A Comparative Study On The Exercises Of Biology Textbooks In Chinese And American High Schools

Textbooks take up a core position in education that connects educational worker and students. Textbooks hold an important place in teaching. Exercises in the textbook are important component of textbooks. They are an important basis of testing students’ learning results and evaluating teaching effect. Exercises also play a complementary role in teaching.Biology textbooks, as the basic content of curriculum implementation, are important tool to fulfill the curriculum standard for teacher and carrier of biology knowledge and learning platform for students. Especially in21st century, on the basis of using new biology curriculum standard, there has been further changes in the contact, construction and visions of biology textbooks. With the rapid development of technology and society, biology textbooks need to make further adjustments and amendment.This paper compares exercises in the biology textbooks prepared by People Educational Press with exercises in the biology textbooks prepared by The McGraw-Hill Companies. The research has contributed to extend visual range and examine the reformation of biology curriculum achievements. It provides us new ideas and new methods to Write and revise biology textbook. It also offers advice on the new curriculum reform and improving the arrangement of the textbooks.In this study, I used literature analysis and comparative analysis to research and analysis exercises in two editions. The study is focuses on category, type, quantity, difficulty, features of the exercises of the two versions. The research found that:Both of them have exercises for chapter and section. American Biology textbooks also include exercises for unit.The research found that the exercises of the two versions include choice questions, fill-in-the-blank questions, questions, analysis questions. But beyond that, Chinese textbooks have matching, creative problems and a bibliography. American textbooks have group choice questions, terms, Life’s biology, open discussion. The quantity of exercises in American textbooks was higher than Chinese textbooks.I choose the key chapter of the two versions to comparative their degree of difficulty. We found that American exercise is harder than Chinese in depth of level, breadth level, background level and Cumulative difficulty. American textbooks pay great attention to range of knowledge, and Chinese textbooks pay great attention to detailed knowledge.The research found that the exercises of the two versions have similarity and peculiarity with each other. All have three things in common:(1)focus on checking the ability of drawing figures and lists,(2)focus on checking the ability of evaluation,(3)focus on the exploitation of information resources of biology. Chinese textbooks special features:(1) focus on checking basic biology knowledge,(2) focus on checking part of the contents,(3) setting up creative problems. American textbooks special features:(1) focus on checking the ability of association and access to information.(2) the method of testing concepts is more flexible.(3) focus on integrating with the knowledge of diversified subject,(4) focus on cooperative learning,(5) focus on developing students’efficient way of learning.There are some things to be discussed as to how to improve exercises design. Some exercises in Chinese textbooks studied memory and The quality of the illustration in the Chinese textbooks can still be improved. Short-answer questions lack of artistic properties of situation. Negation word appeared at the question stem.At the end of the research, the author does a forward look and thinks on the exercise research of textbooks.(1) science oriented,(2) providing a series of question situation,(3) increasing the quantity of problems to check the ability of association and access to information.(4) increasing the quantity of problems that integrating with the knowledge of diversified subject (5) improving the quality of the illustration,(6)using affirmative sentence. For Biology teachers:(1) pay attention to building reasonable knowledge structure,(2) pay attention to relation between theory and practice,(3) leading students to communicate,(4) providing some effective methods for students. At the end of the research, the author does a forward look and thinks on the exercise research of textbooks. On the basis of the study, further research is needed to the proportion of exercise category and levels. I hope that this study may give wise advice and open a new way in our native research on textbooks studyThe author pointed out some problems in the existing textbooks and put forward some suggestions for revising textbooks and teachers’ practice in classrooms. We hope with the concerted efforts of the parties concerned, High school biology textbook exercises will gain further improvements and the new curriculum reforms can be pressing ahead.