A PROPOSED CHECKLIST FOR EVALUATING AND LEVELING READING TEXTBOOKS
Long Beach City College Reading Department, Spring 2014
Determining a course level for reading textbooks is a process both deliberate and intuitive,
much of it similar to how we would teach our students to pre-reread a textbook, but
influenced most heavily by our own experience. To begin . . .
 Activate your prior knowledge of the students’ capabilities and your experience in LBCC
reading courses.
 Place (attached) current course outlines nearby to scan for specific requirements.
 Adopt a mindset of discerning the author’s or authors’ underlying assumptions of the nature of reading and how it should be taught.
 Use an Instructor’s Annotated Edition.
Note the following features:
 Does the majority of the book emphsize reading strategies and skills, not, for example,
study skills? That is, does a substantial portion of the text focus on general/specific,
main idea/supporting details, claim/evidence? Most textbooks do have areas we do not
intend to teach or know that we don’t have time to teach, so the bulk of the text should
pertain to comprehension that is appropriate to a particular level. Emailing the
publisher’s rep. about the option of creating a version with personalized chapters can be
valuable, and there is usually a quick answer. Preferably, the book will stand on its own.
Again, scan the course outlines for the right match.
 Consider carefully introductory material written directly to instructors, as well as the
preface addressing students, since here will be summaries of the author’s/authors’ philosophy, approach, and purposes.
 Are the explanations of a skill or strategy clear? accurate? a suitable tone? Can students read and understand these explanations on their own?
 Are there enough practice exercises? Of those, are there enough exercises that require
the student to demonstrate mastery and higher-level thinking (not all multiple choice)?
Conversely, are there a lot of practice exercises that you or others are unlikely to use?
 Are there longer readings on which to apply several strategies?
 Short or long, is the tone of the readings positive or negative? Is there VARIETY and
potential INTEREST in the content? Will the readings’ topics build prior knowledge our
students need?
 Does the text have a companion website or other student-support features?
 Does the publisher offer PowerPoint slides, online test banks, and other instructorsupport features? Are directions to instructors supportive or dogmatic?
spring 2014
All of the above can be done alone or collaboratively, but, ultimately, we want to answer
the questions, “Are the passages written at an appropriate level for the course?”
“Is this book written in a manner consistent with the philosophy of balance?”
These questions are best answered in conversation with other experienced
LBCC instructors. The publisher may have suggested a level, but it will not necessarily
correspond with ours. Numerous readability formulas are available and can be valuable,
but once people see a number, it tends to dominate the decision. The synergy of
instructors’ collective experience should be the controlling influence in the final course-level
determination.
To experiment with this method of evaluation, we decided that the book should be checked
by at least four full-time reading faculty members. Therefore, check it, make your recommendation, and move it forward. The last person can then bring it to a department
meeting with the findings.
NAME
SUGGESTED
LEVEL
COMMENTS
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SPRING 2014
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