The paper discusses a study undertaken to evaluate how Jews and Jewish history are treated in three textbooks used in public high schools in Dallas. It also presents findings from the study, and recommends activities and supplementary materials which give a more realistic and comprehensive picture of Jewish history. Major objectives were to…

The process of acquiring knowledge from texts is considered from two perspectives: the learning of the individual facts in the text, and the integration of the facts into a coherent representation reflecting relations among the facts. The former process is presumed to depend on the linguistics content of the text, while the latter process depends…

Developed was a diagrammatic model of basic physical science content structure which included substantive components common to physics and chemistry selected from the Physical Science Study Committee (PSSC) physics and the Chemical Education Materials Study (CHEMS) chemistry texts. A descriptive rationale for the model was written which gave a…

A description and the rationale for selection of new instructional materials adopted by the California State Department of Education are provided in this curriculum publication. Intended for use in grades 1-8 for a four-year period beginning with the 1968-69 school year, these materials include dictionaries, basic language textbooks, supplementary…

Several Latin textbooks are described and evaluated in terms of their affectiveness in teaching language mastery. These are: (1) "Using Latin," Scott, Foresman, (2) "Latin for Americans," Macmillan, (3) "Lingua Latina," by Burns, Medicus, and Sherburne, and (4) "A Basic Course in Latin,""An Intermediate Course in Latin--Reading," and "An…

The "Garcia-Armstrong Matrix System" provides specific instructions for evaluating the way textbooks depict ethnic/minority groups. The matrix is formed by evaluating individual sentences for their references to the activity or passivity of the target group and to the status of the target group in relation to other groups named in the same…

The purpose of this study was to compare characteristics desired by college English teachers in a composition handbook with the characteristics actually found in those recently published in order to help teachers in the selection of this resource. Data were collected through a questionnaire sent to 200 members (170 responded) of the Conference on…

To further evaluate a method of content analysis and aid in identifying scientific concepts appropriate at the elementary level, science material in a standard textbook series was examined. This paper reports and summarizes the analysis of sections of the California state-adopted textbook series, "Concepts in Science." The conceptual…

The Method for Analyzing Content Sequence (MACS), based on the Posner-Strike categorization scheme for classifying content sequencing principles, enables a curriculum researcher or evaluator to describe in quantitative terms how the content in any given curriculum guide or textbook is sequenced. Using MACS, a curriculum worker can determine both…

The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) to examine the linguistic influences of each of the five elementary spelling series currently used in Texas and (2) to describe the elementary spelling programs in 20 selected school districts. A check list was developed which reflected textbook linguistic influence, and a questionnaire covering…

Changes in concepts of usage as illustrated in 111 high school English language textbooks published from 1923 to 1963 formed the subject of this study. The textbooks were placed in one of four groups according to publication date: 1923-1940, 1941-1952, 1953-1958, and 1959-1963. The purpose of the grouping was to determine whether certain usage…

In a synthesis of literature on reading in mathematics, it was noted that there is a broad basis of research in this area on which to base instruction of definite reading skills important in arithmetic achievement. It was stressed that the vocabulary of arithmetic texts runs at readability levels higher than the performance levels of students in…

The purpose of this unit of work is to provide the teacher participant with some useful guidelines for evaluating and adapting written materials for specific English as a second language (ESL) classes. There is pre- and post-assessment of specific learning tasks relevant to evaluating and adapting materials as well as learning activities, which…

Describes the genesis, development, and implementation of a Spanish language course geared to English speakers who work with or aid members of the Hispanic population who have settled in the United States. A text prepared for the course, "Applied Spanish for the Social Services," is described. (DB)

Criticizes beginning textbooks for emphasizing literary or area study material instead of matters pertaining to the students' lives. Presents a taped classroom conversation by sixth-grade students after two years of English instruction, showing how students at this level can handle conversations about matters familiar to them. (IFS/WGA)