Apple has expanded the reach of its iBooks Textbooks to reach 51 countries and iTunes U Course Manager's reach to 70 countries.
The company said it has tapped into a larger market across the globe, and hopes that this latest move will help more people become educated, especially in parts of the world where actual printed textbooks are either not available or are too expensive. iBooks Textbooks, which was launched in 2012 and already cover 100 percent of the core curriculum of U.S. high schools and the GCSE in the UK, are now available in 51 countries, including Brazil, Japan and Italy, while iTunes U Course Manager is available in 70 countries, including Thailand, Malaysia and Russia.
iBooks Textbooks are virtual textbooks that can be accessed on the iPad. These virtual textbooks have an advantage over traditional ones in their ability to have interactive animations, 3D diagrams that offer full swivel views, photo galleries in full color that can be flicked through, and videos. These textbooks can also be easily updated with newer versions.
The platform now boasts a library of almost 25,000 educational titles. Content creators include independent publishers, teachers, and leading education services companies. Recently, Oxford University Press (OUP) and Hodder Education have contributed new education content, with OUP releasing 13 new iBooks Textbooks.
"We work closely with educators worldwide to provide the best possible learning and teaching experience for our customers. We welcome the opportunity to work with Apple's authoring software to enable our quality content to be used in new and exciting ways. Our design team has engaged with iBooks Author to deliver a high level of interactivity and visual appeal that our teachers and students demand. We're proud to publish some of our best-selling titles as iBooks Textbooks as part of our mission to further education worldwide," said Peter Marshall, managing director (English Language Teaching Division) of Oxford University Press.
"We believe resources like iBooks Textbooks represent a monumental shift in learning because they engage multiple capacities of each individual student," said Miguel Dominguez, Marketing Director of Spain-based Imaxina Novas Tecnoloxias, an independent educational content developer and publisher.
"The incredible content and tools available for iPad provide teachers with new ways to customize learning unlike ever before," said Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. "We can't wait to see how teachers in even more countries will create their new lesson plans with interactive textbooks, apps and rich digital content."
The iPad itself as a tool has been much-lauded by educators, since it does not weigh down a backpack, it does not take up much space, and it is a device that children can relate to and therefore enjoy an enhanced learning experience.
The iTunes U Course Manager is an iOS app that gives access to a massive online catalog of free educational content from leading schools and universities, a platform on which educators can conveniently share information, resources and updates directly with their students, as well as those who are not their students and who live halfway across the world.
iTunes U Course Manager also allows teachers to integrate their own documents, resources, and schedules as part of course curriculum. Research on iTunes U is also available and very convenient, because of iTunes U's growing collection of resources, now tallied at over 750,000 different materials.
