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 to enhance 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. | This resource 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 resource 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. | ||||||
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, Family Involvement. *Furthermore this material is supportive of content integration. | The material provides some examples to educators of ways to deliver instruction. Containing a few of the following: Scaffolding Lesson Plans, Personalized/Differentiated Instruction, Experiential Learning, Concept Mapping, Questioning Techniques, Family Involvement. | The material contains limited instructional support on using the material with diverse groups of students and 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 materials reference numerous available supplemental resources. | The materials reference some available supplemental resources. | The materials do 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. | ||||||
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 resource is durable, interactive, and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. The resource contains modern, up-to-date, and relatable visuals, including diverse groups of people. | In physical terms, this resource is durable, interactive, and provides high-quality audio-visual and tactile experiences for all users. | In physical terms, this resource is fragile in construction and provides limited tactile experiences for students. | In physical terms, this resource 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 | This curriculum 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. | This curriculum meets all the requirements of federal and state laws and accepted technical standards. Additional technical specifications and limitations, including hardware requirements, bandwidth demands, student data privacy, and software and web access restrictions are adequately described and noted, and allow error free installation or access and use without purchasing additional components. | This curriculum is limited by specifications requiring additional materials, technical assistance, hardware, software, or infrastructure. Student data privacy could be at risk. Resources within the curriculum end after a trial period. | The curriculum requires additional technical assistance, hardware, software, or infrastructure. 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 | This material is currently relevant and adaptable for teacher and student use in individualized or group instructional settings across multiple content areas. This resource can be customized for the needs of diverse learners. | This material is currently adaptable for a teacher or student to use in a limited instructional setting across a few content areas. This resource can be utilized by diverse learners (not customizable). | Instructional materials in this resource have some features that are adaptable for students in at least one content area. The material has limited options to address the needs of diverse learners. | This 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. | ||||||
Culture of Learning and Belonging
| Item | 3 - Extensive | 2 - Adequate | 1 - Inadequate | 0 - None | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bias Free | This material is free from bias and can be used by all students regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or disability. It is free from advertising, e-commerce, or political interest and is in compliance with the law and community standards. This material also focuses on shared identity, is free from discrimination, and is inclusive of the unique characteristics & cultural differences of students in Utah. The material does not support stereotyping of character traits, including hard work ethic. This material supports civic and character education (R277-328., 53G-10-206., 53E-4-204.1., 53G-10-204., 53G-10-202(4).) | This material does not promote e-commerce or political agenda. The material may be interpreted as neutral with no bias but does not actively promote civic and character education (53G-10-204.) However, it may contain some aspects of shared identity, unique characteristics, or cultural awareness. | This material may be interpreted as biased or promoting e-commerce or political agenda or may be considered to regard or treat some groups unfairly. The material does not support civic and character education (53G-10-204.) and does not focus on shared identity or cultural awareness. | This material has elements that do not comply with the Utah State Code. 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 Tools | This item has not been graded. | |||||
| Localizing and Common Values | This item has not been graded. | |||||
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