Overcoming Textbook Fatigue

I came to read Overcoming Textbook Fatigue with high expectations, and I was initially disappointed that a book subtitled “21st Century Tools to Revitalize Teaching and Learning” was, well, devoid of them. ReLeah Cossett Lent methodically steps through the best practices that underlie an inquiry-focused classroom. I suppose I was looking for a relationship guide on why I should break up with my textbook, and in the first few chapters I was reading about how best to get along with the textbook I have. “Creating interest in the text by walking students through the chapters before reading it” is mentioned more than once. It was just a bit disconcerting to see only occasional mentions of using a website or having take a virtual field trip.

But the foundation of Overcoming Textbook Fatigue is solid, well-researched, and engagingly written with many examples of how students can be successful in a classroom that, while not barren of textbooks, it is not mechanically driven by their use. While it is not focused on technology tools, she does reference several ways to use technology appropriately to support student learning.

I could recommend this book to a program for new teachers, as many of the practices it introduces are instructionally sound ways to engage students in their learning. Her chapter on assessment shows multiple ways to use assessment to guide instruction, and her discussion of text sets provides a very clear depiction of exactly how content area teachers can support readers of many different ability levels. The book ends with a compelling case for inquiry-based learning that relegates the text to be but one resource in a classroom, and she shows what is required for a school to make the change to such an approach that will best prepare students for a life in which they will be collaborating and developing information–not just responding to canned questions from a text.