Structuring a Textbook with Pedagogical Elements
Now that we have considered common textbook structures, let’s look at the pedagogical elements that are often used in textbook design. These are elements designed to provide context, overview, motivation, review, and other functions that are useful for learning. They’re usually found within chapters or sections.
Let’s organize pedagogical elements into three categories: 1) openers, 2) closers, and 3) integrated pedagogical devices.1
Organizing elements into these categories may help authors think about which ones will work best for what they’re trying to achieve. They should be used consistently throughout the text, so that there is consistent structure.
Pedagogical Elements: Openers
Openers are pedagogical elements that come before the main content. Their role is to lead the learner into the content and provide motivation or a preview. For example:
- learning objectives
- introduction
- focus questions
Pedagogical Elements: Closers
Closers are pedagogical elements that come after the main content. Their role is to help learners review or reinforce their learning. The goal of closers is to help students summarize, review, or practice what they’ve learned. Example include:
- review questions
- a section/chapter summary
- self assessment
Integrating Pedagogical Elements into Textbook Structure
Table 1 demonstrates how each chapter could be structured with openers and closers.
| Chapter | ||
|---|---|---|
| Openers | Main Content | Closers |
| Learning Objectives | Review Questions | |
| Introduction | Summary | |
| Focus Questions | Self Assessment |
Openers and closers can also be incorporated at the section level, as demonstrated in Table 2.
| Openers | Closers | |||||
| Learning Objectives | Section | Review Questions | ||||
| Openers | Content | Closers | ||||
| Introduction | Section Summary | Reflection Exercise | Summary | |||
| Focus Questions | Vocabulary List | External Resources | Self Assessment | |||
Pedagogical Elements: Integrated Pedagogical Devices
Integrated pedagogical devices2 are elements incorporated into the main content. For example, each chapter in a mathematics textbook might include:
- a “Biography” element that highlights the biography and accomplishments of a famous mathematician.
- a “Case Study” element that illustrates the concepts by describing a real-world application.
- vocabulary words in bold.
- illustration of geometric figures.
- graphs.
Often, these pedagogical elements are highlighted through design. For example, biographies may always appear inside a text box, accompanied by a photo. This visually distinguishes the pedagogical elements from the other content, and makes the element recognizable through consistent use in each chapter, section, etc.
Next, we’ll look at a more comprehensive overview of common pedagogical elements used throughout textbooks.
1Schneider, D. K. (2008, September 3). Textbook writing tutorial. Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://edutechwiki.unige.ch/en/Textbook_writing_tutorialLinks to an external site.
2For simplicity, Integrated Pedagogical Devices and Interior Feature Strands – as defined by Schneider – have been combined into one broad category we’re calling Integrated Pedagogical Devices.