3 ms·

The argument for books as a medium is a fair one to make, but overshadowing this is just what students end up using. When I was in high school a couple of years

by kilps 17y ago

The argument for books as a medium is a fair one to make, but overshadowing this is just what students end up using. When I was in high school a couple of years ago books were almost never used for research purposes (despite a well stocked library) - we grew up using the internet for research, and as far as I can tell didn't suffer too much for it. Books being used less means that an enormous school library just doesn't make sense for schools with limited resources.

ilamont 17y ago
I agree that the Internet is great for starting research, but are you sure you didn't suffer for it? Were all the Internet sources you used reliable and documented? And how could these sources possibly duplicate the knowledge found in printed books, considering most books still aren't digitized or freely available to browse online?
- Groxx 17y ago
  Depends on the field of study. There are, for instance, many sites with many thousands of whitepapers each for computer algorithms, genetics, and many other subjects (I've looked into those two, otherwise I'd list more). A single site can eclipse several large libraries for that kind of information. Or, in a more specific case, try looking for 3D rendering techniques. Info on the internet easily encompasses and eclipses all printed info on the subject, and it's significantly more up-to-date in many cases. In a more general case though, yes, I agree that many studies would fall short if done exclusively online.
- kilps 17y ago
  I completely agree that it was by no means a perfect source of information, but when you're at a school level and doing seven different subjects it was the most practical and possibly appropriate, as long as one looked beyond just Wikipedia. Possibly not the best for teaching research skills with books - but it did help with learning to sift through a lot of information, which I'd argue is more useful that having your school assignment 100% correct.

by kilps 17y ago

ilamont 17y ago

I agree that the Internet is great for starting research, but are you sure you didn't suffer for it? Were all the Internet sources you used reliable and documented? And how could these sources possibly duplicate the knowledge found in printed books, considering most books still aren't digitized or freely available to browse online?

Groxx 17y ago
Depends on the field of study. There are, for instance, many sites with many thousands of whitepapers each for computer algorithms, genetics, and many other subjects (I've looked into those two, otherwise I'd list more). A single site can eclipse several large libraries for that kind of information. Or, in a more specific case, try looking for 3D rendering techniques. Info on the internet easily encompasses and eclipses all printed info on the subject, and it's significantly more up-to-date in many cases. In a more general case though, yes, I agree that many studies would fall short if done exclusively online.
kilps 17y ago
I completely agree that it was by no means a perfect source of information, but when you're at a school level and doing seven different subjects it was the most practical and possibly appropriate, as long as one looked beyond just Wikipedia. Possibly not the best for teaching research skills with books - but it did help with learning to sift through a lot of information, which I'd argue is more useful that having your school assignment 100% correct.