Page 38 - Blooms Schools Yearbook 2019

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BENEFITS OF DIGITAL LIBRARY IN SCHOOLS

Digital libraries are quickly becoming the norm in Schools since they combine technology
and information resources to allow remote access to educational content, breaking down
the physical barriers. But this is not the only benefit: here are 5 good reasons why
teachers and parents should invite children and young learners to use digital libraries.

What is a digital library?

Before taking into consideration their 5 main benefits, let's try to give a definition of what
digital libraries are. A digital library is a collection of documents – such as magazine
articles, book, papers, images, sound files and videos – organized in an electronic form and
available on the Internet or on a digital support, for example a CD-ROM disk. Compared to
CD-ROM disks, Internet-based digital libraries have a plus: they can be updated on a daily
basis.

Many schools and institutions have already begun the task of converting their traditional
collections of books and educational materials to electronic format: some files become
available in HTML format while others can be downloaded in PDF format, to be printed if
necessary.
1. A heightened amount of choice

Digital libraries give access to multiple contents with a potentially infinite number of
resources and selections at hand. The main limit for traditional libraries is represented by
physical space: books consume a lot of it and people often have to walk round in search of a
particular material. Thanks to Internet and cloud storage, digital libraries overcome this
limitation, expanding students' horizons in learning. They can access an enormous amount of
knowledge and share contents with others, facilitating the expansion of education.

2. Building a heritage for the next generation

Online libraries help the scientific society since they act as a reservoir for the storage of
important research data, information and findings. For a very long time, the physical

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