Introduction: The market for digital children's books is growing steadily. But the options vary in terms of quality and parents looking for suitable apps for young children can get overwhelmed quickly. This study seeks to answer how families search for suitable applications and what aspects are important to them while selecting. Method:…

Briefly describes the process of textbook selection and offers some guidelines to help board members who may serve on selection committees. (IRT)

In 1986, the California State Board of Education rejected all 14 kindergarten-eighth grade mathematics textbook series submitted for adoption. Implications of this action are discussed. (CB)

Discusses the development of an instrument to be used by elementary teachers in the evaluation of social studies textbooks. The instrument itself is included in the article. (RM)

School libraries might be emptied if anyone who objected to a book could remove it from the shelves. (DD)

Presents 30 questions about values in reading that teachers can review when deciding which stories and readers ought to be used with children. The questions are divided into five categories: characters depicted; story philosophy of values; plot development; cultural, social and physical setting; and emotional intensity. (NEC)

Textbook makers, buyers, and users are all suffering from censorship by vocal minorities. (DD)

Pressure is mounting in California to abolish state approval of school textbooks and grant full autonomy to local districts. (Author/MLF)

Examines the quality of basal readers and textbooks, discusses some of the forces affecting textbook quality and selection, and offers suggestions for coping with less-than-adequate reading materials. (FL)

Presents guidelines for use in examining the comprehensibility of a textbook, questions to ask about the book, and suggestions for using the guide questions. (FL)

Although teachers have been encouraged to use tradebooks as part of the science curriculum, not much is known about the factors--including teachers' assumptions--that influence the decisions about the books they choose to use. This paper explores some of these issues by asking groups of elementary school teachers to choose from a large set of…

Recognizing that textbook adoption procedures and evaluation criteria vary from state to state or district to district, the authors present some general guidelines on screening and evaluation that should prove helpful to any elementary textbook adoption committee. (Author/SJL)

Identifies four principal conditions which might aggravate a crisis in instructional materials and programs--declining enrollment, inflationary fixed costs, increased teacher salaries and fringe benefits, and the back to basics movement. Suggests criteria to help teachers select textbooks, including seadability, appropriateness, and flexibility.…

Two articles address issues in the development of French and Spanish language programs in elementary schools: instructional materials and time and money factors. The information presented is drawn from experience in developing the Radford, Virginia FLES (Foreign Language in the Elementary School) program. The first article describes some aspects…

Readability formulas typically yield results stated as a number or grade equivalent. However, results of one formula may not be compared to another because formulas use different criteria to measure readability. A description of eight popular formulas illustrate this point. Suggests that other factors be considered when selecting reading…