Presents an evaluation of a new edition of the Science Curriculum Improvement Study--American Science and Engineering's SCIS II--with a chart comparing it to Rand McNally's SCIIS and the original SCIS program. Also evaluated are three secondary series or kits, including "Holt Life Science/Earth Science/Physical Science." (SJL)

To provide a consistent framework for evaluating competing reading methods and materials, an assessment instrument was devised to help over 100 inservice educators evaluate the middle grade components of five nationally used basal reader programs: the Holt Basic Reading System; the Open Court Correlated Language Arts Program, the Ginn Reading 360…

The Computer-Assisted Instruction Study Management System (CAISMS) was developed and implemented on the PLATO system to monitor and guide student study of text materials. It administers assignments, gives quizzes, and automatically keeps track of a student's progress. This report describes CAISMS and several hypothetical implementations of CAISMS…

The sentences in two first grade basal readers were categorized using Joan Tough's language function classification system to determine whether lower level basal readers allowed children to use their knowledge of language functions in reading. The range of language functions and language uses in the basals was compared to those that Tough found in…

The two studies which received the 1975 Robert E. Slaughter Research Award in Business and Office Education are summarized in the document. The first paper, entitled "Effectiveness of Model Office, Cooperative Office Education, and Office Procedures Courses Based on Employee Satisfaction and Satisfactoriness Eighteen Months After…

An informal study investigated the extent and effectiveness of student use of three forms of instructional materials (basic textbook, casebook, and computer-assisted exercises) in a law school course on evidence, based on comparison of student performance with self-reported use of the materials. Only the computer-assisted exercises appeared to…

A study was conducted at the College of Saint Rose, in Albany, New York, to evaluate the effectiveness of a student workbook that accompanies the 5th edition of the textbook "Introduction to Psychology: Exploration and Application," by Dennis Coon. The study examined the academic performance and attitudes of 106 undergraduate students…

This paper is based on an analysis of 83 syllabuses and/or catalog descriptions of courses on the politics of education, educational policymaking, and policy analysis received from members of the Politics of Education Association in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. This material provided information on what topics were…

A study compared the sex roles depicted in the 1963 Scott Foresman basal series with those of the 1978 series to determine if changes had occurred. A total of 172 stories from 16 readers were analyzed using the Checklist for Evaluating Sexism in Reading. Each story was examined for the number of times males and females were portrayed as main…

A study assessed the training effectiveness of instructional materials designed in accordance with three format models for (1) recalling facts about equipment, (2) applying rules and regulations, and (3) classifying objects and signals. Three types of self-paced instructional materials were compared: learning aids, programmed instruction, and…

A content analysis of selected German translations of six Chinese primary school textbooks, used from 1963 to 1982, assessed the socializing functions of qualification, integration, and identification. Categories involved include professional, moral, cultural, family, school, associations, China as a unified nation, China's achievements, and…

The senior author of a textbook presenting U.S. and Canadian history in a comparative framework criticizes U.S. history textbooks for their interpretations of Native Americans and for their mystifying tendencies. Explains how "Canada: A North American Nation" presents a more detached perspective and offers a second opinion on some of the…

An analysis of the lexical content of four recently published textbooks for college-level introductory German is presented. The study investigated the extent to which the materials prepare students for the intermediate level, as cited in the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages' (ACTFL's) proficiency guidelines. The lexical items…

The first phase of a study investigating textbook readability and students' reading levels used three traditional formulas to assess the readability levels of 51 primary textbooks from college introductory social science courses in 7 disciplines. The second phase investigated the relationship between the readability levels of students' texts,…

A study examined 20 beginning college interpersonal or relational communication textbooks to determine the degree to which they dealt with any or all of 10 specific communication competencies. The 10 competencies, targeted from numerous other evaluation systems and scales, are as follows: (1) describing feelings, (2) initiating and maintaining…