What makes a useful textbook, and can the use of textbooks boost active learning and student satisfaction in political science higher education? Drawing on the author's own experience of writing a textbook and a student survey, this article articulates some propositions on effective textbook-assisted teaching practice. In seeking to develop a…

In this paper, we explore how diagram placement in mathematics textbooks influences (i) students' and teachers' perceptions of exposition quality and (ii) students' reading behaviour as indexed by their eye movements. Our findings contribute to research on the "spatial contiguity principle," which recommends that related educational…

Drawing extensively on the expertise of teachers of German in universities across the UK, this volume offers an overview of recent trends, new pedagogical approaches and practical guidance for teaching at beginners level in the higher education classroom. At a time when entries for UK school exams in modern foreign languages are decreasing, this…

A substantial proportion of university students report committing plagiarism and related forms of misconduct. An academic integrity-focused approach to addressing plagiarism emphasises the promotion of positive values alongside education of staff and students about good, and bad, practice in writing, studying and assessment design. The concept was…

The Latin essay "De re Scholastica Anglica cum Germanica Comparata" (English and German school education compared) published in 1795-1798 by the Freiberg/Saxony grammar school principal Friedrich August Hecht is the first treatise in comparative education. The rediscovery of the text, its earlier mentioning in the history of comparative…

This article explores aspects of the relationship between professional standards for teachers and the curriculum for teacher education in the lifelong learning sector in the United Kingdom. Drawing on an analysis of different editions of three core textbooks for teacher education in the lifelong learning sector, which are positioned as acting as…

A three-country study was undertaken to assess the educational efficacy of two textbooks authored by the researcher. The same texts were distributed to groups of student nurses in the United Kingdom, Cambodia, and Kenya. A data collection tool was developed to obtain quantitative data and to ask open-ended questions on how useful readers found the…

Higher education is commonly described as offering combinations of work and leisure, but the implied relationship is often limited. Different conceptions of leisure, especially leisure as pleasurable experience, raise new possibilities for seeing academic activity itself as leisure in several important senses. The importance of identifying…

While textbooks remain a key part of the teaching and learning process, evidence suggests that student completion of reading assignments is lower than teacher expectations. Although there is a small body of literature examining textbook use, studies relating specifically to marketing textbooks are sparse. This article seeks to explore how…

The disturbances that took place across English towns and cities in 2011 raised significant debate and discussion about their causes and the motivations of the "rioters". Media and official explanations citing criminality and opportunism, repeated the now familiar narratives of cultural deficit, blaming absent fathers, poor parenting and…

One of the key requirements of the Common Core State Standards for Reading is that all students must be able to comprehend texts of steadily increasing complexity as they progress through school. By the time they complete the core, students must be able to read and comprehend independently and proficiently the kinds of complex texts commonly found…

Introduces a theoretical framework--a language of description --which has been developed for the sociological analysis of school texts, mathematics texts in particular. The language is introduced through the practical description of extracts from the texts which were analyzed in its development. Also indicates how the language of description is…

Expresses concern about the scientific accuracy of 2 series of books intended for years 7-8 working toward Key Stage 3. Discusses three examples that relate to the liquid state, solutions, and genes and chromosomes. Includes the criteria upon which the appraisal is based. (Author/JRH)

New teachers and those without a strong background in geography tend to neglect "higher level" thinking, including causal explanations and thinking about reasons in primary school geography. This is a problem that training has yet to address effectively, at least in the UK. It could be that children's textbooks may help such teachers…

Extracts from booklets providing critical reviews of and recommendations related to textbooks of the Nuffield Mathematics Project are presented. (SD)