Watson and Rayner's study of Little Albert and conditioned emotional reactions is unquestionably a classic in psychology. Observations are made on what authors of 27 college textbooks in abnormal psychology have to say or not to say about Little Albert. (RM)

Metadiscourse is the author's intrusion into the discourse, either explicitly or nonexplicitly, to direct rather than inform the readers. Nine social studies texts written for students in grades 5-12 and nine for adults no longer in school were evaluated to determine if they contain informational and attitudinal subtypes of metadiscourse. (RM)

This paper compared the Math ISTEP scores of third graders before the implementation of the Saxon Math program to the math ISTEP scores of the same group of students in sixth grade after implementation. Ex post factor research was used to compare data from the comparison year to the treatment year. Data collected was in the form of ISTEP math…

Determines from empirical information on the application of four readability formulas to a group of widely used college economics textbooks that there is no consistency in the absolute reading levels or the rank orderings of these books. (AEA)

A content analysis of (N=116) marriage and family texts showed that only one-third devoted at least a sentence or two to death in the family, with widowhood being the most frequently discussed topic. Suggests death, unlike divorce, does not seem to be defined as a crisis by family sociologists. (Author/RC)

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)

Surveys children's information books. Finds that the language of the books is very diverse. Suggests that readers experience diversity of language from a very early age and that such books fall well short of any standard that is desirable of informative texts. (RS)

Explores ways in which the subject of ethics is presented to current and future public relations practitioners within the education process. Finds in the public relations literature that was examined that ethics ought to be a priority concern. (MS)

Examines the relationship of readability to usage of main idea clues in introductory texts in sociology and in English composition texts. Concludes that use of main idea clues provides a useful supplement to readability formulas in evaluating college textbooks. (SR)

Examines the relationship between student perceptions of reading ease and human interest in first-year college writing textbooks and the evaluation results produced by the Flesch formulas and checklist items. Finds that neither the Flesch formula nor checklists relate well to students' perceptions of interest in the writing textbooks evaluated.…

A study of textbook language dealing in depth with the concept of force is described. Textbooks and other historical materials from the 1840s to the present were examined. This provided a longitudinal framework in which to consider language usage. Student language was also investigated. (43 references) (KR)

Eleven college psychology textbooks were surveyed for their presentation of research using animals characterized by invasive procedures. The methods and procedures of the survey are presented. Survey results are discussed. Results indicated that the majority of studies are presented without reference to the subjective state of the animals…

Discusses some of the available frameworks for the pedagogical analysis of school science textbooks. Discusses three approaches to the analysis of science textbooks: the sociocognitive, the sociolinguistic, and the socioepistemic. Considers the relative merits of the third approach using some examples from Greek science textbooks. Contains 18…

Examines how chemistry/science textbooks from different countries and written at different levels of education deal with physical and chemical change. Results indicate that the ideas concerning the teaching and learning of physical and chemical change evident in textbooks are not complete and textbooks seldom justify the content they cover in…

Examination of social studies and English textbooks distributed by A Beka Books, Bob Jones University Press, and School of Tomorrow Inc. revealed evidence of explicit and implicit anti-Catholic bias. Issues were raised concerning the use of tax funds to support schools using these materials and the effects on students of exposure to them. (SK)