SparkNotes ignites learning
By Ricky Dyer

  Your assignment notebook looks like this: Spanish-Read textbook page 153, exercises 1-4. Math-HW #76. Chemistry-Lab Report Due Tomorrow. English-Spark Note Chapter 6 of “A Tale of Two Cities.”
  We’ve all done it. And if you’re one of the people who hasn’t used SparkNotes, well the other 1,200 people in your class have. We’ve all “cheated” for our class at some point.
  I understand; SparkNotes helps people that rely on SparkNotes, and don’t actually read the book. But who understands 100% of what he reads? Instead of outlawing SparkNotes, as many teachers do, we should utilize them for what they actually are: study aids.
  As early as I can remember, teachers have told me not to use SparkNotes. “Read the book, learn to become a better reader through struggling,” they said. In reality, if you’re struggling with understanding the reading, you’re not going to become a better reader. You’re going to get angry or discouraged, rather than magically transformed into a world-class reader because of your struggles.
  I’m not proposing that you bring SparkNotes to school and forget the book at home. That’s as pointless as reading and not understanding the material. But seriously, so many people have tutors for subjects that they struggle in anyway. So many of us shuffle off to appointments, only to sit there for an hour as we’re taught strategies to improve our chances of getting a higher score on the ACT. SparkNotes has the potential to really help out in the classroom, and we should take advantage of its potential.
  I understand the other side of the argument. Kids read SparkNotes, (without reading the book) and then class discussions are a review of SparkNotes. But what kid is going to read his assignment, not understand any of it, then go into class with the fear of failing a pop reading quiz? No one. You read what you should have, then afterwards you “Spark Note” it to make sure you didn’t miss anything crucial, and got the big picture.
  Yeah, you should get the big picture and the crucial points from careful reading, but unless there are English classes with robots enrolled, that’s not feasible. With everyone’s busy life these days, no one has time to read every paragraph that he doesn’t understand twice. In a perfect world, that would be great, but let’s be real.
  This isn’t a rant about how teachers should not give reading quizzes. It’s not a rant about outlawing SparkNotes. It’s a rant about dealing with reality. From what I’ve seen, if kids in my classes spent half as much time actually reading the books as they do working to hide it from their teachers that they have not yet bought the book, they would be a lot better off. But everyone who hasn’t read the night before, and has gone into their English class and bombed the reading quiz could agree with that.
  Whether we like it or not, kids are going to use SparkNotes. Kids are not always going to read every night. The phrase “kids will be kids” is cliché for a reason. If you tell your students they can’t use SparkNotes, chances are they’re going to want to use it more. And they will.
  Accept reality for what it is: reality. Banning SparkNotes has no effect, and in a way it almost spurs kids on. So why not use SparkNotes as a classroom supplement. If you’re worried about everyone not having independent thought, well, SparkNotes is going to be read whether or not they are prohibited. Let’s use it in the classrooms for what the Harvard students who created it actually created it for: an educational aid. Besides, it might actually be the first time that everyone in class does the reading.