Online textbooks offered free to students

With the signed budget bill in front of him Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger answers a reporters question concerning the $85 billion revised state budget that he signed during ceremonies at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, July 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) less With the signed budget bill in front of him Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger answers a reporters question concerning the $85 billion revised state budget that he signed during ceremonies at the Capitol in Sacramento, ... more Photo: Rich Pedroncelli, AP Photo: Rich Pedroncelli, AP Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Online textbooks offered free to students 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

When California math and science teachers return to their classrooms this month, they'll have 10 free online textbooks at their fingertips to help them teach everything from calculus to chemistry.

Each of the books meets the state's math and science standards, giving California teachers a high-tech, no-cost tool during tough economic times, the governor announced today.

Free was the key word.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger launched the digital textbook initiative in June, arguing the online books could help shave hundreds of millions of dollars from the state's education budget, an assertion disputed by education officials, who decried a lack of technology in many schools.

The program "gives school districts high-quality, cost-effective options to consider when choosing textbooks for the classroom - not only during these difficult economic times but in the years to come," the governor said in a statement today.

While many such textbooks have been available online for years, they were never evaluated by the state for content, leaving teachers to question the legitimacy.

The governor asked publishers to submit free digital textbooks for consideration and 16 of 20 books were ultimately reviewed. Of those, four met all state standards and six came close, according to the California Learning Resource Network, which evaluates all state textbooks.

Because the online books are made available by the publishers for free, they were not required to go through the state's entire textbook adoption process, which includes a review for discriminatory content or compliance with equal representation standards - making sure not all doctors pictured are men, for example.

"Thus, a textbook's inclusion in this report does not in any way constitute an endorsement by the state of California," according to the network's report released Tuesday. School districts were advised to conduct their own reviews.

Of the 10 books touted by the governor today, Palo Alto nonprofit the CK-12 Foundation publishes six.

The organization started two years ago to help reduce expenses associated with textbooks, which can cost up to $100 apiece, said president and co-founder Murugan Pal.

Teachers can use the books in a variety of ways, copying only some chapters, projecting pages on a screen during class or having the entire book professionally printed and bound - at a cost of about $18 apiece, depending on the quantity.

"It can minimize the cost," Pal said, adding that the necessary costs related to printing the materials isn't going to go away altogether.

Reading the textbooks online is possible, but it's not the most convenient way to take in the material, and few schools currently have the technology to offer that, with Internet access sketchy and student access to computers limited.

"You have to provide computers to every student, which I'm for," said state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell, after the governor touted the cost-saving possibilities in June. "If I had that magic wish list, it would be one of my three wishes."