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Milade Rivas
English 2010
Proposal
29 March 2015
Tablets vs. Textbooks
The first day of school is always exciting. There are new people to meet, new teachers to
learn from, and everyone is showing off the new supplies they got for the school year. Its all fun
and great until the teacher pulls out the syllabus and tells the class about the textbook they will
need for that class. The smiles of each student slowly starts to fade as they think about how their
shoulders will be sore every day from carrying it back and forth to each class. They become
sadder and sadder just thinking about the 609 pages that will most likely just sit in their
backpack, unread, and they think to themselves, isnt there an easier way? Recently, teachers
have been making the switch from textbooks to tablets. They argue that tablets are better for the
environment, they weigh significantly less, which is easier on the backs of junior high and high
school students, and show higher standardized test scores.
Tablets are better for the environment and save money because they decrease the number
of paper that teachers print for worksheets and handouts and the amount of ink each campus has
to purchase. The average school of 1,000 spends about $3,000 to $4,000 a month on paper,
ink, and toner, not counting printer wear-and-tear or technical support costs (Williams). Thats
about $27,000 to $36,000 in just one school year! A cost that could significantly drop, maybe
even cease to exist, if more teachers switched over to tablets.
Tablets are able to hold multiple textbooks. With technology improving, they can even
hold homework, quizzes, study guides and other files, saving even more paper, and making a

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lighter load for backpacks. Most tablets hold between 8 to 64 gigabytes of data. More
specifically, an Amazon Kindle Fire can store about 1,000 books for just one gigabyte of space
(Federal Communications Commission). Students have the power to have over 1,000 books on
them at all times. C. Claiborne Ray of the New York Times wrote an article concerning whether
or not loading an e-reader with thousands of books makes it weigh more. He quoted John D.
Kubiatowicz, a computer science professor at University of California, Berkeley, and he said, a
4G tablet filled with 3,500 e-books weighs a billionth of a billionth of a gram more than if it
were empty of data. The difference is that of a DNA molecule. That many physical textbooks
would be about two tons (Procon.org).
It is recommended by chiropractors that students carry less than 15% percent of their
body weight in a backpack, but with all the courses that are required such as History, Math,
Science, and Language Arts, that percent is just about doubled (Adams). More than 13,700 kids
aged 5 to 18 were treated in hospitals and doctors offices for backpack-related injuries in a
single year (Dallas). These were injuries such as contusions, sprains, fractures, and strains to
the back and shoulder (Procon.org). With tablets instead of textbooks, students would be carrying
only about 5 pounds on their backs, which would decrease the amount of injuries.
Although switching to tablets is beneficial, there is still a potential risk with children
carrying around expensive electronics in their backpacks. People who know what students have
in their bags, can try to steal them and hurt the teenagers. However, if the tablets were to stay at
school, then this problem could be avoided. Each school should have a class set so that the
students can learn what they need at school on the tablet. Most students have access to the
internet at home, so for homework, it would all just be online. Even if they dont have access to

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the internet at home, they are able to stay after school and finish their homework there, or go to
the public library.
The switch to tablets should start once the students start junior high. By them, they are
somewhat more responsible and have more respect towards things that are not theirs. Junior high
and high school students are the ones who get the eight pound textbooks they have to carry
everywhere, so making the change once they get there makes sense. Switching to tablets in
grades 7-12 is a better way for students to learn. It would save schools a lot of money that can be
used for art, music, or sports. The internet is more accessible than a 20 pound textbook.

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Works Cited
Adams, Thomas. Textbook Weight in California: Data and Analysis. California Department of
Education. 14 April 2004. Web. 30 March 2015.
Dallas, Mary Elizabeth. Overloaded Backpacks Can Injure Kids: Experts. HeathDay. 26
August 2012. Web. 29 March 2015.
Federal Communications Commission. Digital Textbook Playbook. The Digital Textbook
Collaborative. 1 Feb 2012. Web. 29 March 2015.
procon.org. Tablets vs. Textbooks. Procon.org. 9 April 2014. Web. 29 March 2015.
Ray, C. Claiborne. The Weight of Memory. The New York Times. 24 Oct 2011. Web. 29 March
2015.
Williams, Del. How Much is Out-of-Control Printing Costing Your School? Print Manager.
Web. 29 March 2015.