Technological advancements have significantly transformed our daily lives, offering educators a wider array of resources than ever before. While some believe that the Internet will never completely replace traditional academic textbooks in educational institutions, others argue that it may become the sole resource for school curricula in the future. I concur with the former perspective and will explain the reasons in the following essay.
Firstly, the majority of course books have been developed by pedagogical experts. This means that they are designed to improve students’ understanding of the course and enhance the quality of education, regardless of whether they are conventional or digital. Furthermore, incorporating digital books into the curriculum can be effective as educators and students can easily access them without any expensive payment. According to research conducted by the University of Michigan, 70% of UK juveniles rated their academic experience higher when they were taught lessons with both online and physical resources than each one alone. This is where the Internet can play a useful part: to supplement and add to the knowledge that the students are assimilating via their course books.
However, it is the role of teachers and school management generally to ensure that the use of the Internet remains a guided learning process as it can cause devastating effects on children. First, certain sources from the Internet are scams and spread misleading information. Consequently, the youths will lack sufficient knowledge and turn out to be disqualified people in their future professional lives. For instance, a study released by the IIEP (International Institute of Educational Planning) revealed a significant disparity in the progress of students who are taught with only traditional course books and those who are trained only with internet sources; the results claimed that the latter group was behind the lessons.
In conclusion, although the Internet brings an array of benefits, traditional course books are indispensable for the excellence of education as they help in developing academic growth systematically. While encompassing online resources in a curriculum can be effective, they should be under continuous supervision.