ERIC Number: ED674064
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2025-May
Pages: 88
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Separation of Church and State Curricula? Examining Public and Religious Private School Textbooks. EdWorkingPaper No. 25-1195
Anjali Adukia; Emileigh Harrison
Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University
Curricula impart knowledge, instill values, and shape collective memory. Despite growing public funding for religious schools through U.S. school choice programs, little is known about what they teach. We examine textbooks from public schools, religious private schools, and home schools, applying computational methods -- including the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools -- to measure the presence and portrayal of people, topics, and values over time. Despite narratives of political polarization, our findings reveal few meaningful differences between public school textbooks from Texas and California. However, religious school textbooks have less female representation, feature lighter-skinned individuals, and portray topics like evolution and religion differently. Over one-third of pages in each collection convey character values, with a higher proportion in religious school textbooks. Important similarities also emerge: all textbook collections rarely include LGBTQIA+ discussion, portray females in more positive but less active or powerful contexts than males, and depict the U.S. founding era and slavery in similar contexts.
Descriptors: State Church Separation, Public Schools, Private Schools, Curriculum Evaluation, Textbook Evaluation, Religious Schools, Political Attitudes, Comparative Analysis, Gender Differences, Race, Illustrations, Religion, Evolution, Content Analysis, Moral Values, Religious Factors, LGBTQ People, Slavery, United States History, School Choice, Home Schooling, Diversity, Inclusion, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Software, Christianity, Elementary Secondary Education
Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Brown University Box 1985, Providence, RI 02912. Tel: 401-863-7990; Fax: 401-863-1290; e-mail: annenberg@brown.edu; Web site: https://annenberg.brown.edu/
Publication Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data; Information Analyses
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Academy of Education (NAEd); Spencer Foundation; Becker Friedman Institute for Economics (BFI); Institute of Education Sciences (ED)
Authoring Institution: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University
Identifiers - Location: Texas; California
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305A200478
Department of Education Funded: Yes
Author Affiliations: N/A