holding a book, turning the pages etc. but I can certainly see having an abundance of our reference and curriculum related material accesible by all in an electronic version 24/7!! Change is coming and I, for one, am ready to embrace it!!
I also think that the idea of printed books will still be here for awhile. I currently own a kindle and find that it has it’s downsides and limits. I do still buy books and the idea of sharing an electronic book is still a bit touchy in terms of ownership rights. You can not at this point easily share a kindle book purchased from Amazon. When I want to share a new bestseller with folks at school I can’t send them a file for their kindle. I still need to loan them the physical book. The ramifications for funding will need to settle down and need to be worked out. It is exciting. I love my kindle but I also still love an actual book.
Downloads and Kindle-type tools will save the district money on texts and save the kids aches from carrying those heavy bags. We waste a lot of money replacing books in the English dept. alone.