A Comparative Study Of Old And New Textbooks For Developing The Core Literacy Of Chemistry For High School Students Under The New College Entrance Examination

With the increasingly important role of education in the rise of a great nation,it is inevitable that teaching methods and educational models need to be constantly updated in line with the times in order to keep education up to date.On September 3,2014,the State Council officially released opinions on the implementation of the reform of the examination and enrollment system.The Ministry of Education and education departments at all levels subsequently issued a series of policy programmes related to the implementation of the college entrance examination reform.The new round of college entrance examination reform began to be implemented gradually in various provinces and cities in China.Subsequently,the "General High School Chemistry Curriculum Standards(2017 Edition)"(hereinafter referred to as the "New Curriculum Standard")came into being.The promulgation of the New Curriculum Standards marked the official opening of a new era of basic chemistry education reform oriented to the core literacy of the subject.Up to now,some provinces and municipalities have already implemented the "3+1+2" model of the new college entrance examination,the People’s Education Press released a new high school textbook in May 2020.After the new college entrance examination,the new curriculum and the core literacy,the corresponding new textbook has finally appeared.The emergence of the new textbooks has solved the pressing problems of teachers who are working on the front line of the curriculum reform.The new textbook will certainly reflect the "aim of developing students’ core literacy" as required by the new college entrance examination.In this study,the literature research method and comparative research method are mainly used to compare and contrast the old and new textbooks of the PEP Edition of Senior Secondary Chemistry Option 4,Principles of Chemical Reactions.Through an in-depth understanding of the current situation of curriculum reform in China,the opportunities and challenges faced by secondary education at present are clarified,and the importance of curriculum reform is made clear.By comparing the comparative and analytical studies of high school chemistry textbooks at home and abroad,the purpose and significance of the study will be clarified so as to determine the specific process and research direction of this study.Firstly,by comparing the requirements of the Principles of Chemical Reactions section of the 2017 and 2021 editions of the Curriculum,the differences and similarities between the content of the old and new textbooks and the features of the new textbooks can be visually clarified from the requirements of the curriculum.Further,the content of the old and new textbooks is compared from a macro perspective,including similarities and differences in the layout and selection of content,as well as the characteristics of the new textbooks after the changes.Additionally,from the microscopic perspective of the curriculum standards combined with core literacy,the new textbook’s embodiment and echoing of core literacy was analysed in comparison with the textbook in terms of the setting of columns such as scientific investigation,chemistry experiments and history of chemistry.In order to ensure the scientific accuracy and completeness of the study,the author used the method of teacher interviews and questionnaires to gain a practical insight into the feelings of teachers and students who are using the new textbook,so as to identify the problems faced by the new textbook in use and to design solutions in practice.Finally,the differences between the old and new textbooks in terms of content structure and literacy details are summarised and some suggestions for the use of the new textbooks are made.The results of the study show that the advantages of the new textbook are that it fits better with the new curriculum,the content is more clearly and more logically targeted,and it effectively disperses important and difficult points,while raising the level of cognition required of students.In terms of content,the new textbook emphasises the importance of teaching materials as learning resources,with more beautifully designed and rational tables and columns,the data fit better with the current times and the examples are more relevant to life.In terms of the design of the learning sections,the new textbook pays more attention to student initiative in its inquiry activities,the requirements for chemistry experiments are clearer,the history of chemistry is more widely selected,it places extra emphasis on reflecting the progress of science and technology in China,and it integrates the development of core literacies of high school students in a holistic manner.Based on the findings of the study,the author suggests the following pedagogical recommendations for the use of the new materials,which I hope will enlighten front-line teachers.1.Teachers should take care to be fully aware of the new chemical science and technology terms and events covered in the new materials when preparing lessons.2.When setting teaching objectives,teachers should focus closely on the development of core literacies and develop authentic problem-based teaching.3.Teachers should pay attention to the construction of students’ scientific thinking and methods,focus on the development of experimental inquiry teaching,and give full play to the nurturing function of experimentation and inquiry.4.Teachers should guide students to have a proper understanding of the new curriculum reform and the new college entrance examination,and to find a learning method that suits their learning of the new materials as soon as possible.