Well-informed decisions on curricular materials can be an efficient way to boost student achievement. Prior studies have employed experimental and quasi-experimental designs to investigate the effects of textbooks on mathematics achievement. This is the first study to consider textbook effects in social studies education. Within the context of a…

Strong instructional materials are crucial to realizing the promise of the Common Core State Standards. Research suggests that the choice of instructional materials can have an impact as large as or larger than the impact of teacher quality. Unfortunately, many popular textbooks are not aligned to the new standards, leaving educators scrambling.…

New laws in California have set the state on a course for some potentially significant changes to the curriculum, including a measure that revisits the matter of teaching Algebra 1 in 8th grade and another that revamps the state's textbook-adoption process and hands districts greater leeway in choosing instructional materials. The algebra-related…

The purpose of this article was to review published research literature about procedures used to select textbooks in the USA. The contents of books, collected works, reports and journal articles were analysed, and summaries of the contents were then organised chronologically to present a commentary on the topic. The results showed that procedures…

Textbook Adoption: The process, in place in twenty-one states, of reviewing textbooks according to state guidelines and then mandating specific books that schools must use, or lists of approved textbooks that schools must choose from. It consistently produces second-rate textbooks that replicate the same flaws and failings over and over again.…

In 1986, the California State Board of Education rejected all 14 kindergarten-eighth grade mathematics textbook series submitted for adoption. Implications of this action are discussed. (CB)

This handbook has been developed to assist school districts in the adoption of textbooks. The criteria for establishing a textbook selection process are included, as well as selection criteria for specific subject areas. Procedural steps are initially outlined for preliminary activities, book examination procedure, and implementation, and then a…

The instructional textbooks for history-social science, K-8 grades, recommended for adoption in the state of California are described in this report. The rationales for recommendation of particular texts are provided, as well as those behind the decision not to recommend other materials. A number of special issues dealt with by the adoption…

California state-adopted commercial art and music instructional materials are described to aid state school districts in matching instructional materials with curriculum goals and objectives. Information is provided in three sections. An annotated index gives pertinent information about each program, including title, year of copyright, and grade…

The California State Board of Education is responsible for adopting textbooks and instructional materials for use in kindergarten through grade eight. The purposes of the instructional materials program are to: (1) establish clear standards for the educational and social content of texbooks and instructional materials; (2) evaluate instructional…

Because the state of Texas is the largest single market for secondary texts in the nation and because its state adoption process has drawn a small but well-organized group of protestors, the Texas textbook adoption process has begun to shape textbooks in use nationwide. A study was conducted to examine the arguments most recently used by citizens…

The objective of this study was to collect "baseline" data with which to examine a complex process in the educational system--the selection of educational materials. The first part of the study analyzes the statutes of the fifty states which bear upon selection and purchase of educational materials. The purpose of this analysis is to…

Finds that no concensus exists among Michigan post-secondary schools on the "ideal" textbook, course requirement, or course evaluation procedures for their business communication courses. Proposes that some standards be established in these areas. (RL)

The author recounts his experiences in the textbook adoption process during his tenure on the California State Board of Education from 1975 to 1981. The focus on legal criteria (such as the reflection of cultural or racial diversity or print and page size), he argues, too often overrides concern with quality of the books' contents. (GC)

To assist California school district personnel in their selection of state-adopted instructional materials, this catalog of literature materials consists of four parts. The first, an annotated index of instructional materials identified as basic materials, gives pertinent information about each literature program, including program title, year of…