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I’ll admit that the library was some days not my favorite place to visit in school, but I’ve always loved reading, and while I may have occasionally longed to be running around outside, I never wished for the books to simply disappear. Sadly, however, students of Cushing Academy in Massachusetts are saying goodbye to those books, as the schools administration has decided to abandon all of their books and shift to an entirely digital collection.

Call me a Luddite, but I think the schools electronic transition is a short-sighted vision of the future of reading, and while digital technology offers incredible learning opportunities, paper books offer an enduring quality and tangible experience that e-books could never replace.  (This is definitely a rough week for school libraries.)

The school has invested $500,000 into a new “learning center” that will include huge flat-screen televisions, lap-top friendly desks, 18 electronic readers, and, oh yeah, a coffee shop. Supporters of the plan argue that there’s no room for books with the new project and according to headmaster James Tracy:

When I look at books, I see an outdated technology, like scrolls before books.

Far from being outdated, I think that books offer a tangible legacy of thoughts and ideas that doesn’t rely on a battery or power cord to be passed from one generation to the next. I love the feel and smell of books, too: computers, not so much.

Kieth Michael Fiels, executive director of the American Library Association, argues that a major problem with e-books is that many of them are not free and it’s harder for students to happen upon books as you can when physically browsing, something I always enjoy. Fiels also raises other important issues with the digital transition:

Books are not a waste of space, and they won’t be until a digital book can tolerate as much sand, survive a coffee spill, and have unlimited power.

It seems that many of the students of Cushing Academy don’t mind the shift to electronic books, but I personally think they’re missing out on an important experience. What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.