Many students choose to read pre-written notes instead of actual books, which teachers discourage
By Emma Neukam
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Ever since he was a sophomore, senior Jae Han, like most students, has been assigned countless reading assignments for his classes. Yet he hasn’t actually read most of them.
Instead, Han said he chooses to read SparkNotes rather than the actual books he’s assigned to read.
“It shortens the chapter and it makes (books) a lot easier to understand,” Han said.
Han is just one of a large mass. An article published in the San Francisco Chronicle in 2007 indicated there has been a continual decrease in teens reading, and according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project that same year, SparkNotes was the fifth most visited educational and reference Web site. These statistics point to the fact that students are substituting pre-written notes, such as the ones found on SparkNotes, for books.
Students such as junior Theresa Lipp, however, said they choose not to use SparkNotes or CliffsNotes; instead Lipp said she actually reads the books she’s assigned, even if they’re difficult to understand.
“Some people use it as a supplement, but if I can’t figure it out, then I don’t think SparkNotes will help that much,” Lipp said.
English teacher Pat Southard said she thinks many students like Han go to SparkNotes when they are confused about literature or when they don’t have time to read.
“They’re either lazy or they’re overwhelmed with what they have to do and they go to SparkNotes,” Southard said. “That’s the last thing (students) want to do when (they) have to read a big, fat old book and (they’re) overwhelmed.”
Lipp, who is taking AP English Literature & Composition, said she thinks her classmates feel it’s acceptable to read SparkNotes in place of the books because the assessments given in class already contain excerpts from the books.
In fact, Lipp said her English teacher even encourages her class to use SparkNotes if they are confused about something in the book.
“My English teacher advised us to use SparkNotes because if we don’t understand something, it’s a good idea to use a different source,” Lipp said.
However, Southard said that even though some tests like the AP exams may provide excerpts from books, it is still necessary for students to read, but not only for better understanding.
“With a novel, (students) get the full flavor of the whole piece,” Southard said.
Besides getting “the full flavor of a novel,” Southard said she doesn’t trust SparkNotes on its own, because in some cases she said she’s found mistakes on the site.
“They just give basic plot and character information. They don’t help with critical thinking skills that readers use to analyze literature. They’re not even accurate,” she said.
The assessments Southard said she gives to her classes are very specific, and reading the books (and not simply their SparkNotes’ versions) is necessary to complete her assignments.
“I don’t discourage SparkNotes as a supplement, but they’re never a substitute. There’s no substitute for the original literature,” Southard said.
Han said he regrets reading the SparkNotes versions of reading assignments, because he said he thinks he would receive a better understanding of literature if he would’ve read the books. He said he doesn’t necessarily recommend that other students follow his example.
“I would say that when you can’t read (books), to use SparkNotes. But when you can read, then it helps more. Something might be in the book but not on SparkNotes,” Han said.
Even though it is easier for some students to read SparkNotes over the actual book, Lipp said it’s different for everyone.
Lipp said, “For some people, SparkNotes is helpful to use in addition to reading. You just have to see what works best for you.”