Proceedings of the International conference
The Social Value of Educational Technology in Southeast Asia: an Interllectural Exchange Conference for Japan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam

Emergence of Digital Textbook: Why we need it?

Masami Isoda, CRICED, University of Tsukuba, Japan.
Introduction
Meditational means (Wertsch, 1993) develops our ways of thinking when we use it as apart of our life. As the Gutenberg galaxy (McLuhan, 1962), ICT influences cultural
revolution and changes our social value. Digital textbook is the one of the major
candidate to change the school culture. Because of it is inevitable, attractive andunavoidable, many counties consider or begin to introduce it on the reason just not late
for the movement on this Knowledge Based Societies. On the other hands, the well
product based society like Japan, there are a number of discussion why. Because to push
the Knowledge Based Society means to reorganize the developed society and have tobrake some values for new valuing. For knowing the meaning of revolution, this paper
quote the ongoing discussion in Japan and introduce the software 'dbookpro' which
supports developing digital textbooks.
The Status of ICT Education in Asia
ICT is the base for Knowledge Based Society. Tools for ICT have to revise it for new
generations within at most ten years. The cost is usually getting cheaper within a few
years. Developed countries already spend huge cost for revision for continuously
participation and developing countries do not need to spend it because if the cost for thesame technology became half within a few years. The establishment of ICT
infrastructure is rather suitable for small countries than big countries. The fact that
Obama administration decides the re-establishment of ICT infrastructure as a principal
strategy. Innovation of ICT promotes the devices, which aims to become closer to theinterface of human beings, as well as it hidden into every device and goods which wehave been using but for enabling integrative use each of them under ICT. The use ofcomputers and/ or new technology used to require study and practice. However, this
could be seen as the old generation as for the technology of which every people do notneed to have because better technology for universal use could be brought in few years if
there are good market.

Ho Chi Minh; SEAMEO-RETRAC, pp.48-57, 2011.

Depending on the Report on the Status of ICT Integration in Education in South East
Asia (SEAMEO, 2010, p12), there are very much differences as follows:

Whatever the current situation is, the countries in emerging stage could be promoted toinfusing stage, when the situation of foreign exchange is improved and the budget
allocation becomes clearer. In current stage, we should say that there is no necessity tointroduce tools which needs special training. For example, who need the training to use
mobile phone. The necessary technology could be spread in few years without training.

Proceedings of the International conference
The Social Value of Educational Technology in Southeast Asia: an Interllectural Exchange Conference for Japan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam

Any country could use the innovative ICT properly, as long as considering the timing todevelop infrastructures. On this meaning, emergent stage is not so far from applying
and infusing stages because every country have to introduce or revise ICT system itself.
It is not good idea to take time just for ICT education instead of basic literacy subject
such as language and mathematics. Such ICT is usually in appropriate for uses. If ICT
is good enough to teach, it should be used in any subject. ICT skill cannot develop
without content such as academic subjects. If it is necessary for academic subject,teacher must use it inevitable.
Case study: Japan
Japan have been using ICT for education from 1980s in the schools. ICT level incommon is quite advanced in Japan. From 2005, major textbook companies have been
distributing e-textbooks for the classroom projectors.

Nevertheless, ICT has not yet

promoted much in the field of education.
Japan: Low usage of ICT in education
The usage of ICT in education is low, compared with other fields of society in Japan,
as well as among other countries in the world.
* ICT infrastructure is advanced in Japan* The usage of ICT in education is low

Proportion of optical fiber: 1st place in the world
Broadband speed: 1st place in the world
Proportion of 3G mobile: 1st place in the world
The usage of ICT in education

Health care

Electrical
trade

Offices, labour

Security

Transportation

Singapore (1st place): 57.5%

Publicadministration

Japan: 17.4%*Countries participated to the research: Japan,

Environment,
EnergyEducation

Officeadministration

U.S.A, Britain, S. Korea, Singapore, Denmarkand Sweden

Japan
Country placed for 1st place*ICT use among children
Internet search

EmailsEveryday

Never

Computer use as study tool

EverydayFew times
a weekNeverEverydayFew times
a weekNever

Japan
Country placedfor 1st place
Few times
a weekHo Chi Minh; SEAMEO-RETRAC, pp.48-57, 2011.

One of the reasons which delay the usage of ICT in education is that Japan succeeded
its education without any ICT use. According to a statistics of Ministry of Education,
Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in 2007, the average of teachers inelementary school is 44.4 years old, while 43.8 years old in junior high school and 45.1
years old in high school. Considering the fact that teachers in Japan are between 22 and60 years old, the average age should be 41 years old. As you see above, actual averageage of teachers is bit older, which means beyond a half of teachers are over 45 years old.
They use computer for their office work but not for their classroom. Japan succeeded tobring high qualified education to the children throughout 1990s, the era we did not haveinternet. From 80's every school began to equip computer and teachers madeexperiments but finally, many of they recognized that it is not necessity to use. Anotherreason which delays the usage of ICT in education is decentralization policy of public
administration. The ICT budget allocated to the districts from MEXT was not usedproperly for the original purposes, due to the financial crisis in 2000s. Each district
established its own ICT management system and policy, which is controlled by different
committees with support of different companies to protect personal data. In this way the
network cost, which could have been very much cheaper and easy to use in centralized
system, rose drastically.
In order to improve ICT use in education, MEXT decided to consider the introduction ofelectronic educational tool “Digital Textbook” to schools on 14th of April, 2010. Based on
this, “Conference for computerization in school education” was established, which aims
the development of educational tools with the use of images and sounds and theimprovement of individual coaching at schools.
MEXT indicates the following example for the introduction of ICT in education.

Proceedings of the International conference
The Social Value of Educational Technology in Southeast Asia: an Interllectural Exchange Conference for Japan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam

Desiredenvironment
foreducation in the 21st century(example)householdOutsideinstitutions(library, research institute)

Other schools

Class sessions(Exchange with otherschools and specialists)

Interenet

Delivering
digital textbook

community

Hookup server

Entire or partial
delivery from theserverHigh-speed
wireless LAN,
mobile internet

Individual Learning(Classification of
information)

Reference 1

Class sessions(information gathering)
Individual Learning(To master basics)
Class sessions(Presentation &discussion))
Individual Learning(To deepen ideas)

Contents,
Viewer

Tools forstudents

Tools forteachers

Exercise (To write andrecord in digital notes)

Exercise (To learn fromdigital textbook)The use for teachers(Teaching tool,
information sharing)

Basic engine
Basic functions
Web browser
OS
Computer terminal (for teachers andstudents
Image of digital textbooks and tools

MEXT together with Ministry of Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts andTelecommunications started the following project to 20 schools with the budget of 1.33
billion yen.
Educational Innovation
It is essential for children to gain thesense of living in knowledge basedsociety and global markets.

It is important to obtain skills to create
the new values based on knowledge
acquired and flexible thinking.

ICT use in education contributes tocreate the learning methods, using
information technology.

ExamplesEducational innovation
using
information
technology

Lecture-oriented
learning Beyond time andspace Interactive
 Easy to customize
 Pile and share themassive amount of
information

New strategy on information
technology
May 11, 2010, Strategic centre for IT
To establish education in schools withthe use of information technology

 Suitable toindividual skills andfeatures Coaching eachother among
students
 Individual guidance
based oninformation sharing Suitable to individual skills and features
Digital contents enable students to search themselves
and learn at their own pace. In addition, this assists
teachers to establish the different learning styles foreach student.
 Coaching each other among students
To encourage to grow the skills of thinking, deciding
and expressing through presentations, exchange ofthoughts, using information computer terminal andother tools.
 Individual guidance based on information sharing
To improve the learning will of students and gain thetrust from their parents by acquiring information ofeach student more closely. To improve the quality ofclass sessions through information sharing.

New strategy for future growthJune 18, 2010, Cabinet meeting
To improve the quality of educational
services and efficiency through coachingeach other

Vision of information
technology in education
August, 2010, MEXT

Ho Chi Minh; SEAMEO-RETRAC, pp.48-57, 2011.

It is emphasized that the table in above explains the necessity of ICT use in education to
the public, as the education described above does not require ICT entirely. It shows thatthe necessary effort by government official to set the grant.
For example, in the document, improved individual coaching at schools is expected
through ICT use in education. However, it is often said that computers disrupt theshared time between teachers and students in Japan instead. Teacher spend hours to
respond emails and so on. They are expected to record everything in documents and files.
The management of files is tightened strictly to protect personal data based on school
information management system. Some claim that teachers are stuck in front ofcomputers in teachers room, as there are many files to be fulfilled and it is not allowed
to take files outside.
We do not argue if the above claim is right or not because it happened on thisKnowledge Based Society. Nevertheless, it is clear that the explanation in above table
does not reflect the reality as such. At the current stage, where the experimental budget
has just allocated for digital textbook, it is difficult to assure the possibilities describedabove.
One of the reasons that support the usage of ICT use in education in Japan as well as
emerging nations in ICT development is to promote industries. Japanese businessmodel that overwhelms the world economy in the 20th century is based on thedevelopment of high quality products made for 100 million people in Japan are
preferred by all over the world. Automobile became one of the typical Japanese products.
Now, the business model itself changed. Japan produces hybrid cars and imports
normal Japanese cars from South East Asia. Yano Research Institute Ltd. estimated thesize of internal market for digital education in Japan as 4,000 billion Japanese yen.
This includes the expenditure by parents. It was expected that the market of computer
terminal for digital text books reaches up to 1,000 billion Japanese yen. There was theidea that the digital textbook targeted for Japanese users could have been convertiblefor its worldwide market. This follows the previous success model of Japanese business.
The earlier the innovation is, the more there is a possibility of capturing the worldwide
market in knowledge based society. On the other hands, the publisher is considering thenext step. Most of textbook publishers are under the printing companies. Now they are
considering the next step for survival.
Now the cost is major problems to use ICT. The world factories are shifting from China
to India. Apple in the United States of America developed “ipad”, while South Korea

Proceedings of the International conference
The Social Value of Educational Technology in Southeast Asia: an Interllectural Exchange Conference for Japan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam

decided to distribute digital textbook to all the schools, with aiming the development ofcomputer terminal for digital textbook. The main OS is monopolized by USA. Apple
produce OS and products only for Apple. Everyone knows China can produce similar
products in much cheaper costs within their country even if there are some difficulties
to exports. Google considered the Apple strategy. Acquisition of Nokia by Google pushes
South Korean makers to the difficult position where they provide the products andobtain the temporary share.
On this situation, we hope that the price of digital computer terminal drops sharply
once new companies join the market and competition starts, while pioneer companies
renew the product standard in complicated manner to prevent a sudden fall in price.
Developing countries and emerging countries need to search a stable product withproper prices without being baffled by profit oriented strategy of companies.
Are You Sure? from the Academics
The countries in East Asia that have Nobel prize winners are only Japan, China andTaiwan. Among those countries, Japan acquired the most winners. Since 2000,
European countries have not obtained Nobel prize in physics and chemistry. In the caseof Fields prize, which is known as “Nobel prize in mathematics”, only Japan and
Vietnam obtained winners in Asia. It can be said that the quality of academic researchin Japan led the world during the 20th century. This was the reflection of high quality
standard in Japanese education. It is clear that this was not the result of ICT use ineducation.
Eight societies under the committee for education under Maths and Science Societies
affiliated to Science Council of Japan, which are Information Processing Society ofJapan, Mathematical Society of Japan, Chemical Society of Japan, Japan Society ofChemistry, Japan Statistical Society, Zoological society of Japan, Physics Educationsociety of Japan and Japan Geoscience Union made the following demands on digitaltextbook in November 2011.
Article 1: Do not let the introduction of digital textbook affect the actual amount of timeon experiments and observations
Article 2: Focus on learning scientific facts rather than just watching pictures andimages.
Article 3: Do not reduce the time of constructing diagrams and/or calculating done by
students themselves with paper and pencils due to the use of digital textbook
Article 4: Afford the opportunities that students take notes to record the classes.

Ho Chi Minh; SEAMEO-RETRAC, pp.48-57, 2011.

Article 5: Do not concentrate heavily on exercises with filling blanks and choosing theright options.
Article 6: Encourage the exchange of thoughts among students.
Article 7: Do not concentrate much to prepare a beautiful presentation in class sessions
and do not discourage to grow the skills of writing
Article 8: Continue improving the individual teaching skills as well as teachingmaterials.
Article 9: Use ordinary paper based textbooks along with digital textbooks for the time
being and adopt paper based textbooks for administering evaluation.
Above articles suggest to prevent digital textbook distracting the achievements
established from previous Japanese educational model. They also insist the essential
factors in future Japanese education.
Explanation that accepts the mobile computer terminal and digital textbook without
any doubt or concern could be seen as explicit and patent. However, it is rather
irresponsible from the view of academics, such as educational research of mathematics.
Personal Computers were widespread in 1990s. At the end of 1990s, the benefit andweakness of using computers became apparent, therefore it was emphasized to learn
how to use computers in effective manners. We find something difficult, then we desire
to solve it. When we use computer as a tool to solve problems, students do notexperience anything in the process, including the sense of achievement. They should
learn the way and basis to reach to the answer. Otherwise they never know how tochoose.
For instance, when taking notes, some idea and/or thought may cross his/her mind. S/hemay take a picture, instead of taking notes about them. Though both actions look thesame, S/he has the opportunity to deepen the idea while taking notes. It is concernedthat students lose such opportunities and they even do not know that they had suchopportunities.
It is important to acknowledge that there are weak points of using computers anddigital textbook. Without considering this, the quality of education aimed is neverreached. This is a concern from academic field.
Principal Software “dbook Pro”
The ideology of “dbook Pro”, which is developed by CRICED (Centre for Research onProceedings of the International conference
The Social Value of Educational Technology in Southeast Asia: an Interllectural Exchange Conference for Japan, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam

International Cooperation on Educational Development) and provided to SEAMEO(South-East Asian Ministers of Education Organisation), is to provide digital textbooks
for free to anybody in the way that expand the use of paper based textbooks andblackboard without neglecting the benefit of traditional teaching methods.
The biggest feature of digital textbooks made from “dbook Pro” is that they look thesame to the paper based textbooks. Therefore, they can be utilized in the same way ofusing paper based textbooks, when some digital functions are not required. Though thissounds paradoxical, this can prevent the situation where digital textbooks may causesome weakness and/or difficulties based on the judgment of each teacher. For example,
once a presentation is prepared in power points, you may feel to present every single
slide. As a result, lecture-oriented teaching in classes is escalated. On the contrary, it iseasier for a teacher to arrange the style of when and how to use digital functions indigital textbooks made from “dbook Pro”. Following shows some examples of using
digital functions.
(1) Using it as blackboard by highlighting the particular parts of text or writing inblank page,(2) Reading textbook together in a class while showing the particular parts in thescreen,(3) Showing the contents attached to digital textbooks, such as pictures, movies andcomputer simulations,(4) Showing other information by linking to the web contents to digital textbooks, and(5) Renewing any information attached to digital textbooks when required.
In Japanese classes, students present their thought on blackboard in front of otherstudents. In addition, teachers summaries what they learn at the end of each session.
Therefore descriptions written in blackboard during a session is kept until the end in
the way students memorise the flow of the session. In this case, digital textbooks can bea part of blackboard. Students can easily connect what they learn to the section of
textbook in this way.
Many interactive boards used now have the link to power point slides. On the age ofinteractive boards systems power point is an old fashioned way. Students do not have it,thus they cannot go back to the previous pages, while teacher follow the presentation as
it is made in Power Point. Therefore it is functioning as for the lecture tool. As

Ho Chi Minh; SEAMEO-RETRAC, pp.48-57, 2011.

mentioned earlier, blackboard is a space for presentations from students. In digitaltextbooks, blackboard is a part of screen to show textbook and write down the students
ideas in both board and screen.
Computer was often used in a limited way apart from the contents of textbooks. Digitaltextbook enable the contents of textbooks to connect to outside source of information on
the internet in comprehensive way.
Difference between graphing software for mathematics and digital textbook
The NCTM in USA set the curriculum standards of mathematics in 1989. It was theresult of learning from the good examples from other countries such as Japan. The
curriculum suggested to introduce graphing tools instead of teaching calculation
repeatedly to the students who cannot understand. Educational software like graphingtools was introduced as a way of teaching something. Therefore these software were notnecessary to use many countries. On the contrary, in the case of digital textbook, thetextbook itself is the curriculum. Digital textbook itself contains the additional contents
and free software to teach the textbook effectively on the top of basic educational
curriculum. Many countries bought the national license to introduce ICT into classroom
and most of them did not used by teacher because it is not necessary to use and without
using it we can teach it. Now, we do not needs such a license because digital textbook
and freeware are integrated use and distributed by free.
Reference
Wertsch (1993). Voices of the Mind, Harvard University Press
McLuhan, 1962/The Gutenberg galaxy : the making of typographic man by Marshall
McLuhan Toronto : University of Toronto Press, 1962(http://www.seameo.org/images/stories/Publications/Project_Reports/SEAMEO_ICT-Int
egration-Education2010.pdf)
The Report from WG on digital textbooks and materials, MEXT, Japan. February 2nd,
2011. from http://jukugi.mext.go.jp/archive/468.pdf
The first proposal from the association of Digital Textbook and Teaching, retrieved fromhttp://ditt.jp/about/aim.html
The check lists for introducing the digital textbooks by

the committee for education

under Maths and Science Societies on November, 2010, retrieved fromhttp://www.ipsj.or.jp/03somu/teigen/digital_demand.html