History textbooks are less likely to be complete renderings of the truth than a series of stories textbook authors (and the many stakeholders who influence them) consider beneficial. Sam Wineburg describes how the process of writing history textbooks often leads to sanitized and inaccurate versions of history. As an example, he describes how the…

Much of the attention given to literacy, of late, has focused on ensuring that students can read, without consideration to what they are given to read. Kristin Conradi Smith & Elfrieda H. Hiebert discuss four general aspects of the texts used in elementary classrooms -- text complexity, text type (narrative versus informational), text format…

The Common Core raises the stature of texts to new heights, creating a hubbub. The fuss is especially messy at the early grades, where children are expected to read more complex texts than in the past. But early-grades teachers have been given little actionable guidance about text complexity. The authors recently examined early-grades texts to…

Researchers at the Center for the Study of Curriculum at Michigan State University have developed a tool to help teachers implement the Common Core State Standards in mathematics by letting standards, not textbooks, guide their instruction. Using the web-based Textbook Navigator/Journal, teachers can pick a standard and ask which portions of the…

Over 95 percent of 24 of the most widely used teacher education textbooks devote less than one percent of book space to the issue of sexism. (Author/IRT)

Although schoolchildren daily move veritable mountains of textbooks, these heavy tomes may not be worth the effort. The modern text is particularly damaging to TV-inundated students who know little of the rewards and pleasures of reading. Soft-cover books printed in black and white and authored by professional writers would be more cost effective…

Oakland, California, has launched a protracted campaign against the purchase of a state-approved K-12 social studies textbook series published by Houghton Mifflin. Numerous organizations, parents, and teachers voted against adopting these texts, which portray U.S. society as an immigrant culture and shortchange African-American, Latino, and Asian…

An evaluation of the content of three basal reading series show that they are changing with the times. Current readers are less likely than older readers to show sex and racial stereotyping and no longer show life as always happy. (Author/IRT)

Conservative challenges to materials used in the public schools are no longer limited to isolated attacks against individual books. Recent curriculum challenges are noteworthy for their frequency, new targets (such as the Impressions textbook series), and changed strategies, ranging from litigation and personal persuasion to highly organized…

Students in various curricular domains, including science, mathematics, and social studies, may be superficially exposed to vast amounts of material resulting from overstuffed textbooks and an overemphasis on elaboration, interference, and practice. Some elaborations provided by teachers and textbooks may hinder the realization of key educational…

Mathematics textbooks are critical tools for student learning in American classrooms. Teachers use them daily to plan and deliver lessons, and students use them in class to explore and learn mathematics. Given textbooks' potential to support student learning, it is important to understand how they are developed. While pressure is growing on…

Discusses "Mozert v. Hawkins," pointing out four important factors in the case, and shows the reasonable and reasoned way the judge's final decision was made. (MD)

Reviews the portrayal of ethnic groups in American textbooks between 1970 and 1990. In the 1970s, African Americans received more thorough coverage than Hispanics, Asian Americans, and Euro-Americans. Whites are frequently villainized. Later texts provide more space, but no greater depth of coverage, and ignore white ethnic group distinctions and…

Textbook treatments of Hiroshima bombing inadequately convey this event's horrors and complexities. Many adults and children are desensitized to war's horrors by media's depersonalized language, i.e., using "collateral damage" to describe Desert Storm civilian casualties. Educators should seek alternative resources, such as Toshi…

In response to Ben Brodinsky's article, the authors submitted a paper describing the service they offer of reviewing textbooks and providing critiques. They maintain that educators no longer hold to the Judeo-Christian ethic, although three-fourths of Americans believe in these values. (MLF)