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[Phys-L] Instructional resources (Was: Indicators of quality teaching)



On 06/21/2013 12:59 PM, Anthony Lapinski wrote:

Books are terrible. Who writes these things?

I offer a few observations on this:

1. Science books typically start when a proto-author writes something
for their students. The work is tailored to the authors students: the
background they have and want information the author wants to convey.

2. Authors often write because they have a novel way of presenting
information. They often don't like the existing method of presenting
information.

3. When new author(s) join a book (like a first-year textbook), #2 is
compounded because the new author(s) tweak here and there, which
affects the continuity of the overall book. Over time without a
supervising author or editor, the book becomes fragmented conceptually
and in presentation style.

4. Teachers have a preconceived 'best-way' to present something. Often
these methods are how they learned when they themselves were a
student.

5. Teachers may not understand what knowledge the students have, and
what they do not have.

6. Getting feedback from practicing teachers to improve an developing
instructional resource is like reanimating the dead! [**Hint!**]

Take care,
Dr. Roy Jensen
(==========)-----------------------------------------¤
Faculty Lecturer, Chemistry
E5-33A, University of Alberta
780.248.1808