Drawing on sociocultural perspectives on educational design, this article presents a qualitative study investigating how religious texts emerge as educational objects and mediating artefacts in Norwegian textbooks of religious and moral education. The article describes how the distribution of text references in textbooks influences the formation…

Social studies methods textbooks constitute a rich source of data for trends in teaching and learning. This study examined twenty secondary social studies methods texts for the instructional approaches they recommend. The researchers concluded that methods texts published over the past fifty years consistently call for pedagogical variety and…

This instructional paper examines the lack of L2 English skills demonstrated by Chinese post-secondary education students and the results of empiric testing to determine what key language functions were missing from a student's tool box when exiting their primary education phase.The identification of these skills and ability gaps allowed for…

Reviews the Prentice Hall Literature Series, focusing on: (1) the series' authors and editors; (2) textbook content; and (3) pedagogy suggested in the teacher's guide. (MM)

Supplementing a report by E. Schneider in "Praxis des neusprachlichen Unterrichts" (3/1975), some procedures, problems and results of work with the textbook in a 7th grade class are reported. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Examines students' misconceptions and proposed mechanisms related to current flow in electrolyte solutions and the salt bridge. Confirms reported misconceptions and identifies several new ones. Discusses probable sources of misconceptions and some methods for preventing them. Contains 27 references. (JRH)

Cognitive mapping is widely used in elementary schools to create visual representation of text as an aid to learning. Mapping should be used at the secondary level also to facilitate learning of expository text or lectures. In addition to the traditional uses of mapping, it is useful for (1) providing a bridge or prelude to outlining, (2)…

Argues that if textbooks of writing give the best theories available to teachers and teachers of writing, particularly those who see this role as subordinate to that of scholar and teacher within their area of study, the teachers must first be convinced to become philosophers of composition. (RAE)

Discusses a study of 19 junior and senior high school textbooks used in the Washington D.C. area to introduce students to the Arab World and Islam. Findings indicated that Middle Eastern culture and history were frequently measured by western standards, information was often inaccurate, the Arab-Israeli conflict often portrayed Arabs as being at…

Describes various possible lesson plans for French teaching. Various types of exercises are described and their practicality justified. Hints on method are given, and criteria for judging various categories of texts are explained. (IFS/WGA)

Problems in textbook content and teaching methods that need to be dealt with include excessive emphasis on conflict as a societal change agent, the supremacy of individual rights, "humanizing" historical figures, the inadequacies of American society, and gimmickry in social studies methodology. (JR)

The 16 US history textbooks reviewed failed to incorporate economists' research on the causes of the Great Depression and consistently presented information that the economics profession has rejected. Strategies that social studies educators might adopt to improve the quality of economic analysis in textbooks is suggested. (Author/RM)

Summarizes results of a cooperative international analysis of social studies texts by the United States/Japan Study Group. The project found books from each country tended to justify their own country's actions while consistently oversimplifying conditions in the other. Teaching strategies to counteract textbook biases are included. (AM)

Highlights students' ideas about the particle model of matter and its use. Discusses the atomic model in teaching and the rules of the particle modeling game. Demonstrates how a complete understanding of the rules of the model construction yields guidelines for didactic practice. Focuses on problems connected with visual communication through…

Describes and compares five basic German texts for high school students and includes the evaluative criteria used. (CK)