A teacher told me 'just use the textbook' and I still think about it

I was helping my nephew with his history project last fall in his school library. His teacher walked by, saw us looking at old newspaper scans online, and said 'You're overcomplicating it, just use the textbook, that's what it's for.' It stuck with me because the textbook chapter was only two pages on the whole Cold War. Finding those primary sources MADE it click for him. When did sticking only to the provided book become the right answer? What's a time you went outside the main resource and it actually helped?

2 comments

2 Comments

zara_patel5727d ago

I mean, that teacher is just plain wrong. Textbooks give you the bare bones, but real stuff makes it stick. My nephew would never have gotten the Berlin Wall from two dry pages.

keithb5126d ago

My old history teacher used to bring in actual Cold War radio clips. Honestly, that connection to real voices made the whole era click in a way the book never did. You're right, @zara_patel57, context is everything.