A few weeks ago, a former student touched base to inform me that he had gone to law school but he had a rude awakening. In law school, one has to read a lot, like his reading would begin at breakfast time until the start of his classes and resume it during his off-class hours. It’s read, read and read. His regret was not having developed a reading habit in his undergrad years. I was stunned because in my classes there was always a reading list.
This feedback from my student gave me a sneaky suspicion that many college students do not read their textbooks or the reading list in their course. I know because when I ask my students some basic questions in communication science, I get a blank stare, like from what planet did that idea come from? The questions had to do with: information exchange as a zero-sum phenomenon, economies of scale, information as a necessary but not sufficient condition for change, bullet theory or hypodermic needle model, ceiling effects and two-step flow hypothesis.
Like other university professors, I update my reading list in the development communication courses that I teach every semester. I argue that a true-blue communication student should not graduate without having read the titles below:
Emile McAnany – Communications in the rural third world
Severin and Tankard – Communication theories
Adhikarya, Ronny and Posamentier, H. – Motivating farmers into action: how strategic multi- media campaigns can help
Everett Rogers – Diffusion of Innovations
Schramm and Roberts – Process and effects of mass communication
Schramm, Wilbur – Mass media and national development
Daniel Lerner – The passing of traditional society
Manoff. R. K. – Social marketing
National Cancer Institute – Pink book-Making health communication programs work
In this computer age, do college students ever read their textbooks? If they don’t, what books do they read?
How can students be motivated or coerced to read the required reading list? Any ideas? Post your comments.
35 comments
Comments feed for this article
July 20, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Paulo
I do agree that a number of college students, and even high school ones, are not fond of reading course textbooks anymore. It is because they are more drawn to using the internet for their assignments and researches for browsing for readings on the web is much faster than perusing pages in the library. Simply put, quick references to save time.
Likewise, youngsters nowadays divert their attention towards new media for entertainment and social communications, e.g. computer games, video-sharing, online socialization, etc.
I myself am not an avid reader of textbooks anymore unlike when I was in my younger years. it is because years back in my elementary and high school life, I wasn’t that much busy and loaded with lots of school work and other academic requirements. During those times, I still spend an average of one hour in our high school library everyday. I still have time reading a variety of books- novels, encyclopedia, English books, science books, language books, etc. I could even recall the times that I used to borrow 2-3 books every week, either novels to spend my weekend hours on or course textbooks to do some assignments and advance readings.
But as a college student, especially now that I’m a senior student, I find it hard inserting quality time grabbing any book and read it while lying on my bed or sitting at the table. It is because I’m preoccupied with the major requirements that I and my co-majors (Journ Fillers as we call our group) need to meet. I don’t know if they too read but in my case I don’t read that much now. Instead of spending much time on reading books, I often spend more of my vacant hours sleeping to pay for my sleep debt because of the overnights we have. I do actually find my peace of mind, simple pleasure and contentment in sleeping. Luckily I was able to finish two books-not textbooks- by Dan Brown (The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons) during the summer break and at the onset of the classes. For the meantime, I returned the book entitled The Alexandria Link to its owner because I still can’t find ample time reading it. The other novel that I borrowed (Sophie’s World) still rests untouched in my room, with only 3 chapters read. Also, I haven’t finished reading the two journalism books that I still have at home.
Also, I spend more of my vacant time doing my writing assignments, surf the web for assignments and reading references, chat with my friends and ask them how their studies are going, or plan with my co-majors about our outputs rather than going to the library and read.
It’s not that I’m setting aside the importance of reading books, textbooks in this case. It is still very important. Books can’t just be taken for granted. Like what I said, I do read, but seldom. I do not devote too much time comprehending on reading materials.
I know that the problem is within me. I can’t say that I’m a victim of the situation of being a busy senior student due to loads of schoolwork because many would say that this kind of reason is foolish. My problem is time management. I have a problem in setting my priorities and what-to-do’s. Also, my dedication in reading books at present fired out. I’m still working on ways to ignite and flare it up again.
But I’m looking forward and striving towards reading again to further my vocabulary and speaking skills. I’m open for suggestions as to what I should do to bring the reading passion back home again.
July 20, 2008 at 4:34 pm
Monina Escalada
Paulo, so your other course requirements get in the way. But there are classic books in communication (see list in this post) that cannot be downloaded from the Internet. Communication students must read those books or remain in the dark forever. How sad.
July 21, 2008 at 5:40 am
yousillygoose
I’m not too far away from my college days so I’ll chime in as well. I graduated just about six months ago as an English major. In the first year, from what I saw at my school, students were generally extremely motivated about their studies, but from that point on, motivation really begins to dwindle. Students learn quickly that it is really not a matter of how much you read but how smartly you read. The key is not to read every single word but to read in a way that you gather the key points of the opinions being expressed. It would have been wonderful if we had the time to pour over all the literature our professors provided, and there definitely were reading materials that I look back on now and would like to read further, but during college it really is difficult to devote this much time to every course and expect to do well.
My university had many classes requiring 200+ pages of reading weekly, and at that point the sheer volume of reading became daunting certainly, so you have a portion of students who would simply not read, and rely on various short-cut methods made popular by the Internet era (ie Spark Notes for literature, or various other more slightly immoral methods, such as taking notes from a friend who took the class previously). It is truly a shame. But at my school I felt there was always the realization that we were paying for these courses, and it was absolutely worth our while to at least give the course materials some effort.
Of course I don’t mean to label all college students as lazy either – there is also the very highly motivated bunch who make it a priority to utilize every possible resource at their disposal to succeed. The professor’s role in the end might be to encourage students who are already very motivated, and allow the other students to see the work of their peers, and in seeing their effort, follow by example.
But, if you really have to get your students to do the reading – there’s always reading quizzes! Our professors generally didn’t go this route, and I never felt that they were the best measure of our new knowledge on the topic anyway – too specific questions usually. But you might try short answer quizzes and tests which require the student to have enough of a good handle and appreciation of the material to write short responses to questions. These are generally more popular among students, and they show the professor that their students are following along the coursework and making it their priority.
Cheers!
July 21, 2008 at 5:57 am
Monina Escalada
Yousillygoose, thanks for your your insightful comment and the tip about giving students short answer quizzes.
July 21, 2008 at 1:48 pm
Eve Castino-Quilas
Hello Ma’am Moni,
The question that you posted here brought me back to my college days when i have to borrow almost all the books in the library and work on my assignments at the dorm. Soon enough i exhausted the space in my library card on the sophomore year and had to get a new one.. Bookworm as i am, i’ve read not only those textbooks that you have listed here but all the other books that i got interested as well.
At present though, i make my research in the internet most of the time since i now sit in front of the computer almost all day long. I only read books and other reading materials during weekends. I guess many of the college students at present may have also relied on the internet most of the time.
So for them to really dig into the required textbooks, i guess its still effective to give them some writing assignments and advise them to research the answers on those textbooks. Just like what you did to us in our DevCom121 class.
Happy teaching:)
July 21, 2008 at 5:22 pm
nelfa
Whether we like it or not, some students rarely find interest in textbooks. I too had my share of blank stares when I taught Soc Sci 15 for two years. Psychology has plenty of ways to develop commendable reading habits among students. But when you’re mad, frustrated and lacked the time to tailor positive conditioning strategies you tend to be coercive and that’s what I did most of the time. I introduced the 10-item-attendance-quiz strategy to my class. Before classes begun, I gave them a quiz based on a reading assignment which counted for their attendance. If they got zero in the quiz, they were marked absent for that day. And I didn’t give easy quizzes most of the time so, the probability of getting absent by not doing their assigned readings were high. To soften the method, their accumulated attendance test scores were added to their dismal major exam scores.
Sometimes I told them very interesting stories and let them watch a film that belonged to a historical time frame we were about to tackle to whet their appetite to know more from that period, and that was when I introduced the reading assignment. To make sure that they really read, I demanded that they keep a journal for the subject and write their meeting by meeting introspections based on their readings and on our discussions, a journal which I checked regularly. Hardly common for a Philippine History and Constitution subject but I required it so that students did not have a reason to miss their readings. I also asked them to write reaction papers from time to time. I gave few questions that ask for comprehensive answers in the exams. Like, what event would you like to strike out from our history, what was in it and for what reasons would you like it changed. So, if you just scanned the book you’ll fail. At the end of the semester they had to submit a time line of the important events in our history.
I could only imagine how my classes were like if there was ample space to dodge from readings. I had the feeling that with the kind of tasks I demanded from my students, I did not end up popular, but what they gleaned from their readings might just make them popular among their peers.
Teaching, like parenting, is a time for invention and creativity. Moreover, to catch attention, one needs to catch up with fun learning activities but, at the same time, careful not to allow learning to get lost in the idea of fun.
July 22, 2008 at 5:42 pm
Monina Escalada
Eve, thanks for sharing. You exhausted the space on your borrower’s card? No wonder you graduated magna cum laude. I’m glad to have been part of your training and … success.
Nelfa, you were truly creative when you taught Soc. Sci. 15. The range of teaching strategies you employed is quite impressive. I will never come close to your tactics. I wish there were more quality teachers like you. It would have been a privilege to be in your class.
July 22, 2008 at 9:11 pm
raquel serohijos
This was my problem before; students do not read textbook even if there are quizzes related to their readings.
July 23, 2008 at 1:04 am
marjurhy
For the trend today, i don’t think children or young people will indulge more in reading their textbooks. Having a technology like computer and internet, they can easily get information whatever they like, anytime, anywhere. That’s what i have observe with my siblings. They usually refer their assignments on the net and not on their textbooks. But in my case, it isn’t a good idea (being net-dependent). For me, books are still the best source. Aside from its tangibility, it is also reliable. For the question if college students still read textbooks, i think yes, as long as it is required. College students still read (though mostly prefer novels). I think it’s a matter of attitude–being a diligent student.
July 23, 2008 at 9:50 pm
gingging
Sorry, I wasn’t able to finish my previous comment; I had to leave because of lab work. Anyway, I think ATTITUDE and TIME MANAGMENT are very important. College students say they don’t have the time to read. And I always remind them that there’s no such thing as “No Time” because we are all given the same time of 24 hours in a day (no one is given more or less); it is up for us to divide it in our own productive ways. Sad to say, though, that reading textbook is always on the bottom of the list because of computers (internet), cellphones and other more enjoyable gadgets. So, instructors play a key role in encouraging students to read their textbooks. Giving quizzes/exams based on what they read is very important especially in lecture classes with more than a 100 students where recitation or one-on-one interaction/discussion is less likely to happen. Instructors/professors should have the skill to motivate their students to read course textbooks and not just rely on what is being accessed on the web.
July 24, 2008 at 10:05 am
Jimboy
Student life is a medley of activities. Activities that often compete with each other with students’ ultimate purpose – learning (and one cannot get away with reading textbooks).
Students may look for unlimited alibis why they do not read the assigned topics in the textbooks. BUT I think accessibility of these reading materials is one of the alibis students make. (1) The geographical location (accessibility) of our library at VSU (2) The difficulty of locating these textbooks in the library and librarians and student assistants are not that helpful in pointing to students where the textbooks are (3) When students opt to find it in the Department’s Library, fewer and the not-so-well organized books are the usual thing students encounter. As a result, students find it less interesting to pursue their reading.
But as the famous Filipino adage go – “Pag may gusto, maraming paraan. Pag ayaw, maraming dahilan.”
LOL
Just a contribution,
Jimboy
July 24, 2008 at 11:22 am
Le Anh Tuan
It is interesting that you raise a question that taps the common situation. I came across some friends in Australia who are struggling with reading textbooks, especially when they have many assignments that need to be done at the same time.
I believe that text books are extremely important in the sense that they are perused by professors before they are recommended as textbooks for students’ study. Knowledge from textbooks also reflect the focus of the body of knowledge that professors wish to draw students’ attention to, especially for students to fulfill their assignments which reflect their acquisition of the subject matters.
The growing knowledge base on the Internet is a great source of information for students, both in terms of its diversity and its convenience in offering the type of information that students wish to search. However, information may not be organized in a form that meets students’ need. Some may not be peer reviewed. Therefore textbooks, as a classical means of knowledge repository, continued to play an important role (despite of the fast growth of e-versions of textbooks).
The problem that we encountered here is the limited availability of textbooks (per title) in the library, especially 2-day loan textbooks would be challenging when all students need them at the same time. When I search material in the library in my school, I sometimes came across the scanned versions of the book, usually in the form of one, or two chapters of a text books. These scanned versions of the textbooks could be available to all students at the same time, but they are subject to copyright limitation and are not scanned in full version. Nevertheless, they are still alternative ways where access to limited textbook by students could be improved.
Textbooks are reliable source of information where citations can be made and the sources where students knowledge could be shaped. If there is a strong link between textbooks and how the knowledge could be brought into assignments, or projects, I would think readers will love perusing them.
July 24, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Efren B. Saz
Dear Moni,
I think this topic is just a continuation of our old conversation about reading. My suspicion is, in general, students do not read textbooks. This was basically our rationale for producing a complete handout for our General Sociology course. We noted several negatives even before doing this. One, students wont bother to go to the library anymore. Two, they will be used to the summarized, bulletized form which deprives them of the richness of the full article/chapter/book. Three, this reinforces their want for shortcuts. Now this does not mean that they prefer the handouts. As we learned in the other other discussion we had about class materials, students also do not read them unless compelled by an exam. So my suspicion is, the whole subculture of reading whether books–textbooks, general interest books, novels, etc. and other materials has been lost specially by a lot of our young generation. It will be limited to the so-called intelligentsia.
As teachers, we expect our students specially those who are pursuing specific fields to do the classics in the field like those you listed for students of communication. This is supposed to be the case. Unfortunately this is not happening. That’s why many, even good, latin honors bearers and PhD holders turn out to be still “hilaw” in their field because the mark of the quintessential scholar is the mastery of the classics. Frankly, in my field, some of the classics like Marx are hard to decipher and for the rest, I actually skimmed only the very surface.
For those who do not intend to proceed to advanced studies, the temptation is really just to pick. So why read the whole book or the whole chapter? Its funny that in some subjects, one could really get away with “bullshit”–generalized discussions on certain topics in examination questions even without reading anything in particular. For example, in my course, we ask the question under the topic “Socialization”: There is a saying, “Birds of the same feather flock together.” what does this mean sociologically? Anyone could do this topic without reading anything on socialization probably if he is smart. If the question is like: In the X’s article (assigned reading no.__), he asserts that … Contrast this with Y’s position as stated in chapter two of his book (assigned reading no. __). At which point(s) do they agree? disagree? what is your personal opinion? In this question, only the last part is open to BS. The earlier parts require reading. But then again, many of us teachers would rather prefer the objective type questions like our students because they’re easier to score. Nobody wants to get a cardiac arrest after reading only three student essays.
July 24, 2008 at 1:43 pm
Monina Escalada
Marjurhy, I’m glad to hear that a young coed like you still prefers to read textbooks. It is no surprise that you’ve gone places …. attended a UN conference in New York in December 2007 as the lone NAFC rep for the youth sector, represented NAFC meetings in Davao and who knows about the many other places you’ve represented your country. Gingging, perhaps quizzes will get students to read their course textbooks but only if the teacher is as systematic and transparent as you in recording and computing student progress; Randy speaks highly of the most systematic way you’ve recorded their scores. Jimboy, you’re right about lack of easy access and unpleasantness in dealing with grouchy library staff as a deterrent to borrowing books in the library. But if the books are on the teacher’s shelves, what could be other excuses? Tuan, it’s interesting that the same situation prevails in Australia; in Vietnam do students read their textbooks?
Now Efren, I must agree with you too. I am guilty of spoon-feeding my students. Since I do a bit of traveling, I decided to give each student a free CD containing the PDF files of course handouts and PowerPoint presentations. This was done in the hope that there would be no excuses given for not reading the course references. Some of the PDFs were books such as the Pink Book of the U.S. National Cancer Institute. But to my utter disappointment, there seems to be no indication that many of them read what’s in the CD. Also, they skip class more frequently now, thinking perhaps that everything that will appear in the exam will be in the CD anyway. They will be in for the biggest surprise this semester. What will be in the exam will be problem-solving and application of what was discussed in class which was based on the readings. Without the readings, it is difficult to coast along and give a generic response since the givens will be specific to a particular project, initiative, product or problem. I hope that this comment will reach my students and forewarn them about the perils to come. By the way, besides a free CD, I also gave my students a no-battery flashlight each so they won’t walk in the dark. I’ve realized that dole-outs do not encourage self-reliance. So no more freebies as the returns are dismal.
July 24, 2008 at 4:25 pm
Efren B. Saz
Moni,
I think what you’re doing is great. Its just really responding to a need (which you thought they felt). Now suppose we really insist that they read and they don’t and three quarters of the class get reds at the end of the semester. Then they will say you’re being hard on them; that you’re requiring them more than the “normal” for undergrads. Worse, some would say you don’t know how to teach. And frankly, you will arouse the curiousity of some admin people. All because you wanted your students to read their textbooks. Is there any escape from this rut?
July 24, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Monina Escalada
Efren, I’m glad you raised that point, which eventually should be the topic for the next post. Haven’t you heard that a few grumbling students have raised me to the hall of fame of terror teachers? Just because you expect them to read and perform their part of the learning contract. Gosh, if they only knew what a terror teacher is. That brings back pleasant memories of my undergrad years, about which I have posted comments on “How do you deal with student apathy”.
August 5, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Neil Anthony
While I was reading some books from the university library, I accidentally peeked at the library card of the girl beside me and I’ve found out that she is indeed a bookworm. But, at the back of my mind I begun to think if the books she borrowed are textbooks or romantic and suspense novels which are easily accessed at the university library.Anyway, the good thing there is she reads books. But as we all know, reading textbooks is far more important especially that we all need to be well-informed with the subject matters of the course we’re taking up.
With the advent of computers and the Internet, this problem targeting students may be exacerbated. Some of the students today rely more on ICTs to acquire relevant information regarding a subject matter. This affects the book reading habits of some students.
With regard to knowing the “push factor” to let students read textbooks, letting them make a book review is a great help. In our case, we were required by our professor to read and come up with a book review. In my case, this is more effective. When I was in 2nd year college level, I easily find time to read some textbooks but during the 3rd year level, I only read few. Now, that our prof coerced us to make a book review, for sure we will read and read more books.
August 5, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Cata Hermosilla
It is true that students of this generation are not fond of reading textbooks anymore. Why? maybe because of the existence of other information media that can complement what a student like me, needs/wants to know/learn. As a student, I myself , sometimes feel lazy to peruse something, may it be a textbook, a novel, or an encyclopedia. Also, in my case, when we have research and assignments in our subjects (especially in our majors), instead of heading to the library, I go to computer stations/Internet cafés, and there do my research. My reasons why I prefer accessing info from the Net rather than from books in the library are the following: Searching for info in the Web is hassle-free; a great volume of information are available in the Internet, whereas only limited info/data are found in the Library (particularly in VSU library); searching is not that time consuming if done in the Net, leaving enough time for you to carry out other tasks.
If we stretch back to the time where computers, Internet, etc., still did not exist, people were compelled to read, read, read textbooks and other print materials. In fact, according to one of my DLABS professors in VSU, unlike at present, the library during their time was busy and was occupied with many students. This observation of his, hinted that there really is a serious decrease in the number of students who go to the library to borrow books or read.
Perhaps Maam, it is a challenge for uUniversity professors and instructors to indulge their students in reading. Even though it’s true that it is the students concession whether to read or not, a student’s poor performance, however, is still his/her mentor’s concern, if I’m not mistaken. So how can we motivate students to read? Or force them to read for their own sake? In our case, our professor dangled a carrot hard to refuse. Instead of a long exam, she asked us to do a book review of Everett Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations and Ronny Adhikarya’s Motivating Farmers for Action. This could be a great help for us. Thanks Maam!
August 14, 2008 at 1:19 pm
jerwin
I was about to give my comment on the new post about “What health websites to trust”, when I decided to read first the all the comments on “How an agricultural innovation can take off?”. While reading on paulo, cata and neil’s comments i was reminded about this post on reading textbooks, because i observed how informative, reliable, and believable their respective comments were. I could say it, because of the citations they made while writing their comments. I really found their comments comprehensive.
My realization was that, really I need to read books or even readings from the Internet so that when I’m asked to write I’m confident that the readers would get something from my work. THE FLESH! I also remembered the line Whoopee Goldberg delivered in the movie, Sister Act 2, when she said that “if you wake up in the morning and the first thing you want to do is write then you are a writer, and if you want to sing then you are a singer”. But I don’t think this would apply to reading, because for me reading is something that everyone should cultivate within themselves. It is a habit that everyone should develop. A passion that you should possess. So right now ma’am I’m still browsing the health websites you provided so that I can give insights (maybe not the best) but the important thing is that an insight which demanded me to read so that I may practice analyzing things and giving intellectual points of view. (May I finish reading and browsing the sites not until a new post is posted ^_^) Have a good day Ma’am!
August 19, 2008 at 7:14 pm
jedcortes
Not that I have just started getting real with my course, but I do forget—most of the time—to read textbooks. And for the past few minutes that I was staring blankly at the computer screen, here is a point, based on my personal experience, that I might be able to drive out why (I chose only one, since other points, I believe, have been driven out in the other comments):
The teacher usually fails to give enough emphasis on reading—especially at the start of the semester. They mention it, yes, but I’m more on the emphasis thing. Here’s the usual scenario: the teacher meets and greets the class, gets to know the students, and distributes course outlines to each one. The teacher, though he or she may say something about the outline, may not give ample motivation to the class on reading the references (cited at the end!).
I am a more of a visual learner (though my score on aural is high too) and here’s what would make me want to take hold of the textbooks (and read them):
—
1) Seeing the teacher bringing the textbook(s) on the first meeting and showing them to the class. This is my first point as a visual learner.
2) Hearing the teacher tell the class to REALLY read the textbooks and how to buy or borrow them.
3) Hearing the teacher say that he/she has already read them and benefited well from them.
4)Being reminded from time to time, about the textbooks, the first three points being done once in a while throughout the span of the semester.
—
Well, I do know however that it is NOT only the teacher who makes or breaks the student’s appetite to read, but a loving reminder from the mentor (especially those a student admires and looks up) is very helpful.
August 19, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Monina Escalada
Jed, thanks for the four points that a teacher could apply to get students to read. In a class I’m teaching this semester, the students hardly read their books or even the newspapers. For their content analysis projects, I let them choose their topics. But the topics they wrote were so sophomoric and did not reflect an awareness or interest in current issues. I felt so remiss as a teacher so I changed their content analysis topics. The students will be in for a big surprise. In lieu of their superficial topics , I listed: the current MILF problemn, rice crisis, the MERALCO-GSIS case, Tibet issue in China, revival of Cha-Cha to allow a federalism system of government, Court of Appeals’ lapses in the handling of the MERALCO-GSIS case, health and herbal commercials on primetime TV, celebrity endorsements of food and health supplements on TV, and alcohol ads on TV.
I hope that this will get my students started on reading not just textbooks but newspapers as well.
August 29, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Jojo Agot
I have a few points to share:
1. When I was in high school, our library was where teachers use to hang out. We could not stay there for long because we get this feeling that we were eavesdropping in their personal conversations.
2. We were asked to leave our shoes/slippers outside so the library wouldn’t “get dirty.” That sent us a wrong message that the library wasn’t for students.
3. We were not told how to use the library. Sure we had a subject where we talk about card catalogues and all but we were not able to do it hands on.
4. I brought all these misconceptions with me to college. That means that I was not a library person in my college years. I merely went to the library to get by with my lessons, not to really learn. I only developed the love of reading after graduation.
5. In college, many required readings are available in the reserved section only. Worse, some books are only available in the professor’s personal library and accessibility depends entirely on your guts to borrow. The fact that some professors are rumored to be ‘terror” make this all the more complicated.
6. I did read a lot in college when I was in the process of writing my thesis. That was the only time when I understood much of our lessons in the previous years.
In my opinion, the problem about students not reading books probably runs deeper than simple laziness. Maybe they just don’t know any better, maybe nobody told them it’s ok to borrow books from Prof. So and so, or maybe, like me, they thought that the library is a teacher’s hang out. It’s a pretty dumb idea to think of libraries that way but nobody told me otherwise so I believed it for almost a decade.
August 29, 2008 at 4:37 pm
Monina Escalada
Jojo, interesting experience. I agree with you that teachers often use the library as their hang-out place. When I was in high school, the wooden floor of our library was so shiny that it intimidated us from entering and pushing the chairs. We literally had to tiptoe when we entered the library. I’m glad that you developed a love for reading before it was too late.
Many of my college students now hardly ever read any of the required readings or even the newspaper so I notice a lack of depth and ignorance of current issues. As a teacher, it makes me sad indeed.
September 6, 2008 at 3:34 pm
gabriella marie
Good day maam!
I believe that only few of college students read textbooks especially nowadays, because there are other alternatives in which students can get easy access. Textbooks are usually found in libraries while access to computers (internet) can be everywhere: home, school, internet shops, etc.
I also think that most of the students whether elementary, high school or college, prefer to surf the net when doing research or other school-related projects because there are also other “things” that you can do such as visiting friendster, youtube, etc. As they say, it is like “hitting 2 birds with 1 stone”.
But for me, i do read textbooks especially when our teachers want us to, i mean, if there is a particular topic that s/he wants us to read and study on, then for me, i consider it as a must to read textbooks. But when s/he just wants us to research on something without giving an emphasis on reading textbooks, then i prefer using the internet. It is because internet cafes or personal computers for me are more accessible than textbooks in the library though i know that readings or blogs on the internet may not be that reliable.
I do read novels, but i am not that fond on reading textbooks.
September 6, 2008 at 7:57 pm
jovelyn
The internet maybe offering a huge amount of information and it maybe the latest trend today, if you ask me if college students still read textbooks, I would absolutely say yes. As a matter of fact, I am convinced that it is the most effective way to acquire knowledge. Most students not only in college learned successfully from lecture, note-taking, writing, and reading. That’s the classroom tradition in higher education. We learned successfully in those ways.
Sure, the importance of internet cannot be underestimated. It is the virtual trove of information nowadays. Any kind of information on any topic under the sun is available on internet. I could tell, everyone is hooked with it. With just a click of the mouse, students can search for a wide range of information in all aspects; news, fashion, science, you name it. But despite the information we can get into the internet, I certainly do think that such information could be found as well not only in textbooks but all reading materials produced. It is even more reliable source compared to the internet. Besides, textbook has exactly what your teacher expects you to know. If something you found on the web is different from what is in the textbook, your teacher expects you to follow from your textbook.
To be honest, I am not fond of reading textbooks for I prefer reading magazines and novels. But in a situation wherein I have to study my lessons, I choose to read textbooks. I could easily retain it on my mind rather on pc. Whenever I study my lessons in the computer, my mind sometimes refuses to cooperate to when I try to concentrate on it. Many a time have I vainly attempted to read particular paragraphs over and over again. But it doesn’t mean that it did not happen when I read textbooks. It just that oftentimes in computer, my mind goes off in a whirl and I find myself logging on friendster or youtube perhaps. And before I can strengthen my will and force to continue reading, my wayward thoughts flit to somewhere else. All sorts of irrelevant things come to my mind except what I am trying to study.
Nevertheless, the use of internet as a study tool is very advantageous. It is often easier to use educational web sites than textbooks. For example, very young children who cannot read can still learn by looking at pictures and images that resemble to real world in which they live. Even college students could easily retain information with images. Also, textbooks are limited to the information on their pages whereas educational web sites can link to an infinite number of other educational sites to elaborate in as much detail as necessary particular points or to offer supplemental information on related points. With textbooks, teachers may only assign reading from set pages, but with the Internet they can recommend several sites and can do so through a mass e-mail to their students or by posting assignments on a personal, universally accessible site. Lastly, every PC is like an entire library whereas every textbook is only one book. In a textbook, students can jump from page to page but on-line they can jump from book to book. To that, there is no doubt why the number of students going to the library is decreasing. And I admit that these days, I barely gone to the library and have a preference to take my research on the interne t instead.
For me, it really is up to the professors on how they teach their students whether they prefer to let them rely on internet or read their textbooks. If they instruct us to read a textbook they require to, why not right? All we need is motivation…
September 7, 2008 at 10:48 am
robel june
“A textbook is a manual of instruction or a standard book in any branch of study. They are produced according to the demand of educational institutions. Although most textbooks are only published in printed format, many are now available as online electronic –books, e-books and increasingly in scanned format in p2p networks.” – (wikipedia.com).
As we all know reading is very important and one of the tools in making a brighter future. But in this,so-called “COMPUTER AGE”, most of the students prefer surfing the internet to reading textbooks because almost of the information in the whole world can be found by typing the keyword in the different search engines. But for me, internet is not that reliable unlike the textbooks. Because mostly of the information in the internet can be edited. Also, I can say that some of the information we get in the internet are from the textbooks.
I prefer to get information from the textbooks but if I’m in a rush that’s the time I run to the internet.
~Maam, what can you say about this quotation made by Albert Einstein:
“It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity. “
September 7, 2008 at 12:50 pm
renelle joy
Even with the advent of technology, some students would prefer and still do read textbooks nowadays. Though it is true that only a number of college students can be seen in the library, the thing is that not all of us have access to the internet and not all students have PC’s so there’s no other choice but to take a walk and go visit the library specially when asked by the teachers and when given some assignments. I do admit that I’m not particularly fond of reading textbooks. I only read when the teacher says so and that’s the problem of most students these days. We read because we have to.
But I should say that reading textbooks really help a lot. It is even way much easier (in some ways) than browsing the net and having to go through that information overload and obtain info’s that may not be reliable.
As what I’ve experienced, whenever asked to do assignments, I’d spend money and hours facing the computer, browsing through as many websites until I get the information that i want or need, if I do get any. And at times it pays to have patience in order for me to have the exact information I’m looking for. Unlike going to the library and just look for the book that the teacher has recommended, there, with just a few flips of the pages, I can find the precise info’s that is required. Convenient, isn’t it?…
Anyway it’s the student’s prerogative whether to rely on the net or go ta a library or any other sources, as long as s/he reads. But the sad thing is that at present, students who care to read textbooks emphatically are declining. Leaving most students uninformed and unaware of certain issues…
It is the environment or maybe the teacher’s driving force or mainly the student’s own will that greatly affects a student’s willingness to read… “,
September 7, 2008 at 3:27 pm
naji juntilla
As what I have observed only few students would spend time reading textbooks in the library or even at home. Mostly they prefer to search it in the internet whatever research, projects or assignments they need to comply.
Why?
Because they think that researching in libraries is a very tedious thing to do and it will require more time than surfing the internet.
That is the major problem of teachers today. Students forgot that books are a lot more reliable than internet. They are hook-up by the convenience that it gives them, the result-books in the libraries are left untouched and it seems only the termites and the cobwebs appreciates their value.
We need to realize that these books that are being dumped in the library came from the tuition fees that we are paying in the school if we don’t read and use these books it’s not the school’s loss, it’s ours. Why? The money that were allotted to those books will be useless because of the mere fact that we are not using it and not only that we should have gain knowledge and information that are accurate and reliable.
September 7, 2008 at 5:14 pm
cha
i think it’s important that you have built a reading habit since tender age. personally, i come to love books during my early years in elementary with the famous nancy drew series. out of the lack for more books , i turned my attention to textbooks which eventually became a habit. these days, however, with the advent of technology, college students fail to appreciate the beauty of textbooks, including I. such happening isn’t something to be escaped since internet and the likes are quite interesting than burying yourself in textbooks nowadays. if not, then, students turn to books like the “Harry Potter series, or books from Sidney Sheldon, J0hn Grisham, James Patterson and the likes.
maybe it would be helpful if teachers do ask their students to do research by using textbooks alone. like what we did for our 124 class, we came across these textbooks we never thought exist. it is quite time-consuming since a book doesn’t contain every detail you need but it did also encourage us to read more and spend further of our time in the library.
September 7, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Jed Priam
I do agree on Naji’s observation. It is true! Most of the students these days prefer surfing the net in doing assignments, projects and research works than going to the library searching for textbooks. As a matter of fact, you can see many students in any internet café’s than in the library.
Honestly, I am one of those students. I only read textbooks if it is a necessity or if a teacher told me to do so. It is actually time consuming, tedious and incredibly mind-numbing searching and reading books in the library than doing it in the net, right? By just a click on my computer, I can get any information that I call for. I can even listen to my favorite songs while doing research works.
See? No wonder why students like me choose the net than reading textbooks.
September 29, 2008 at 7:39 pm
ROY
For me, books are still the most reliable source of correct information, behind the fact that the net and others are there I still love books and will always be. Hehehe
October 1, 2008 at 1:24 am
Luisa
I was surfing the net to find sources about Philippine history simplified for our students in the elementary level. I landed in this site. I hope you won’t mind me butting in.
I believe that teaching history should not only focus on discussion by the teacher, it is a story that needs to be read and experienced. So, to encourage our elementary students to read history and Science, we have introduced the Cornell Method of note taking prior to discussion and experiential activity. However, our students are having difficulty reading history texts; their readability is not approrpriate for age and reading skills of students. If kids are not trained early to spend time reading, all the more difficult for them to pick this habit when they are in college.
I have noticed that kids love stories; they love to read as they enjoyed perusing books when in bookstores or during fairs. But, they enjoy fiction books more than non-fiction.
so, anyone who wants to help writing Philippine history in the elementary level?
October 1, 2008 at 8:51 am
Monina Escalada
Luisa, thanks for sharing your thoughts about textbooks and how we can encourage students to read. May I feature your comment in my next post to draw attention to the sad state of our textbooks? Alternatively, could you describe the Cornell Method of note taking as it is quite relevant to our student readers.
October 2, 2008 at 12:24 am
Rusty Shackleford, Certified Flight Instructor
Frankly, I think it as simple as this.
Physical textbooks are out of date. They are useless relics of the past. Textbooks, in my view, represent: Failing censorship on information. Who can afford them? Who uses them? The elite. Its a simple fact that if you lack the resources to acquire them, you are plum out of luck. The system is designed to keep us down.
You keep saying “in this age of computers”.
Every aspect of the modern computer’s GUI (Graphical User Interface, invented in 1971) is text oriented! Are you serious? Are you that condescending and stuck in the so-called golden age? Do you realize this? Textbooks are the ultimate form of censorship.
Ebooks are the way to go. And they should be free. If not, should be dirt cheap (under 10 dollars) if not you just create a vacuum that WILL be filled by “piracy”. (P2P file sharing)
BTW, I will never require textbooks for my students. Stricktly hands on. When they take the FAA written? I tell them the answers. Why should young professionals waste their time?
May 19, 2009 at 7:20 am
What the tariff on imported books means to teachers and students «
[...] is the book acquisition scenario in your university? Do your college students ever read books? If they don’t, then the new taxes on imported books is a non-issue to [...]