This study explores how faculty members select and use the educational materials employed in their courses. The primary sample represents all teaching faculty across all types of degree-granting higher education institution in the United States. Two subgroups of faculty are called out for detailed examination: those teaching large-enrollment…

This study is one of a series using consistent definitions of key concepts to support analysis of changes over time. The studies are designed to explore the process by which faculty members select and use the educational materials that they employ in their courses. The most common of these is the required textbook: faculty members typically select…

The objective of this study is to better understand the process by which faculty members select the educational materials that they employ in their courses. The educational resource that people are most familiar with is the required textbook: faculty members select one or more books that all students are required to use through the duration of the…

Introductory psychology students at a technical college, 2-year community college, and a regional university rated how important textbook chapters or topics were to them now and in the future and how interesting they were. Importance and interest ratings were highly correlated, and the whole course was rated of greater importance and interest than…

A corpus of current editions of statistics textbooks was assessed to compare aspects and levels of readability for the topics of "measures of center," "line of fit," "regression analysis," and "regression inference." Analysis with lexical software of these text selections revealed that the large corpus can…

Sales figures and recollections of psychologists indicate textbooks play a central role in psychology students' education, yet instructors typically must select texts under time pressure and with incomplete information. Although selection aids are available, none adequately address the accuracy of texts. We describe a technique for sampling…

Describes one method of responding to the sales techniques of college textbook publishers' representatives. (AEA)

Provides 45 guidelines useful in selecting college-level textbooks. The guidelines are presented under five major categories: (1) course strategy and tactics; (2) point of view; (3) accuracy of content; (4) currency of content; and (5) packaging information. (JN)

Twenty-five introductory college psychology textbooks are analyzed for terms most frequently used, the textbooks which employed the largest number of frequently used terms; similarity among textbooks; and the relationship between readability and technical thoroughness of the texts. (Author/JR)

Contends that if textbooks are to be improved it is essential that teachers, administrators, and textbook selectors become more demanding and discriminating consumers. Examines various textbook components that need improvement such as: (1) photographs; (2) basic skills exercises; (3) worksheets; and (4) content. (BSR)

Surveys eleven currently available undergraduate textbooks on industrial organization. Concludes that some texts have an economics emphasis and others a policy emphasis. Rates the content of each text according to established criteria. (JDH)

Ten college-level money and banking textbooks were arrayed along six continua representing professors' major preferences when choosing a text. The continua topics are theoretical approach, complexity of presentation, theory/institution mix, nuts and bolts explanations, organizational approach, and writing style. (RM)

Sixty-one psychology textbooks were analyzed according to four criteria: student acceptance and interest, readability and human interest, comprehensiveness and size, and psychobiological content. This analytic approach can be used in all subjects to match text selection with course objectives in order to increase student satisfaction. (AM)

Discussion of textbooks criticizes review and selection by professors without consideration for price, publishers who push sales of new or revised textbooks instead of older textbooks, and emphasis on readability and teaching techniques rather than on content. (ND)

Reports a review of 13 genetics textbooks published from 1975 to 1979. Six tables present summaries of the significant data about the books, specific topics covered in the texts, and the number of pages devoted to each of 15 general topics in each textbook evaluated. (CS)