Are textbooks passe?
Pasco County students returned to school Monday to find brand new math textbooks waiting for them. Mandated by the state as part of a curriculum overhaul, the books cost the school district millions. Millions that several School Board candidates argue would be better spent elsewhere. In a recent debate, several of the hopefuls for all three open Pasco board seats suggested that the state should not force schools to adopt new textbooks so frequently, particularly in subjects that don’t change much. (One plus one still equals two, a few commented, noting that maybe that old edition math book shown here could last a bit longer.) “We don’t need the textbooks every six years, especially for some of the subjects,” District 3 candidate Cynthia Armstrong said. “We’ve got to beat out the textbook lobbyists.” …
