Synthesis Blog #3

This week’s topic has been about properly using a textbook. I am 100% in favor of the use of textbooks, but they have grown to be so monotonous. While I understand organizations are trying to make textbooks more entertaining to promote student engagement, I think very little has changed.

During an in-class activity, my group discussed the aspects of a textbook that can be more hurtful than helpful. Nowadays these books, especially math and science textbooks, are riddled with extra fluff including multiple examples, quick history lessons, fun facts, etc. These extra components can be helpful for the most enthusiastic readers, but they don’t work for everyone. When I was in middle school, I simply wanted to know what I needed to get done, so I could hangout with my friends and play outside. Even if teachers assign the more important information, the fluff can still be distracting to someone who struggles with reading.

A tangible way that might help students that the book discusses, is focusing on reading strategies. Even with a difficult text, students can adapt and learn to find the information they need. Before reading a piece of the text, students should always question and hypothesize what they’re about to read. As someone who personally struggles with retaining information, I would advise my students to take notes. I think the real key to success is refreshing over the information the day after reading the text. The information is fresh enough to remember, but it’s already beginning to fade away.
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