Math Textbooks

As I have been reflecting on this topic of math textbooks, I find myself having mixed feelings. 

As a student, I have textbooks that I am quite attached to, but none of them happen to be math textbooks. There is one math text that I am fond of but more because I associate it with my experience with a favourite instructor. I think the second math textbook that I like is one that can be found online, but I have a printed copy from Staples. I like this textbook because it contained lots of practice questions, but that's about it. When I look back to when I was in grade 6, I remember learning algebra for the first time and thinking that the textbook was super confusing, but having a great sense of accomplishment when I figured out what they were trying to get me to do.

As a teacher, I bring this scepticism of textbooks with me. I think I see a future of more "online textbooks" or even interactive websites being the future. I hope that they are open access, to cut down on cost of information that feels like it should be accessible by now. When I was doing my 442 project on the history of geometric constructions, I came across a website that I was much more fond of than an average textbook: Mathigon (https://mathigon.org/course/euclidean-geometry/construction). It had lots of examples, it was interactive, I was so much more engaged, and it incorporated embedded tools simpler to geogebra that allowed mathematical concepts to be explored within the reading. This website aligns with the direction I would like to see textbooks going.

In regards to Wagner and Herbel-Eisenmann's paper, I think the main ideas that stood out to me as a teacher were the communication and understanding of "math command terms". Recently in a workshop, I learnt about the importances of teaching students the difference between words like "show", "find", "solve", etc. In my practicum I see my school advisor stressing the difference between an "equation" and an "expression". I think textbooks do have a role in having this information explained at some point and helping students build up their mathematical vocabulary. 

As a student reading this paper, I do kind of question the amount of reading of math textbooks, and I think to myself that the writing should be as concise as possible. As a tween, I remember textbooks using personal pronouns such as "you" and feeling a little bit forced that the author would assume that I, personally, would decide to do what the textbook said. I didn't really like a textbook telling me what to do.