HIST (with Review Cards and History CourseMate, Premium Web Site, Wadsworth American History Resource Center Printed Access Card)
The magazine design made the text really fun to read. Textbooks get boring, it is the same thing page after page. The magazine feeling made me want to read it more intently."This is totally revolutionary for me. I'm very impressed. I truly believe that its simplicity give it its strength."The writing is clear. [Students] will like that. It is visually 'chunked' into clearly connected but manageable portions. They can read as many or as few chunks as they like at each sitting. They will like the brevity and the opportunity to follow up a reading with some online exploration. … The text is invitingly concise yet it is fact-laden AND all the facts are presented within the context of a theme or argument. … I like the basic organization … a great deal. Everything is orderly and logical. I would have no trouble synchronizing my pre-existing lectures with this text. I especially like the straightforward writing, the short sections, the clear headings, and the concise nature of the explanations (with a lot of lists of causes and/or effects to lead into or to summarize a section). The writing reminds me of several of my favorite texts. … As I stated earlier, I greatly anticipate the appearance of the print version of your text. The combination of a short text that students can develop a tactile relationship with--and that we can all bring to the class sessions--with online interactives, visuals, and written primary sources would be a perfect match for my students and my teaching style."I think the overall vision of the product is unique and has a lot of potential especially for summer or distance learning classes. … I love the interactive modules. I always think those are wonderful. Was nice to see links to art. … I find myself pleasantly surprised that something so relatively short could cover what I'd want covered and do it so well."I am interested in this text. In my experience, students find history texts a morass of details. This text does a good job of breaking the narrative into small, manageable pieces, and arranging information in clear, outline form. … I think that dividing the material into short, manageable parts is a very good idea. Some students may benefit from the outline structure, since most students today seem not to have been taught how to create an outline.