A Comparative Analysis of two 3rd grade level texts:

Harcourt Brace and Company—Living In Our World.   1997. Dr. Alma F. Ada, Dr.
 Phillip Bacon, Dr. W. Dorsey Hammond, Dr. Asa G Hilliard, III.  Harcourt
 Brace and Company, Atlanta.   (LOW in report)

Houghton Mifflin Social Studies—Share Our World. 1997.  Sarah Bednarz, Cartherine
 Clinton, Michael Hartoonian, Arthur Hrernandez, Patricia L. Marshall, Mary P.
 Nickell, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston.  (SOW in report)

 Social Issues:
 LOW tries to steer away from ethnocentrism by describing a variety of cultures, traditions, and customs from all over the world (159-162).  SOW talks about the first Africans that came to Jamestown and describes how they adapted to their new land just as the Powhatan Indians did.  As more settlers arrived, Africans were forced into slavery around Jamestown.  SOW briefly defines slavery but it does not go into depth on how it affected the slaves or how slavery ended (88, 89).  SOW also explains how people pollute the environment such as the Chesapeake Bay and makes it a point to explain how people work together as a community to clean up the Bay (286).
 Both books had detailed illustrations that dealt with culture and traditions.  In both books, each chapter contains citizenship skills.  This teaches students how to become active citizens with good morals.  In Unit 5 in LOW the citizenship skill was how to resolve problems and gave ways to understand why it is important to resolve conflicts (256).  SOW describes how important it is to encourage people to participate in service projects such as recycling (178).

Interdisciplinary, Conceptual Organization:
 LOW and SOW present about how to integrate other subjects into the social studies material, at the end of each chapter.  In LOW, students engage in a writing activity what their community might be like a decade from now, explaining what and how things will change, and how you, as a third grader, will live in your community ten years from today.  Students need to share his/her description with a classmate (313). On page (63) in SOW, students design a flag for their class.  This project will integrate art and language arts into the classroom by designing the flags and then descriptively writing about the flags.
 
Recency:

 Both texts seem to reflect recent events that have occurred.  In both texts, President Bill Clinton (SOW 320), and Vice President, Al Gore (LOW 337), are pictured and described as leading men in our nation during their terms.  Astronauts are actually in space and not “One day will land on the moon,”  (SOW 321, LOW 280).  Both maps and technology are up-to-date throughout each text (SOW 316-17, LOW 217).  Nelson Mandela is also pictured and described in each text (SOW 320, LOW 288).  Instead of using chalkboards, whiteboard and markers are pictured as an example of how time has changed in the classroom.

Bias:
 LOW is more diverse in describing many different cultures, whereas, SOW deals with specific groups such as African and Native Americans.  LOW pictures a Yuma woman worker driving a heavy piece of equipment (45).  In SOW, there is a garbage woman instead of a stereotypical garbage man (277).  Citizens are pictured working together in designing a new library.  These citizens are equally represented with three women and three men (40).  Both texts make it a point to show all different ethnic groups and genders in their photographs.
 
 

Analytical Mode:
 LOW presents critical thinking and interpretive questions to the students at the end of each chapter rather than questions based on facts found in the chapter.  In Lesson 7, the question stated, “What type of landform was chosen as the site for Brasîlia and why do you think this was a good choice?”(120).  SOW provides teachers with critical thinking questions that make the students interpret the text in depth, rather than just posing general questions.  Both texts use charts, graphs, maps, and photographs to help students visually grasp specific context.  Captions were found under each visual that gives students more information on a specific topic.  On page 121 in SOW, there is a bar graph displaying the number of blacksmith shop populations in Atlanta in 1899 and in 1935.  This visually describes to students the changes in our economy.

Question Levels:
 In LOW, the questions begin by asking students to recall facts and check for understanding.  For example, “Name two important writers from Harlem.” (151).  Questions then focus on the main idea in order to prepare students to think more critically by exploring viewpoints, “What were some parts of Harlem culture in the 1920’s and 1930’s (151).  This enables the students to describe his/her knowledge by participating in an activity about the lesson.  In SOW the review questions begin by having students write paragraphs using key vocabulary words that are used throughout the lesson. An example of this is found on page 89, “Write a paragraph using fort, colony, trade, and slavery to describe Jamestown.  Focus questions are used at the end of each lesson for students to recall basic facts, “What did English settlers find along the James River?”(89).  Critical thinking questions such as, “Why is it so important for people of different backgrounds to work together in a community?” and geography questions,  “What body of water is between Africa and Jamestown?”, are used as higher analytical questions (89).    Both texts tend to create analytical encouragement throughout each lesson for a more in-depth instructional strategy.  Within both texts, the questions seem to express the various phases of Bloom’s Taxonomy, although, some of the questions seem to involve a little less critical thinking.

Decision-Making:
 Both texts seem to create ways for students to become actively involved through decision making and coming up with alternatives for problems found within the text.  Decision-making is found in SOW when the students are taught that people are part of the cause of pollution and challenges students to come up with alternative methods to reduce the problem of pollution (178).  SOW also contains places for students to make decisions in the chapter review.  An example of this is found on page (69), when students are to make decisions about what they would do in a community festival.  The LOW text has more critical thinking and in-depth questions, “Think about the importance of music in your own life.  What does music express about culture?  How does music make you feel?”(151), but does not focus on decision-making questions.

Establishes a Direct Relationship with the Learner?
 In both texts, the content focuses on different places and communities and then relates this back to the students’ lives by asking questions that pertain to his/her life.  SOW compares news exchanged in Marrakesh markets to where people might meet and exchange news in a students’ community (221).  A chapter in LOW defines rules that must be followed in a community and describes how people must work together.  The review questions ask the students to think about the rules his/her school has and asks him/her what the consequences are if these rules are not followed (43).

Skills:
 At the end of each lesson in the LOW text, there is a Skills-How-To page which discusses a skill such as how to read a map and asks the question, “Why is this skill important?(38)”  Then it gives an explanation to the students about why it is important to learn that skill (38).  SOW has a section called “Skills Workshop” in each chapter that defines a specific skill such as making a map (18-19).  It describes how to make a map, why maps are important, and how to use a map.  Both texts allow students many opportunities to write about specific social studies topics, such as writing a new law to a lawmaker (SOW 29) or writing about how to plan for a new city.  They will also explain what will be included in his/her city (LOW 121).
 

Evaluation:
 LOW text contains worksheets for each level, skill practice apply thinking skills sheets, assessment guides for each unit, and standard tests for each unit.   The text lists the objectives assessed for each unit and how to formally and informally assess students.  LOW also provides performance tasks and self-assessment.  This information can be found at the beginning of each unit in the teachers’ manual.  The SOW teachers’ manual gives teachers ideas of ways to informally assess students within each lesson.  For example, you may wish to assign the Lesson Review on this page to assess student understanding of this lesson.” (257).  It gives portfolio ideas and has a separate Assessment Options book that contains chapter tests.

Learning Aids:
 Learning Aids in SOW have a “Handbook for Learners”, which reviews map and globe skills, visual learning skills, such as using tables and graphs, and reviews social studies research skills, such as gathering information and using the library (327-341).  Both books contain detailed maps of the world and United States.  They also have two pages filled with geography terms to help students understand what the terms on an atlas stand for.

Motivation:
 Textbooks can bring patriotism into the schools through fun and exciting activities such as writing a patriotic song as found in SOW (301).  These activities may begin to teach students how to become devoted citizens.  Each text contain short stories, (SOW page 202 “The Story of Money” LOW page 73 “Aurora Means Dawn”), within the chapters, that give students a different approach to history rather than just basic facts.  Illustrations, charts, and actual photographs are found throughout the books to help stimulate visual learning.

Difficulty:
 From what we have learned thus far about reading comprehension in specific grade levels, we found both books to be at a medium range of comprehension.  The questions and activities range from easy one-answer questions, to critical thinking and generalizing.  The activities also range in difficulty level.  The books allow teachers many options to use according to the students needs by integrating art, writing, and hands-on activities.

Readability:
 The texts are written in a larger font for third grade students to lessen the amount of information students assimilate at a specific time.  Both texts highlight key vocabulary words, tell how to pronounce difficult words, and gives the definition of that word.  Each lesson is kept to a certain amount of pages in order for the students to grasp the information better.  We feel that both texts are on appropriate grade level in order for students to receive an overall view of the topic being taught.

Research:
 The publishers do not specifically provide data in either text on the effectiveness of the book.  However, they do list and briefly describe the series of authors and grade level consultants and reviewers.  These reviewers are either actual classroom teachers or other school related professions such as principals.  Both Harcourt Brace & Company and Houghton Mifflin Company are well known publishers and are respected by school systems.
 
 

? We had a difficult time deciding on which book would be more suitable to use in a classroom.  SOW and LOW are both very similar in the way pictures, maps, graphs, activities, and questions are presented to students.  We decided SOW would be more useful to a classroom teacher and students.  In SOW, the questions seem to be more specific and relate more to the chapter, which we believe would be more beneficial to the students.