The purpose of this study was to focus on features of spelling textbook instruction that were not included in an earlier investigation. This paper presents data gathered from further analysis of the same seven commercial series used in the previous assessment and discusses the scope and sequence of major instructional categories. The following…

The development of a course of study for industrial arts in grades one through eight, which was based on material presented on state adopted basal textbooks, was the purpose of this project. Instruction resulting from the course of study was to serve six functions: social, cultural, consumer, recreational, occupational, and technical. Specific…

In an attempt to uncover the influence of primary reading textbook content on reading achievement, both historical and contemporary reading textbooks were analyzed in terms of sex role portrayal in a variety of settings. The implications of the observed portrayals for children's own sex role modeling are discussed. Among the observations are: a…

Unfortunately, textbooks of the elementary and junior high school levels receive very little of the honest, critical evaluation which is given trade books in children's literature. One vivid example of this fact was seen in the recent arduous but successful attempt to include "Beowul" in a fourth-grade literature text which was being…

This issue of the Yazigi Institute's bimonthly newsletter is devoted to a discussion of the importance of humor in the teaching and learning of a foreign language. It begins with several quotations from well-known linguists, humorists and teachers about the need for humor in the language class. Several examples of humor in the textbooks of the…

A survey of the contents of the social studies texts used in the schools of Ontario, Canada, was conducted to determine what the texts presented about the Indians of Canada. The approved texts used in grades 2 through 8 were examined, and strengths and weaknesses of each text are cited in the document. Appendix A gives the guidelines used in…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of instruction methods and choice of textbooks or teaching materials on the quality and style of writing found in college freshmen English examinations. Eighty male, native English-speaking students (40 taking courses in technical report writing at Oregon Technical Institute, 40 studying…

Thiry-five selections taken from each of 16 Virginia high school literature anthologies (a total of 560 selections in all) were examined to determine what major life concepts were being presented to adolescents. A major concept was considered an abstract idea which expressed relationships between the relatively concrete objects (i.e., characters'…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of using different mathematics textbooks on the mathematical computational ability of students as a method of assessing the effectiveness of different mathematics instruction. This study resulted from a 1963 report which discussed the results of the New Hampshire Statewide Eighth Grade Testing…

The research objective was to examine the development and diffusion of a field of knowledge related to education as reflected in textbooks published in the United States, England and Canada. Using a scheme derived from invention-diffusion theory, over 150 textbooks in educational sociology (including sociology of education and social foundations…

Three hundred and twenty-six Detroit-area Negro parents belonging to parent-teacher organizations were used to determine attitudes toward pictures of Negro personalities and events which might be included in junior high school social studies texts. Fifty-five captioned slides, divided into periods of slavery, emancipation, and twentieth century,…

These 12 articles on censorship in the schools comprise a collection of "representative opinions expressed by concerned individuals"--professors, teachers, school administrators, clergy, high school students, a publisher, and a spokesman for the National Education Association. The essays range in viewpoint from a traditional belief in the…

A reading project was initiated by the National Institute of Education in India to (1) produce textbooks and workbooks, field test the books, and train teachers to use them, (2) produce teachers manuals, (3) construct first-grade tests, (4) construct achievement tests, and (5) produce these books in Hindi. The ensuing guide for those who write and…

The eight books examined in this study were the most recent editions of: Observing People and Places; Exploring Our Needs; At Home in Our Land; The Social Sciences: Concepts and Values; Communities and Social Needs; Learning About Communities: One Plus One; Investigating Man's World: Local Studies; and, Communities and their Needs. A group of six…