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Organization of the Text
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Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
 | Are the main ideas accurate and logically sequenced with a hierarchy of the content
through chapter headings and sub-headings? Are main ideas explicitly stated and do they
appear in prominent places or are they buried in paragraphs or left to be inferred by the
reader? |
| Are main ideas explicitly stated and do they appear in prominent places or are they
buried in paragraphs or left to be inferred by the reader? |
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| Are there chapter titles, an index, a glossary, a table of contents? |
| Is there a causal relationship between chapter questions and the information presented,
and do these questions require students to recall details, make inferences and think
creatively? |
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|
| Do graphic aids such as webs, concept maps, tables, matrixes, flow charts, maps, graphs,
and illustrations reinforce meaning in the accompanying text? |
| Do they visually motivate learning? |
| Do the graphic aids make size relationships apparent and contribute to an attractive
overall format with effective page positions and captions? |
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| Does the writing style present a clear and exciting text that has rich language,
appropriate vocabulary and a positive tone? |
| Does the writing style involve and engage the reader in an interaction of thoughts and
ideas with the author? |
|
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Reinforcement and Motivation
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Does the text provide opportunity for the reader to practice and apply new concepts? |
| Does the text have supplementary activities designed to accommodate a broad range of
ability levels through games, puzzles, do-it-yourself activities, questions and points of
view? |
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Vocabulary
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Does the text consider the student's prior knowledge on the topic? |
| How are vocabulary words defined and are there any additional explanations or examples
to assist student comprehension? |
| Is the vocabulary too condescending or too advanced? |
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Concepts
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Regarding the concept load of the text, how many concepts and how quickly are they
presented in a chapter? |
| Are new concepts discussed in depth or only mentioned? |
| Does the text include only information that is important and relevant to developing
concepts and explaining events and phenomena? |
|
|
|
|
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Main Ideas
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Is the text organized around main ideas? |
| Do the main ideas appear in prominent places: introductions, summaries, headings and
topic sentences? |
| Is the information in the text clearly connected to the main ideas and does the content
contribute and support the development of main ideas? |
| Does the author try to avoid seductive details, which may be interesting but are
unimportant and distracting? |
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Conceptual Density
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Determine the number of new concepts introduced in each chapter and recognize that the
denser the conceptual load, the more difficult the text. Concepts need to be elaborated
and explained to the extent that they are understandable to students; a text should say
much about a few important ideas, rather than a little about many ideas. |
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|
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|
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Existing Knowledge
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Does the text define vocabulary with words and concepts familiar to your students? |
| Does the text use examples and analogies that are understandable, believable, and
relevant? |
| Is the information accurate, current, without significant omissions and does it foster
the scientific method of inquiry? |
| Does the text present the information in a way that helps students make connections to
their own lives?. |
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Style
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Are the authors of the text qualified, competent and do they write using interesting
language? |
| Do the chapters have introductions, graphic organizers, definitions in the margins,
summaries, learning objectives, titles, pointer words and phrases, lists of additional
resources, and typographical cues such as bullets to indicate a list, or numbers to
indicate a sequence? |
| Do these supplemental aids assist the reader to understand the organization and content
of a chapter? |
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Bias
| |
Ineffective |
Somewhat
Effective |
Effective |
Very
Effective |
| Is there a balance in representation between gender and ethnic origin? |
| Is there an avoidance of stereotypes and an inclusion of cultural diversity from the
communities in which the text is used? |
| Does the text accentuate positive multicultural images by including facts about the
contemporary life and heritage of minority cultures? |
| What are your biases as a teacher and do they affect your choices of texts for your
students? |
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References
http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/SCORE/promising/prtips.html
Feathers, Karen. Infotext. Toronto, Ontario: Pippin Publishing Limited, 1993.
Irwin J. And C. Davis. "Assessing Readability: The Checklist Approach." Journal
of Reading, vol. 24, no. 2, 1980.
Lapp, Diane, James Flood and Nancy Farnan. Content Area Reading and Learning
Strategies (2nd edition). Massachusetts: Simon & Schuster, 1996.
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