Should We Use Digital Textbooks Starting Next Year?...Looking at Overseas Cases [NewsSeolCham]

(50) Few Countries Use a Single Textbook... Simple Comparison Difficult
Sweden and Other Nordic Countries Return to Analog Education
Adoption Varies by Region in the US and Germany

As the status of artificial intelligence (AI) digital textbooks in the National Assembly has been downgraded from textbooks to educational materials, interest in whether digital textbooks will be utilized from this new semester is growing. This is because the use of digital textbooks can now be decided at the discretion of school principals. Although advanced education countries have been promoting the introduction of digital textbooks early on, their usage differs from that of Korea, and some have even reverted to analog education.

First of all, a simple comparison regarding the use of digital textbooks is difficult. This is because there are not many countries where all schools use the same textbook as in Korea. Germany has introduced digital learning platforms, but the usage and forms vary by region and school.

In the United States as well, since the authority and responsibility for education lie with the state governments, the decision on whether to use digital textbooks is made by each state government. According to the National Assembly Legislative Research Office's report titled "The Legal Nature and Legislative Tasks of Digital Textbooks," digital textbooks used in American schools are provided in the form of educational materials rather than textbooks.

On the 2nd, at the Ministry of Education's large conference room in the Government Sejong Complex, an official explained participatory classes and student-tailored education methods based on the main features of the Artificial Intelligence Digital Textbook (AIDT) during the demonstration event of the final approved version of the AI digital textbook in English. Photo by Yonhap News

Estonia is the only country where digital textbooks are used in all schools. The Korean Ministry of Education cited Estonia as a successful case of digital textbooks, noting that Estonia became an emerging educational powerhouse by ranking first among European countries in the 2022 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Estonia has been expanding digital education since 1997 and officially introduced digital textbooks in 2018.

However, looking at the evaluation trends, Estonia's scores declined in 2022 compared to 2018. Estonia ranked 5th (523 points) in reading in 2018 but dropped to 6th (511 points) in 2022. Science also fell from 4th (530 points) to 6th (526 points). Although math scores decreased, the ranking rose one place from 8th (523 points) to 7th (510 points).

Some countries have abolished digital textbook policies. Finland, which was a pioneer in digital education by converting over 80% of learning materials to digital, has reverted to paper textbooks due to concerns over declining literacy among students. Norway and Finland have also stopped digital education for young children.

Sweden, considered an advanced education country, introduced digital textbooks in 2017 but withdrew them in 2023. Furthermore, for children under six years old, Sweden has completely stopped not only digital textbooks but also digital education itself, opting solely for education using paper books.

The Swedish Ministry of Education cited the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) as the basis for withdrawing the policy. PIRLS assesses the reading ability of fourth graders worldwide. Sweden scored 555 points in 2016 but dropped to 544 points in 2021. However, since the ranking improved from 9th to 6th place, it is difficult to simply conclude that reading ability has declined.

Therefore, some argue that Sweden's return to analog education is due to political ideology. It is said that the right-wing government used PIRLS as a basis to nullify the previous government's digital education transition policy. In September 2023, the Associated Press quoted Neil Selwyn, a professor of education at Monash University in Australia, saying, "The Swedish government claims there is 'no evidence that digital technology enhances learning,' but this is because there is no direct evidence on how education incorporating digital technology works," adding, "Digital technology is only one of the complex factors in education." This points out that the cause of declining learning ability may not be solely due to digital education.

Currently, the introduction of digital textbooks in Korea is uncertain. The Ministry of Education had planned to use digital textbooks for some grades in elementary, middle, and high schools starting this semester, but last month, the National Assembly passed an amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act that downgraded digital textbooks to reference materials rather than textbooks. Therefore, the use of digital textbooks can now be chosen at the discretion of school principals. The Ministry of Education stated that even if digital textbooks are used as educational materials, it will strive to distribute them as widely as possible to schools that wish to use them.