tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post112627305067348105..comments2024-03-13T21:26:03.011-07:00Comments on Right on the Left Coast: Views From a Conservative Teacher: TextbooksDarrenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15730642770935985796noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-1128783837515046352005-10-08T08:03:00.000-07:002005-10-08T08:03:00.000-07:00And I learned more about the magic language makes ...And I learned more about the magic language makes possible from a Norton anthology... maybe 5x7, an inch-and-a-half thick or so, with miniscule print, no pictures...<BR/><BR/>And just to reinforce my lefty bias, from a King James Bible about the same size.<BR/><BR/>And yes, Old Math is right - the kids don't look at the pictures or read the sidebars anyway. Maybe it's a hangover from the corporate packaging geniuses who would enclose a toothpick in a bubble-pack to hang on a rack...Amerlochttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17001434250939119091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-1128745929193411022005-10-07T21:32:00.000-07:002005-10-07T21:32:00.000-07:00I have a book called Academic Algebra, copyright 1...I have a book called Academic Algebra, copyright 1913, 1941. It measures 5.5 x 7.5 x 1 inch. It starts with negative numbers and algebraic expressions (pre-algebra), goes through factoring and simultaneous equations and graphs and powers and roots, and ends with logarithms (Algebra II).<BR/><BR/>There are no pictures, the few graphics used relate directly to the instruction or to a problem, and there are no factoids or "did you know's" in there. Nothing but algebra.<BR/><BR/>Amazing text. It would fit in *any* backpack or locker without difficulty. But like Old Math said, the publishers wouldn't make a mint on them....Darrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15730642770935985796noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-1128737816804210232005-10-07T19:16:00.000-07:002005-10-07T19:16:00.000-07:00One of the beauties of mathematics is how compress...One of the beauties of mathematics is how compressed it is. A few symbols can express a complex idea (c^2 = a^2 + b^2). So why is an Algebra 1 textbook two inches thick when the actual ideas could fit into a tenth of the volume?<BR/><BR/>Mostly photographs. They are there because the textbook publishers can charge $60 per book and the school districts are naïve enough to buy them. I don't necessarily blame the students; I don't think they even look at the pictures, let alone the equations hidden among all the pictures.Old Mathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12495184085749596145noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10348701.post-1128707289526614392005-10-07T10:48:00.000-07:002005-10-07T10:48:00.000-07:00Don't forget all the useless tangents. Every textb...Don't forget all the useless tangents. Every textbook I had in high school, from math to history, had to fill each chapter with little "Interesting trivia" snippets, which 99 times out of 100 were mini-biographies of women or minorities who did some tiny notable thing that tangentially related to the subject matter at hand.<BR/><BR/>My favorite was the US history textbook so large it required TWO books (and, thankfully, two years) to cover. Every single chapter had at least three quarters of a page devoted to the plight of women, blacks, Native Americans, immigrants, etc. I understand these need to be covered, but every single section boiled down to, "It sucked to be a [fill-in-the-blank] during [fill-in-the-time-period]." Did we need to read the same thing every chapter?Kimberly Lloydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17494119124005560724noreply@blogger.com