Economics
Core Code Alignment
Social Studies
Economics
09030000020: Economics (9-12)
Economics
09030000020: Economics (9-12)
Recommendation
Recommended Limited
Evaluation
The book would work well for an introductory course in economics, but would not be appropriate for Honors or Advanced Placement work. It explains basic economic concepts in clear language, but does not implement a lot of graphs or equations. The book, and the online materials that accompany it, facilitate critical thinking about economics in students' lives. Overall, I would give this textbook the evaluation grade of B - Recommended Limited: this text would be very ideal for online classes and distant learning....I dont see its usefulness for an AP class but as intro Economics or personal finance flipped classroom this would be most ideal.
Educators Using These Materials
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Rubric : Generic
Content
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alignment | The content of this resource aligns with appropriate grade-level core standards and is current, well-researched and referenced from reliable sources. | The content of this resource aligns with most grade-level core standards but will need supplementary materials to ensure coverage of all the objectives for this course. | The content of this resource aligns with a few grade-level core standards for a portion of the course. | The content of this resource does not align with standards and objectives for this course. | ||
| This material would align well with an introductory course in economics and could be ideal for an AP course for either Macroeconomics or Microeconomics. However, it does omit several topics that would be needed for preparation for the AP exams. There is also a chapter on personal finance which is not very relevant for an AP course. | ||||||
| Scaffolding | Scaffolding supports for these materials are complex and challenging, engage learners from various skill levels, assist all students in enhancing conceptual understanding, and offer opportunities for students to share evidence and research. | Scaffolding supports for these materials engage learners from various skill levels and assist students in enhancing conceptual understanding. | Scaffolding supports for these materials engage learners from various skill levels. | Scaffolding supports for these materials do not engage learners. | ||
| Though there are many resources, the difficulty of the book is constant for an introductory course in economics. Though it has a Spanish glossary at the end of the ebook, there is not much room for scaffolding up to or above the level of the book. There are resources for review and comprehension, but they are not designed for strong engagement from learners from various skills levels. However, the book is easy to understand, and the concepts build upon each other well. Furthermore, I find that the easy to learn smaller chunks of information regarding the layout of each chapter would make it easier to scaffold from previous lessons given by the teacher. | ||||||
| Navigation | Students can navigate the material independently. Instructions are clear and understandable. | The material contains instructions that are understandable and easy to navigate. Students may need educator support to navigate material. | The material may be used with direct educator support but lacks clear instructions. | The instructions in this material are unclear, and navigation is difficult. | ||
| The resources and chapters are intuitive and have a good user interface. The video library, however, is grouped all together rather than split up by chapter or section, it makes them less likely to be utilized. The ebook navigation from chapter to chapter is not intuitive. The cengage toolbar is very helpful for navigation and organization, but the testing software is slow and unwieldy. Furthermore, to navigate through the textbook takes a period of trial and error in understanding how the ebook format works. Once its understood however, it is easy to use and navigation becomes more simple. | ||||||
Accessibility
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Characteristics | The design of the material is ADA-compliant and can be utilized by all students. In physical terms, this material is durable, interactive, and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. The material contains modern, up-to-date, and relatable visuals, including diverse groups of people. | In physical terms, this material is durable, interactive, and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. | In physical terms, this material is fragile in construction, and provides limited tactile experiences for students. | In physical terms, this material is designed to be disposable and temporary. | ||
| The book has good study tools built around the chapters of the book. It has videos, but they are not very descriptive. The book only has a few concrete examples of graphs and charts for economics. | ||||||
| Technical Standards | The material goes above and beyond meeting all the technical standards, ensures student data privacy is safeguarded, and can be easily installed or accessed without technical assistance. Licensing information is clearly stated in the description. | The material meets all the requirements of federal and state laws, along with the accepted technical standards (ISTE Standards and VPAT Compliance). Additional technical specifications and limitations, including hardware requirements, bandwidth demands, student data privacy, and software/ web access restrictions, are adequately noted in the description. The design of the material allows for error-free installation or access without purchasing additional components. | The material is limited by specifications requiring additional materials, technical assistance, hardware, software, or infrastructure. Student data privacy could be at risk. Resources within the material end after a trial period. | Student data privacy is at risk. | ||
| Overall navigation is easy, after a short period of exploration and / or directions on how to use the ebook and its online format. Furthermore, the software does not take any additional downloads. | ||||||
| Adaptability | The material is currently relevant and adaptable for teacher and student use in individualized or group instructional settings across multiple content areas. The material can be customized for the needs of diverse learners. | The material is currently adaptable for a teacher or student to use in a limited instructional setting across a few content areas. The material can be utilized by diverse learners (not customizable). | The material has some features adaptable for students in at least one content area. The material has limited options to address the needs of diverse learners. | The material is not adaptable or easily incorporated into various educational settings or with various diverse learners. | ||
| The book and the online component could easily be used for different instructional setting and groups. You could use it a semester or year-long course. It could also be used for longer or shorter class periods meeting daily or less frequently. It does contain financial literacy, but that section is limited in length and material. The navigation, after a series of exploration, would also make it simple for an online course as well. It also sets up the textbook and the webpage so that it could be run as a completely flipped classroom that would utilize canvas-style assessments for students and teachers. | ||||||
Pedagogy
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instructional Support | The material provides multiple examples and strong support to educators of ways to deliver instruction. These may include: -Scaffolding Lesson Plans, Personalized/Differentiated Instruction, Experiential Learning, Concept Mapping, Questioning Techniques, or Family Involvement. Furthermore, this material has content that can be problem/project-based, with incorporated skills and concepts that are integrated with all disciplines equally to support student sense-making. (Transdisciplinary/ Interdisciplinary Content Integration) | The material provides some examples to educators of ways to deliver instruction. It contains a few of the following: Scaffolding Lesson Plans, Personalized/Differentiated Instruction, Experiential Learning, Concept Mapping, Questioning Techniques, or Family Involvement. | The material contains limited instructional support on using the material with diverse groups of students, various skill levels, and student needs. | The material does not provide instructional support or examples for the educator. | ||
| There are many instructional supports: Crosswords, flashcards, powerpoints, reviews, and study guides. But they are all built just for review of the chapter, they are not addressing much critical thinking or application of the information learned. | ||||||
| Supplemental Resources | The material provides a wide variety of supplemental resources that are evidence-based and are linked to real-world circumstances and current events. | The material references numerous available supplemental resources. | The material references some available supplemental resources. | The material does not refer to any supplemental resources. | ||
| Assessments | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| There are flashcards and crosswords for formative assessments. There are also summative assessments in the form of chapter quizzes, but the quiz questions provided are mostly serve as vocabulary checks for the previous chapter. They do not provide much in the way of observable performance or real world experience. The best assessment of the book are the chapter reviews in the text. They are scaffolded questions that can provide real-world reflection and opportunities for students to show understanding of the material. | ||||||
Culture of Learning and Belonging
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bias Free | This material is free from bias and is in compliance with all relevant federal and state laws, rules, and regulations, as listed in the next “2-Adequate” section for this item. Furthermore, this material focuses on shared identity and includes the unique characteristics & cultural differences of students in Utah. (53E-4-204.1) This material supports civic and character education. (53G-10-204) | This material is neutral and is in compliance with the laws, rules, and regulations below: -It can be used by all students regardless of sex, race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, or membership in any other protected class, such as ethnicity, or disability, as described in (R277-328). -This material supports educators to be in compliance with (53G-10-202.4), where they may not use their positions to endorse, promote, or disparage a particular religious, denominational, sectarian, agnostic, or atheistic belief or viewpoint. -The material is free from discrimination and does not support stereotyping of character traits, including hard work ethic. (53G-10-206) -It is free from advertising, e-commerce, or political interest and is in compliance with the law and community standards. | This material may be interpreted as biased. Or promoting advertising, e-commerce, or political interest. Or maybe considered to regard or treat some groups unfairly. | This material does not comply with federal and state laws, rules, and regulations. This material is biased and favors a point of view that may be distracting to the educational experience of students. | ||
| There was no observable bias. | ||||||
| Cultural Awareness | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Inclusive Components | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Shared Values and Character Traits | This item has not been graded. | |||||
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