Textbook makers, buyers, and users are all suffering from censorship by vocal minorities. (DD)

Examines the quality of basal readers and textbooks, discusses some of the forces affecting textbook quality and selection, and offers suggestions for coping with less-than-adequate reading materials. (FL)

Presents guidelines for use in examining the comprehensibility of a textbook, questions to ask about the book, and suggestions for using the guide questions. (FL)

Although teachers have been encouraged to use tradebooks as part of the science curriculum, not much is known about the factors--including teachers' assumptions--that influence the decisions about the books they choose to use. This paper explores some of these issues by asking groups of elementary school teachers to choose from a large set of…

Focuses on books, booklets, and position papers that would be useful reading for educators involved in making decisions about selecting materials for schools. Discusses guidelines for judging and selecting textbooks and studies and readings on textbooks. (PRA)

Major investigations have shown that children care little for social studies as a school subject. Therefore, a closer look was taken at social studies textbooks in order to ascertain if the reading difficulty of the texts was an important cause behind the children's dislike. This study evaluated the reading levels of 41 social studies texts…

A series of nine booklets was developed to help members of textbook adoption committees, teacher educators, inservice leaders, and policymakers gather information, develop evaluation guidelines, and organize their findings as they select new reading programs and evaluate existing ones. Each booklet focuses on a specific aspect of instruction.…

This annotated bibliography provides elementary and junior high teachers with a list of up-to-date social studies textbook materials. The texts are arranged topically according to 95 social studies categories and include works published from 1962 through 1974. Each annotation includes the text title, source of publication, subject matter…

Effective procedures and techniques for using a textbook along with a philosophy of textbook use in k-12 schools are given in this second issue. The social studies textbook is described as a tool to be used in conjunction with other supplementary instructional materials, such as audio-visual materials, reference books, periodicals, and lectures.…

Discusses procedures for selecting textbooks. Provided are guidelines for reviewing textbooks, analyzing content, and analyzing strategies. (SL)

A framework to be used in text selection is set out as a series of questions, divided into five broad groups. The author uses the framework to analyze four texts. (MK)

The process of evaluating and selecting basal readers has long been a primary concern for educators. Educators directly involved with textbook adoptions have expressed several concerns, including: time pressures on evaluators; lack of training for evaluators; concerns related to publishers; and correlations with state or district curriculum.…

This selection catalog includes broad classifications of the materials adopted for statewide use in California, and descriptions of their chief characteristics and approaches. It is not intended to be considered a substitute for careful examination of these materials, but can only help limit the number of materials school district personnel will…

Study reveals the stress teachers place upon instructional materials and their use in teaching a variety of subjects. (RK)