Georgia state history textbooks published from 1917 to 1982 were analyzed to determine how they interpreted the Reconstruction Era. A traditional interpretation, a pro-Southern viewpoint, was used in textbooks until the 1960s. Since then, the most widely adopted texts have taken a revisionist perspective--a more neutral point of view. (IS)

Because of the unpopularity of the inquiry method, most new government texts are of the straight narrative type. Many educators believe that civics curriculum materials are subject to censorship by special interest groups. Regarding goal achievement, many believe civic education has not trained students to accept their civic responsibilities. (RM)

Debates the issue of evolution v creationism, focusing on evolution as fact or theory. Concludes that eminent scientific authorities consider evolution a fact and demonstrates that, in spite of this, writers of college and secondary textbooks refer to evolution as theory. Supports teaching of evolution, not creationism, in science classes. (DC)

Examines 25 introductory sociology textbooks to ascertain patterns of race-ethnic coverage. Discovers coverage to be fairly extensive but focused around a limited set of sociological topics (stratification, education, health). Coverage in other areas (age, politics, religion) was significantly lower. Discusses implications for course development…

Reports a study examining the use of group activities in 10 randomly selected English-language teaching coursebooks published since 1990. Results are discussed in light of theory and research on cooperative learning; task-based language teaching; and the roles of learners, teachers, and coursebooks. (26 references) (Author/CK)

Maintains that most economics textbooks continue to repeat past mistakes concerning returns to scale and economies of scale under assumptions of constant and nonconstant input prices. Provides an adaptation for a calculus-based intermediate microeconomics class that demonstrates the pointwise relationship between returns to scale and economies of…

Overviews the most recently published or revised version of North American second-year Italian textbooks. Notes that each of the six textbooks reviewed provides sound pedagogical materials designed to enhance instruction. (55 references) (CK)

Ten Oklahoma reading textbooks from five publishers contained 462 stories, of which 28% were multicultural. A survey of 148 teachers from 10 rural Oklahoma schools found that only 4% of books used in classrooms addressed cultural diversity. Tradebooks address cultural diversity better than textbooks, but are less available to rural teachers.…

Compares and contrasts the representation of World War II era Germans in English textbooks and academic histories. Finds the academic histories to be more varied and in-depth. Discusses the strategies used by the textbooks to create portrait of mindless aggression. Considers educational and policy implications. (MJP)

Investigates whether increasing the African American experience in U.S. textbooks promotes significant knowledge increases of that group, and if this improves white racial attitudes towards African Americans. Explores the effect of teachers' utilization of the textbook's technology on knowledge acquisition and attitude change. Results show the…

Points out the limitations of the Cartesian epistemology underlying most art education textbooks. Explores the ideas of Gregory Bateson and Ellen Dissanayake who express a semiotic view of artistic creation that is multidimensional. Suggest implications for art education. (KM)

The articles in this feature support the view that history and philosophy are useful to science instruction. Topics include the history of science teaching, the role of science textbooks, the relationship between science and the humanities, and a bibliography on history, philosophy, and science teaching. (IAH)

Raises issues concerning pupils' interactions with mathematics textbooks. Discusses problems related to effective reading and the ability to interpret graphs, diagrams, and symbols. (NH)

Focuses on the content and presentation of instructional sequences on the American Revolution in four commercial fifth-grade social studies textbook series. Discusses problems with content, learning objectives, background, and explanation. (FMW)

Reports on a content analysis of four popular first-grade basal series, examining decoding and comprehension instruction in teachers' manuals, student texts, workbooks, and supplementary activity packages. Reports that none of the programs present a balanced approach to teaching decoding and comprehension with very comprehensible stories. (MM)