Got Books??

By: Vernon Bowman

Victoria Matthews, a senior at ACT Charter school, wonders why she doesn’t have textbooks in her classes.

“We shouldn’t have printed worksheets,” she said. “We should have actual books for us to learn out of. We learn better from having books.”

More and more students are complaining about the lack of textbooks in their classes. At the same time, teachers are saying that the problem is the cost of the books for each class and that students are not taking care of the books they already have.

Ms. Thomas, a Humanities teacher, said she’s heard from parents who are concerned about the lack of textbooks, but she said that the problem is that textbooks can only be used in one class.

“The books cost $10,000 for a class set,” she said. Ms. Thomas said that last year she even saw students throwing books out the windows. “School funding is not low, it’s just that students lose their books and they know that their parents don’t have enough money to keep paying to replace them.”

Corey Williams, a sophomore, said that having books helps students see things visually and worksheets aren’t visual.

“That is not good because some kids are visual learners and they learn better this way,” he said.

“Then it effects you, especially when you are a visual learner and just saying and seeing it [are] two different things.

Mr. Washco, a Humanities teacher, said that paying for books costs too much and they’re only needed in certain classes.

“Some books cost around 70 to 80 dollars a piece,” he said. “Also, some classes don’t need books—only in Math and Science. And we don’t have enough money for books, only if people donate money.”