Why oh why don't schools use textbooks anymore??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

How much did you all get from Google and Microsoft to come to these conclusions? My bet is you are going to find out your entire career was wrong.

You're unqualified and absurd. Sit dwn.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m a high school science teacher. Science instruction has moved away from rote memorization of science facts and more into science skills, analysis and critical thinking. I have access to textbooks but choose not to use them (both AP level and freshman level). Instead I give my students diagrams to analyze. Real data to analyze. Labs to complete and analyze. Modeling projects where they need to wrestle with the content and make sense of it as they go. It often takes a while to convince students that the goal is not memorization. No publishers textbook I’ve had access to does any justice to aligning well with the rewritten AP science curriculum or NGSS. They claim to but don’t. Maybe I’ve just never had access to one’s that do. I can say in a heartbeat I’d rather have $8000 dollars in lab equipment as opposed to 80 $100 textbooks for my students to occasionally use.

Re-read what you wrote and realize how ridiculous it is. Unless you memorize some science facts you can’t really analyze. I couldn’t it believe when my 9th grader started bringing home assignments that said - “use a credible internet source to find…” Or has work that is all about the process and it doesn’t matter if it is right it wrong as long as they follow the process. There is basic scientific information everyone should memorize to be an informed citizen. You can memorize first then use real data to analyze.

I have reread what I wrote and stand by it. Please let me know what biology facts must be memorized before a student can start to understand a biology concept. For example it is critically important for students to learn about evolution. But they retain the understanding much better if they start out simulating/modeling the process with a hands on activity. Then look at the data and develop an explanation of what is happening. Then look at real world data and apply the simulation developed understanding to the real world data. They learn the vocabulary and facts in context.

Maybe I’m an outlier as a teacher. I deeply know my content. I enjoy curriculum development. I spend far more hours than I should developing my class materials. I teach students how to keep their work organized and reinforce organization. I teach students how to study from their resources and test them in a way that is aligned to what they are learning. I will say a textbook might be needed for a teacher/class that is less organized or experienced. When I taught AP psych (a memorization heavy test) with less expertise in that field than bio the AP aligned textbook was a lifesaver for me and my students. Each year I relied on the textbook less as I developed a deeper understanding of the content and crafted engaging materials for the students. My textbook based class in the early years wasn’t bad. The class did get better though in later years.

Textbooks aren’t good or bad. There are many ways of learning. But there is a cost trade off that at least for me is definitely not worthwhile for my teaching.

I agree that doing science is critical to understanding. But there are basics of experimental design and the scientific process that are consistent and the protocols and vocabulary associated with those steps and analysis processes is well-captured in textbook format. The mastery of concepts like control group and dependent/ independent variables is limited in elementary school. So there needs to be some baseline established when you have kids coming from all different places at all different levels. This is what textbooks can accomplish really well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

After my dyslexic child’s experience in school and watching the virtual ELA classes for my typical reader, there is absolutely no way I trust the academic establishment to teach foundational skills like reading. I ended up getting trained myself as an Orton Gillingham tutor to save other children from the disaster of the whole language (rebranded as balanced literacy) regime. I hope the bright side of COVID is that parents get much more deeply involved in what and how the schools are teaching.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

Wait! you've taught children ages 2-80?

With your long list of credentials, you have established yourself as a card-carrying member of the education elite. You know everything, you understand everything, you don't need to consider the plight of a student or a parent, arrogance and condescension dripping from every sentence. But there's one thing you haven't shared. Do you have school-age children? Have you tried to help a student in the past two years?

All teachers need to pause and think about what all this electronically-delivered stuff looks like on the other side. We don't actually see it. We just send it out to the void.

And this "not in your purview" nonsense. You won't be persuading many parents with that line.

[Anonymous]

Dear Ms. "Sit Down":

Nope, not sitting down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

How much did you all get from Google and Microsoft to come to these conclusions? My bet is you are going to find out your entire career was wrong.

Nothing. I have multiple degrees and teach at the graduate level in my field. I think I would know what the field entails.
I hate to break it to you, but this comprises best practices in education today. Of note, if Microsoft and Google is all that you understand, there's quite a bit more to know. You are not trained and are living in the 1970s.

Best Practices = whatever they tell teachers to do at any given time

News Flash- teachers are "they." We know what to do and how to do it. What we aren't going to do is let untrained, out of touch, and uneducated people with zero experience tell us how to do our job, just like anyone, in any job, who has trained and has considerable experience in the field. This isn't a consumer driven field where the public decides how they want their product
delivered. There is a solid swath of practice and expertise here that isn't asking for your advice, nor do we require it! We aren't letting parents write curriculum and cherry pick what is to be taught in the classroom based upon their political and religious beliefs. We are happy to explain what we are doing, how we are doing it, and welcome anyone to come observe. We also welcome people to become trained in various methodologies, which includes technology in order for said people to understand how it all works. But, no, we aren't going back to 1976 because that's what you remember about education.

I'm an educator who taught in DCPS for nearly 20 years.
I have a BA, an MA, and an MAT.
I'm not telling you what or how to teach.
But I am telling you that what DCPS is doing is shortchanging students.
Stop being so defensive. Try listening. There's a lot you could be doing to improve the quality of the academic program.

Pretty sure you aren't teaching now, so, sit down.

Still teaching, but not for DCPS. And I use textbooks, trade books, short videos, some online platforms. I produce my own video lessons. Definitely not anything anybody was doing in the 70s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

How much did you all get from Google and Microsoft to come to these conclusions? My bet is you are going to find out your entire career was wrong.

Nothing. I have multiple degrees and teach at the graduate level in my field. I think I would know what the field entails.
I hate to break it to you, but this comprises best practices in education today. Of note, if Microsoft and Google is all that you understand, there's quite a bit more to know. You are not trained and are living in the 1970s.

Best Practices = whatever they tell teachers to do at any given time

News Flash- teachers are "they." We know what to do and how to do it. What we aren't going to do is let untrained, out of touch, and uneducated people with zero experience tell us how to do our job, just like anyone, in any job, who has trained and has considerable experience in the field. This isn't a consumer driven field where the public decides how they want their product
delivered. There is a solid swath of practice and expertise here that isn't asking for your advice, nor do we require it! We aren't letting parents write curriculum and cherry pick what is to be taught in the classroom based upon their political and religious beliefs. We are happy to explain what we are doing, how we are doing it, and welcome anyone to come observe. We also welcome people to become trained in various methodologies, which includes technology in order for said people to understand how it all works. But, no, we aren't going back to 1976 because that's what you remember about education.

This is hysterical. No, teachers are not the "they". You obviously haven't attended any professional development sessions recently. Or maybe you were one of the presenters presenting the latest "Best Practice".

[Anonymous]

Some things, like basic maths, don't change. I liked having a text book so I could look ahead to the next week's work or back to older explanations if I was confused. My son has a pile of different-sized worksheets in his room.

[Anonymous]

My kids finally have textbooks and I cannot believe what a difference it makes. I wish I could go back in time and start their education all over again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

This is why we can't have textbooks, reading is taught using materials like Lucy Calkins that lack phonics (so some students never learn to read well), and actual in depth information for students is lacking. The person posting is mentoring teachers. Do you really trust someone who finds physical newspapers lacking and instead thinks we should all get our news from soundbites, click bait headlines, etc? I would love for my kids to be taught by educators who actually read a morning paper. And seriously the person is such an expert in reading, social studies, and math. I don't think so. I had to move my kids to a parochial school so they could have textbooks, weekly tests, and were held accountable for actually learning. They have learned how to spell, memorize math facts, and have learned actual facts in history and science so they can now make logical arguments using facts as a basis for those arguments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

How much did you all get from Google and Microsoft to come to these conclusions? My bet is you are going to find out your entire career was wrong.

Nothing. I have multiple degrees and teach at the graduate level in my field. I think I would know what the field entails.
I hate to break it to you, but this comprises best practices in education today. Of note, if Microsoft and Google is all that you understand, there's quite a bit more to know. You are not trained and are living in the 1970s.

Best Practices = whatever they tell teachers to do at any given time

News Flash- teachers are "they." We know what to do and how to do it. What we aren't going to do is let untrained, out of touch, and uneducated people with zero experience tell us how to do our job, just like anyone, in any job, who has trained and has considerable experience in the field. This isn't a consumer driven field where the public decides how they want their product
delivered. There is a solid swath of practice and expertise here that isn't asking for your advice, nor do we require it! We aren't letting parents write curriculum and cherry pick what is to be taught in the classroom based upon their political and religious beliefs. We are happy to explain what we are doing, how we are doing it, and welcome anyone to come observe. We also welcome people to become trained in various methodologies, which includes technology in order for said people to understand how it all works. But, no, we aren't going back to 1976 because that's what you remember about education.

I'm an educator who taught in DCPS for nearly 20 years.
I have a BA, an MA, and an MAT.
I'm not telling you what or how to teach.
But I am telling you that what DCPS is doing is shortchanging students.
Stop being so defensive. Try listening. There's a lot you could be doing to improve the quality of the academic program.

Pretty sure you aren't teaching now, so, sit down.

Still teaching, but not for DCPS. And I use textbooks, trade books, short videos, some online platforms. I produce my own video lessons. Definitely not anything anybody was doing in the 70s.

What access do parents have to all that material you are using to support the school work at home? When the kid doesn't remember what was in the video and doesn't have time to rewatch the whole thing (times 6 classes) or sort through on line platforms to quickly review the confusing point, is there a book or a piece of paper to reference? I get how these things make it interesting and more dynamic for you as a teacher, but I have seen first hand how it loses the kids who cannot reinforce (or even find) at home what they were supposed to have learned at school -- unless they have a book with an index.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

How much did you all get from Google and Microsoft to come to these conclusions? My bet is you are going to find out your entire career was wrong.

Nothing. I have multiple degrees and teach at the graduate level in my field. I think I would know what the field entails.
I hate to break it to you, but this comprises best practices in education today. Of note, if Microsoft and Google is all that you understand, there's quite a bit more to know. You are not trained and are living in the 1970s.

Best Practices = whatever they tell teachers to do at any given time

News Flash- teachers are "they." We know what to do and how to do it. What we aren't going to do is let untrained, out of touch, and uneducated people with zero experience tell us how to do our job, just like anyone, in any job, who has trained and has considerable experience in the field. This isn't a consumer driven field where the public decides how they want their product
delivered. There is a solid swath of practice and expertise here that isn't asking for your advice, nor do we require it! We aren't letting parents write curriculum and cherry pick what is to be taught in the classroom based upon their political and religious beliefs. We are happy to explain what we are doing, how we are doing it, and welcome anyone to come observe. We also welcome people to become trained in various methodologies, which includes technology in order for said people to understand how it all works. But, no, we aren't going back to 1976 because that's what you remember about education.

I'm an educator who taught in DCPS for nearly 20 years.
I have a BA, an MA, and an MAT.
I'm not telling you what or how to teach.
But I am telling you that what DCPS is doing is shortchanging students.
Stop being so defensive. Try listening. There's a lot you could be doing to improve the quality of the academic program.

Pretty sure you aren't teaching now, so, sit down.

Still teaching, but not for DCPS. And I use textbooks, trade books, short videos, some online platforms. I produce my own video lessons. Definitely not anything anybody was doing in the 70s.

What access do parents have to all that material you are using to support the school work at home? When the kid doesn't remember what was in the video and doesn't have time to rewatch the whole thing (times 6 classes) or sort through on line platforms to quickly review the confusing point, is there a book or a piece of paper to reference? I get how these things make it interesting and more dynamic for you as a teacher, but I have seen first hand how it loses the kids who cannot reinforce (or even find) at home what they were supposed to have learned at school -- unless they have a book with an index.

So you realize that books are online, right? In addition to books, all the references you would need for any subject.

I think the issue here is that people don't understand information sources now.

[Anonymous]

2 teachers above give lengthy explanations of why textbooks are not necessary from *their* perspectives.

But the complaints here are about what the students need — a single, off-line, print resource that presents the full content of a course in a structured way.

The teachers seem oddly unconcerned with students’ needs.

[Anonymous]

I think all you non-teachers need to realize no teacher just uses textbooks. No teacher uses just one online resource. It is always a combination. Giving a mixture of all is the best practice because some students will tend towards one form over the others. That said, do we need textbooks, yes, especially when the internet is down or there aren't enough laptops. Books are books. They still hold immense value in my eyes.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:It is not just nostalgia. Children need to be manipulating more objects than just computer mouses. Turning pages is fine motor skills practice. It is also physically grounding in the tangible physical world. It truly does engage different parts of our brains and bodies. And you can’t beat those beautiful color photos, eye-catching graphics, etc. My students really enjoy getting out our old set of gorgeous textbooks.

None of this is true. None.

I disagree. You seem very defensive though. Why, do you think?

Because I've taught children ages 2 to 80, pre K-12, college, continuing education, as well as graduate school, where I mentor teachers in all settings and have done so for almost 40 years. I've written tomes of curriculum for public and private schools, as well as charters for private schools. I am a reading specialist who has worked with every type of learning disability there is, and, within the last ten years, also have been very much involved with the autism community. I've written three books, too many articles to count today, and am a frequent guest on educational podcasts. I've taught Reading, English, English Literature, Humanities, History, Social Sciences, as well as three math disciplines interspersed throughout the years.

That is why I know what I am talking about. I understand what interactive synchronous and asynchronous/ dynamic curricula looks like, how it is used, how collaboration is used, and the role of a teacher. I uunderstand what a textbook is, having edited 20 of them and having used textbooks in entirety for almost 25 years. I've seen the progression of technology as it has developed since I was in the trenches all this time. I understand the uses and possibilities of many materials. I can honestly say that a child today can literally go through school without one textbook (!) and learn more than what was ever available in 1963, 1973, or 1993, or even 2003. Can a textbook have a place? Sure, but now only as a temporary reference. Literature? Sure, the physical book is lovely, all for physical books as ancillaries and motivators, but we can still buy more of those as ebooks if we want to maximize $$. But discipline-based textbooks...not really necessary and I can make a good case for their shortcomings, which are many. Think about how everyone gets their news today. Do you wait for your morning physical newspaper to find out what's going on in the world? No.

My advice- let educators decide how to teach. That's what we do. It's just not that simple or binary..textbooks or not. There's so much open source and commercial material online that you are not aware of or even how to use it.Why not spend some time looking into it before you come up with an opinion not in your purview?

How much did you all get from Google and Microsoft to come to these conclusions? My bet is you are going to find out your entire career was wrong.

Nothing. I have multiple degrees and teach at the graduate level in my field. I think I would know what the field entails.
I hate to break it to you, but this comprises best practices in education today. Of note, if Microsoft and Google is all that you understand, there's quite a bit more to know. You are not trained and are living in the 1970s.

Best Practices = whatever they tell teachers to do at any given time

News Flash- teachers are "they." We know what to do and how to do it. What we aren't going to do is let untrained, out of touch, and uneducated people with zero experience tell us how to do our job, just like anyone, in any job, who has trained and has considerable experience in the field. This isn't a consumer driven field where the public decides how they want their product
delivered. There is a solid swath of practice and expertise here that isn't asking for your advice, nor do we require it! We aren't letting parents write curriculum and cherry pick what is to be taught in the classroom based upon their political and religious beliefs. We are happy to explain what we are doing, how we are doing it, and welcome anyone to come observe. We also welcome people to become trained in various methodologies, which includes technology in order for said people to understand how it all works. But, no, we aren't going back to 1976 because that's what you remember about education.

I'm an educator who taught in DCPS for nearly 20 years.
I have a BA, an MA, and an MAT.
I'm not telling you what or how to teach.
But I am telling you that what DCPS is doing is shortchanging students.
Stop being so defensive. Try listening. There's a lot you could be doing to improve the quality of the academic program.

Pretty sure you aren't teaching now, so, sit down.

Still teaching, but not for DCPS. And I use textbooks, trade books, short videos, some online platforms. I produce my own video lessons. Definitely not anything anybody was doing in the 70s.

What access do parents have to all that material you are using to support the school work at home? When the kid doesn't remember what was in the video and doesn't have time to rewatch the whole thing (times 6 classes) or sort through on line platforms to quickly review the confusing point, is there a book or a piece of paper to reference? I get how these things make it interesting and more dynamic for you as a teacher, but I have seen first hand how it loses the kids who cannot reinforce (or even find) at home what they were supposed to have learned at school -- unless they have a book with an index.

So you realize that books are online, right? In addition to books, all the references you would need for any subject.

I think the issue here is that people don't understand information sources now.

Yeah...why do you think a reference would have to be in a book?
If there's a textbook, the textbook would be online anyway.
Secondly, if a kid is working on, let's say..
Math, or any subject, actually, and gets stuck, or is unable to complete the assignment because, yes, he forgot what to do, how is a textbook going to help? Online practice is INTERACTIVE. The person cannot continue if he gets it wrong. So, he gets an answer wrong,and the program then walks through the problem of how to solve it, then he goes to the next one. A worksheet and book would be a wasted piece of time and a sheet unfinished and with wrong answers.

It's not about "videos."