This systematic review explores the evolution and impact of corpus-based methodologies in textbook analysis within the field of language education between 2010 and 2024. Utilizing the PRISMA framework, 29 studies were identified and analyzed, highlighting the transition from basic frequency analyses to sophisticated examinations of lexical,…

The opinions of second language learning (L2) theorists and researchers are divided over whether to use authentic or simplified reading texts as the means of input for beginning- and intermediate-level L2 learners. Advocates of both approaches cite the use of linguistic features, syntax, and discourse structures as important elements in support of…

Presents results of a content analysis of 46 postsecondary reading textbooks to assess the texts' incorporation of features that enhance learning. Describes the use of a modified version of Singer's Friendly Text Inventory to analyze the texts in terms of organization, explication, conceptual density, metadiscourse, and instructional devices. (DMM)

Presents a checklist developed by the International Reading Association's Committee for Basic Education and Reading, which is designed to help teachers select materials to meet the special needs and interests of adult basic education learners and to make objective judgments based on a clear evaluation process. (MKM)

Looks at English handbooks and rhetoric texts and notes shortcomings in their treatment of research papers. Offers several remedies. (FL)

Compares a content analysis of 60 college introductory psychology textbooks published or revised between 1969 and 1975 with another analysis of 52 texts published or revised between 1980 and 1989. Finds recent texts more voluminous and more comprehensive, yet more readable than their predecessors. (CFR)

This report analyzes the 1988 edition of the Silver Burdett & Ginn (SBG) "World of Music" elementary music textbook series and in particular critiques the materials for grades 1-6. The study was guided by a large set of framing questions requiring a detailed examination of the series' goals, rationale, and structure; content…

Content weakness in textbooks is a major obstacle to effective social studies teaching. Chapters 1-3 of this book provide the Education for Democracy Project's Statement of Principles, a consideration of history's role as the core of social studies education, and the role of textbooks in teaching world history. Chapters 4-14 examine five selected…

Reconsiders the place of Peter Berger's "Invitation to Sociology," in teaching undergraduate sociology courses. Traces the success and intellectual impact of the work. Describes the image of sociology it presents. Reviews its treatment of human freedom as a sociological issue. Examines its world vision and evaluates its usefulness in…

Explores the history of social studies instruction. Reports findings of an analysis of 1,217 lessons contained in 5 social studies textbooks. Concludes that geography, history, and anthropology receive the greatest coverage in the books, whereas sociology and political science are stressed least. Identifies differences among the five books.…

Presents a review of five textbooks available for a one-semester undergraduate course in the history of economic thought. Includes method of approach taken by the authors, content, and features such as indexes and lists of suggested readings. Suggests how the texts differ with respect to content without recommending any particular book. (DK)

Reviews 14 international economics textbooks to help instructors with selection. Includes organization and structure, topics covered, and characteristics of the texts. Suggests considerations such as course length, level of abstraction desired, opinion of numerically based graphical analysis, extensiveness of examples and applications, and whether…

This report describes a project which analyzed science and social studies textbooks to determine how well they accommodate the learning needs of mainstreamed hard-to-teach students. A textbook analysis tool was developed, and eight teacher-reviewers examined the instructional design of teachers' and students' editions of 12 leading elementary and…

Reports on an analysis of 35 American management textbooks that identifies 17 core concepts for management courses for information professionals. Each concept--accountability, accounting, authority, budgeting, change/innovation/creativity, communication, controlling, decision making, delegation and organization, ethics, fiscal management,…

Offers a critique of existing methods of assessing the human interest of basic writing textbooks, contending that most are abstract and subjective and that the more objective Flesch formula inflates texts' human-interest level. Advocates modifying existing formulas and guidelines. Suggests criteria (e.g., appropriateness of readability level) for…