Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun 
A student uses a digital textbook to study English.
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The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) is considering introducing a system recognizing digital textbooks as "official textbooks." It would allow students to choose between them and paper textbooks. The Central Council for Education is discussing the matter while aiming to revise the system during Fiscal Year 2026.
Nevertheless, students maintain better concentration when studying actual paper texts rather than digital versions. Digital textbooks were only recently introduced as alternative teaching materials.
Some Japanese elementary and junior high schools started using them in FY2024. As we still need to assess their effectiveness, it would be impetuous to designate digital textbooks as official textbooks without sufficient evidence.
Managing Content and Certification
MEXT has designated this as an issue the Central Council for Education's working group should discuss. Proposals under consideration include treating digital textbooks as textbooks subject to certification and other controls, rather than as substitute teaching materials. This would allow individual boards of education to choose whether to use paper or digital textbooks.
Significantly, the method of studying is different between paper and digital. This could result in differences in comprehension. A system under which each board of education would choose one or the other would be problematic under the principle of ensuring equal educational opportunities.
Furthermore, students would undoubtedly be confused if they moved from a region where paper textbooks are used to another where digital textbooks are the norm, or vice versa.
On the one hand, digitalized educational materials admittedly give students a sense of freshness and pique their interest. On the other hand, students reportedly find it more difficult to acquire reading comprehension skills with digital compared to paper teaching materials. Often they find it difficult to maintain their concentration. One reason is that they tend to skip over what they are reading due to distractions from the operation of their digital devices.
Some experts also point out that writing things down on paper rather than entering them on an electronic device improves comprehension and memory.
The Nordic Experience
The Nordic countries are among the developed countries at the forefront of digitalizing education. However, recently there have been moves to reconsider the approach due to its significant demerits.
Sweden, for example, widely introduced digital learning materials in the 2010s. Recently, due to a decline in student performance on international academic tests, it has reconsidered how to use them. As a result, from 2023 it returned to using paper instructional materials.
In Japan, the GIGA program has been underway since FY2019. Standing for "Global Innovation Gateway for All," the MEXT program aims to provide one digital device per student in elementary and junior high schools. While there is merit in helping children learn and utilize these technologies, excessive digitalization is counterproductive.
Textbooks are the main teaching materials that allow children to acquire basic academic skills. If paper gets the job done, we should stick with paper.
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Author: Editorial Board, The Sankei Shimbun
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