This is why the time spent in class and on the textbook should be seen as complements, not substitutes. We have found that lectures are best devoted to a limited number of the issues covered in the book, usually at a basic level. While it is important to make the material look as easy, clear, and interesting as possible in class, students can be made responsible for a much larger range of material not covered in class. Of course, teachers who have more time might spend commensurately more hours on all the material. Examples, not proofs or literature reviews What makes this textbook different is the large number of examples drawn from all over Europe and elsewhere.
Examples serve two purposes.
First, they break the usual monotony and offer a breather. Second, they offer a reality check on the theory with which students are trying to understand for the first time. The immediate relevance of the theory has been, in our experience, an important incentive for the students to retain what they have learned. This is why we have tried systematically to present an example whenever a new concept is introduced or a new result is established. This is a recipe we have experimented with in class with great success.