NYTimes says school textbooks are too heavy, and backpacks are overloaded. California has passed a weight limit for textbooks, starting in 2004. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that schools are abolishing lockers, so students have to take all their books to and from school every day.

Textbooks have also gotten expensive. Are they any better? I doubt it. The textbook publishers keep changing the textbooks, in order to keep up with state education demands, and to stay trends. The changes also kill the used book market.

There ought to be a better way. People could develop public domain textbook materials to cover most of what students need, and put them on the internet.