Because science is always evolving and changing, conventional school textbooks are often outdated, leaving students behind the times. The Virginia Board of Educators, fed up with their high-school physics books having misinformation (or no information) on string theory, nanotechnology and particle physics, is now working on a solution — a ‘flexbook’.

Dozens of physics teachers were invited to fill in the gaps of outdated textbooks with chapters that will be posted online as free supplements to conventional textbooks. Chapter topics will include biophysics, quantum mechanics, relativity and new TV technology.

The total cost to the schools and state: “nothing except teacher time”, according to the Washington Post. While teachers must think this is not such a minimal cost, many teachers and students are already volunteering to review the content and readability of submitted chapters.

By February, the chapters will be available for physics teachers from around the world, says Virginia’s Secretary of Technology Aneesh P. Chopra.

The Virginia Board of Educators aren’t the only people riding the textbook revolution. Connexions, an organization at Rice University, provides over 7,000 free educational online modules, Massachusetts Institute of Technology posts most of its course material online and some major publishers are also starting to put more content online, says the Washington post.

Virginia Begins Open-Source Physics Textbook – Slashdot