A STUDY OF THE NATURE AND UTILITY OF TYPES OF ESSAY ANTHOLOGIES DESIGNED FOR FRESHMAN COMPOSITION COURSES WAS CONDUCTED IN ORDER TO DETERMINE (1) WHAT ARE THE RATIONALES, ORGANIZATION, CONTENT, AND INSTRUCTIONAL APPARATUS OF THE MOST WIDELY ADOPTED READERS, (2) HAVE THE RATIONALES FOR THEIR USE VARIED SINCE SUCH TEXTS APPEARED, AND (3) IS THE…

Examines college (introductory level) biology textbooks commonly used since 1950. Reports trends in new textbooks including length, graphics and content. Makes projections of future trends. Identifies major issues facing colleges related to biology textbook users. (CW)

Reviews results of a survey of reading/study skills texts for college developmental reading courses. Offers survey-based recommendations for selection of texts. (FL)

This volume of an annual collection presents nine essays relating to instruction in the basic communication course. The essays are: "Three Metaphors for the Competencies Acquired in the Public Speaking Class" (Michael Osborn); "Perceptions of Basic Communication Texts: Factors in Student Learning and Textbook Adoption…

Addresses the growing size of college organic chemistry textbooks. Notes that at the current rate of growth, average textbooks will be 1544 pages long in year 2000. Suggests methods to reduce textbook size. (ML)

Questions content of many introductory courses in political science, pointing out most courses focus on the U.S. political system, not the discipline and its basic theoretical and conceptual elements. Argues for a generalist approach that gives students a better understanding of political systems and the global world. Includes authors, choices,…

Ten randomly sampled college reading/study skill texts published since 1987 were analyzed based on external text aids and validated research recommendations. Many articles exist that contain a detailed description of one specific skill such as mapping, underlining, sequencing, etc., but only one recent article, "Ten Recommendations from Research…

This paper describes two prospective English teachers' beliefs and understandings regarding literature and the teaching of literature. Through extensive interviews that included context-specific tasks, the study explored the subjects' prior experiences with literature, their conceptions regarding the nature of literature, and their perceptions of…

This analysis of educational practices in the United States takes the position that a number of practices, including the way teachers are trained, textbooks selected, and college and university faculty rewarded, have become institutionalized and endure in spite of the reform efforts of the past decade. These practices, once established on a large…

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…

The issue of whose "facts" and whose perspective will control classroom discussions of social questions tends to surface in one of two related ways: (1) in connection with efforts to mandate the content of the instructional matter, and (2) in connection with attacks on teachers whose instructional material contains facts or evaluations offensive…

Describes the organization of a graduate course dealing with mass transfer, particularly as it relates to chemical reactions. Discusses the course outline, including mathematics models of mass transfer, enhancement of mass transfer rates by homogeneous chemical reaction, and gas-liquid systems with chemical reaction. (TW)

Discusses the impact of Marxist geography on course content and textbooks in college geography. Reviews three textbooks. Identifies four persistent problems in the representation of Marxist geography. Suggests a template through which teachers can offer students a more discriminating account of that model. (CFR)

Given the professed orientation toward proficiency development in the foreign language teaching profession, the inclination of textbook authors and publishers to offer communicative activities should be quite strong. This study analyzed the learning activities of six popular first-year college German textbooks and found that half the texts provide…

Reported is a study designed to determine whether reading grade level (RGL) assessment techniques used for elementary and secondary education textbooks would discriminate among plant and soil science textbooks. The study was to select the RGL indices suited to quantify the readability of these sources, and to identify the factors affecting…