Toronto high school drops print textbooks

TORONTO, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- A Toronto private high school has become the first in Canada to abandon traditional printed text books in favor of electronic readers for all students.

The transition to Sony Reader Digital Books at Blyth Academy preloaded with all course materials, outlines, assignments, reference materials, background reading and personal timetables was expected to take a few days, the school and Sony said Tuesday in a release.

Sam Blyth, academy chairman, said the decision to go electronic was based on research.

"Our student survey shows that they are twice as likely to read a book available in an e-book format as in hard copy form," he said.

Students will also be able to access more than half a million free e-books from Google, e-books offered by the Toronto Public Library and digital assets for university admission information, the release said.

The cost of the program at the private school wasn't disclosed.