The authors present a 20-item inventory for textbook selection designed to supplement the Fry Formula or the Raygor Estimate readability tests. The authors argue that a harmonious relationship should exist between the text, its author, its intended readers, and the instructor. (Author/PGD)

Textbook publishers are under attack for producing books that are superficial in content and oversimplified or confusing in language. They respond that their products are the inevitable result of applying the many textbook selection formulas to book production. Efforts by educators to improve textbooks are currently being organized. (PGD)

The Raygor Readability Estimate, described in this article, is much like the widely used Fry Readability Graph, except that it determines vocabulary difficulty by counting words of six or more letters, rather than by counting syllables. An evaluation found that Raygor was faster and easier to use and more objective than the Fry method. (RM)

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)

Readability formulas can be useful tools in accomplishing their primary purpose--to give very general estimates of difficulty. Unfortunately, there has been a great deal of misunderstanding regarding their use, which has resulted in misuse and abuse. The formulas were designed to be applied post hoc to existing materials. They were not intended to…

Provides step-by-step procedures for developing an index which uses the Gunning Fog technique to evaluate the level of reading difficulty of textbooks. Cites examples, illustrations, and several warnings in the discussion. (RT)

This article introduces and discusses some aspects of the complex problem of textbook reform, and suggests what the future holds for textbooks. (DCS)

Reported is a study designed to determine whether reading grade level (RGL) assessment techniques used for elementary and secondary education textbooks would discriminate among plant and soil science textbooks. The study was to select the RGL indices suited to quantify the readability of these sources, and to identify the factors affecting…

United States history as a linchpin in the school curriculum and as a potentially exciting, sometimes electrifying, subject was the conviction underlying this analysis of U.S. history textbooks. This assessment investigates the capacity of leading U.S. social studies and history textbooks to inspire the imagination of students through effective…

Intended as a resource of staff-tested activities for two-year college faculty, staff, and administrators, this manual is a compilation of representative materials from training workshops conducted, as a professional development project, to increase instructor skills and knowledge regarding intervention in reading deficiency of postsecondary…

This workbook is designed to provide beginning and experienced teachers and administrators with a guide to evaluating and selecting materials with respect to the student who uses them, the instructor who teaches from them, and the program that orders them. It is intended to be either self-instructive or used in conjunction with a staff development…