According to a survey conducted by the Finance Ministry, only 3% of English teachers in elementary and junior high schools exclusively use digital textbooks. The majority, 88%, prefer to use a combination of both paper and digital textbooks. This finding suggests that many teachers still favor the use of traditional paper textbooks over their digital counterparts. A Finance Ministry official analyzed the results, stating that it appears paper textbooks are more familiar and widely used compared to digital textbooks.
The survey involved 983 elementary and junior high school teachers who were asked about their usage of digital textbooks in fiscal year 2023. In recent years, students have been provided with learning terminals where digitized versions of paper textbooks can be accessed. These digitized versions are referred to as digital textbooks.
The government introduced digital textbooks in fiscal year 2021 and has since been evaluating their effectiveness and impact on education. In August 2022, the Education Ministry announced a policy allowing for the simultaneous use of both paper and digital textbooks.
When asked about their preference between paper and digital when using both together, 35% of respondents stated they used digital more frequently than paper, while 53% reported using paper more often than its electronic counterpart. Additionally, an additional 9% exclusively relied on traditional paper textbooks. this indicates that over 60% of teachers still lean towards using physical books.
Manabu Sato, a professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo specializing in school education, expressed his opinion on this matter. He believes that utilizing digital resources is unnecessary when content is already available in physical form through traditional books. Instead, he suggests leveraging technology like programming as a supplementary tool for learning alongside conventional educational materials.
As discussions continue regarding the expansion of digital textbook usage within schools across Japan’s education system remains divided between those who embrace technological advancements and those who prefer sticking with tried-and-true methods involving printed materials.
