This week I decided to comment on Andrew Steeves' lecture. Much of what he discussed really resonated with me, and though he didn't have much to say about publishing of children's books, he did say something that stuck in my mind: something about how children's books get more and more interactive features added to them, and become more and more like games.
Andrew's comment reminded me of the Alice in Wonderland iPad app that everyone (including myself) was so in awe of. Here is a video of some guy showing off the app on Oprah:
As you can see, the e-book (or app) goes for a kind of a vintage manuscript feel, using yellowed-paper background, and incorporating well-known illustrations by John Tenniel. But, unlike the stationary images of the book, the app allows users to shift the images around - by tilting your iPad you can cause the king's crown to tumble, or make the White Rabbit's pocket watch swing, or even make Alice's neck grow longer.
Oprah exclaims that this is going to "change how kids learn". I'm not sure I'm buying that... As a teacher, I've seen kids, and I've helped them learn. Making figures move on a screen is not going to help them understand the text any better. It is not going to reveal hidden aspects of the story, which can only be discovered through thoughtful reading. It is not going to help kids develop creative thinking skills - in fact, I hazard that it will make it harder for them to think creatively, since everything is already there for them, motion included. I will admit that I haven't actually tried out the app, but from the videos I find on YouTube it seems that the motion interferes with the text, rather than aids it. Personally, it just looks like a fun toy to give to a five-year-old on a long car-ride.
I'm not against computer games per se, but I agree with Andrew's point completely. The distraction caused by all the extra stuff added to e-books interrupts the narrative and chops up the story. With non-fiction books, this can actually be beneficial (I'm imagining a book on dinosaurs with embedded videos and games - awesome!), but the whole point of fiction, I think, is to lose yourself in it, so that you become part of the story - a hovering observer, perhaps, or even one of the characters. And for that you need uninterrupted reading time. A dangling pocket watch in front of my face would absolutely ruin it for me.
Andrew's comment reminded me of the Alice in Wonderland iPad app that everyone (including myself) was so in awe of. Here is a video of some guy showing off the app on Oprah:
Oprah exclaims that this is going to "change how kids learn". I'm not sure I'm buying that... As a teacher, I've seen kids, and I've helped them learn. Making figures move on a screen is not going to help them understand the text any better. It is not going to reveal hidden aspects of the story, which can only be discovered through thoughtful reading. It is not going to help kids develop creative thinking skills - in fact, I hazard that it will make it harder for them to think creatively, since everything is already there for them, motion included. I will admit that I haven't actually tried out the app, but from the videos I find on YouTube it seems that the motion interferes with the text, rather than aids it. Personally, it just looks like a fun toy to give to a five-year-old on a long car-ride.
I'm not against computer games per se, but I agree with Andrew's point completely. The distraction caused by all the extra stuff added to e-books interrupts the narrative and chops up the story. With non-fiction books, this can actually be beneficial (I'm imagining a book on dinosaurs with embedded videos and games - awesome!), but the whole point of fiction, I think, is to lose yourself in it, so that you become part of the story - a hovering observer, perhaps, or even one of the characters. And for that you need uninterrupted reading time. A dangling pocket watch in front of my face would absolutely ruin it for me.
I completely and totally agree! I don't like the interactive fluff that deters from the meat of the story. I was an English major, after all. I like the substance of the text as much as the next bloke.
ReplyDeleteI wonder though if it is the first step in getting children to engage with some texts that they might feel are old and stuffy. There are some books, classics mainly, that kids don't read in their leisure. I worked as an EA for three years at the Ottawa-Carlton District School Board and I found a lot of the students were not interested in reading the classics for sheer virtue of them being classics. These books are "my parents books and my grandparents books"; they aren't "my books". Perhaps interactive texts are not the reinvention of the wheel, but maybe a modernization of it. Making it appealing to an otherwise uninterested audience. From my experience, I saw a waiting list at the school library for the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and the Percy Jackson series. But the bin of classic books sat there collecting dust. (Once I even bribed a student with a chocolate bar if they would just read A Wrinkle in Time. They decided the chocolate bar wasn't worth it.) Multiple formats of Alice in Wonderland (ebook, interactive tablet, and good ole paper back) might not be a bad thing. They may work in tandem to get more young people reading the story. True, the interactive tablet reader might come away with something different than the paper back reader. But that may not be a bad thing. Reading Alice in Wonderland amidst a dangling clock may do something unexpected and foster an interest in computer science! I suppose time will tell.
I tend to agree with the second sentiment Kevin expressed. I have a problem with the implication that this will "change the way kids learn" COMPLETELY, but I do think that interactive texts are going to expand the range of the way that kids can learn - and in a very positive way.
ReplyDeleteI bought myself an iPad for boxing day and (as I think I've talked about more than once on the blog) I'm really excited about the interactive possibilities that e-books and apps can extend the experience of the book. I think that intermedia literacy is just as important as literary literacy and I think these kinds of apps will help children (and adults) to develop theirs. I don't think that these kinds of animations are "distractions" from the text - they compliment the text in the same sorts of ways that pictures do, except perhaps more playfully. Especially in a world like Wonderland, I feel like this kind of fantastical component would immerse me even further in the world.
As far as this kind of thing in non-fiction books goes, the benefits are incredible. I bought the Disney "Animated" app when it came out last week, which is basically a coffee table book about the past, present, and future of the Disney animation process complete with examples from Disney films and tons of interactive apps embedded into the "text" itself. It makes for a much richer experience even for the casual enthusiast (as opposed to an amateur animator).
Jeremy, I saw your recent post on the Disney "Animated" app and tried to find it on my Kindle (in an attempt to procrastinate further from my readings). I'm working my way up to commenting on your post. Unfortunately, it's not out for Kindle Fire. There isn't really a Kindle equivalent either.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with your comment that interactive literacy can serve a similar function as pictures on a page. I'm sure there is an edition of Alice in Wonderland with a picture of a pocket watch on the page. (I'll check with Fisher.) If a digital format makes the same pocket watch move, is it really detrimental to the story line? Probably not.
Also this kind of software on e-books isn't exactly new or exclusive to e-book formats. For years parents have been giving kids various kinds of hand held computers that have interactive learning software, much of which involve read-along programs, name matching games, and the like. A few years ago I bought my nephew a Leap Frog that had an interactive book-thing about dinosaurs where a T-Rex would run across the screen from time to time. My nephew enjoyed it, for almost a year til he outgrew it. Really what is happening is that e-books and tablets are getting into the areas Leap Frog and Discovery Kids have been selling education software for years.
The benefit of playing with Mommy and Daddy's iPad is that as the kid grows the hardware doesn't (in theory) become obsolete. Or at least, it doesn't become as obsolete as quickly. Whereas with Leap Frog, kids fairly quickly outgrow the age-specific software. Then they need to go the store and buy an upgrade. With an e-reader that has multiple app capabilities, like the Kindle Fire, parents need only do a quick search for a new app to keep their child engaged. Moreover, you can now buy the Discovery Kids app or the Leap Frogs apps. The way children read now is becoming increasingly more digital. I guess the onus is on the app developers to find a middle ground between imputing interactive features and retaining the integrity of the text.
Jeremy, I agree with what you said about non-fiction books. I just saw your Disney "Animated" app post, and it looks incredible! Looks like they really used the capabilities that an iPad enables and created amazing learning opportunities that would simply not work in a paper-based codex format.
ReplyDeleteIt's fiction that I'm concerned with. To me, extras (even beneficial ones, like notes, commentary, cross-references) should be at least somewhat separate from the text, unless the text is used for studying. Kevin, I also see the problem you're describing (although the younger the child, the easier it is to "sell" them a book! :)), but I can't help but wonder if we (teachers, librarians, parents, mentors) can do something about it, rather than trust the fancy apps to capture the children's interest.
Actually, now that I think about it, maybe we're still a bit stuck in the immutability of the book. One of the possibilities of an e-book could be to allow the reader to choose for themselves whether they wants the extras or not. After all, we have different reading preferences, and if our reading technology can allow for different reading experiences, so much the better! Right?
Ok, I just have to post this: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jun/07/enhanced-ebooks-bad-for-children
ReplyDelete:)
Kevin, your point about non-readers being engaged by the features is supported by the study's author. But it all comes down to variety - the more options the better.
Ok, I'm going to stop posting about this topic now. :)