This paper addresses the question of whether introductory students are learning the essential concepts of sociology. A study of 18 introductory sociology textbooks, dated from 1973 through 1977, indicates that these basic concepts are not clearly and intelligibly presented. Although over 1500 concepts were included in 18 glossaries, only one…

In response to the problem facing college faculties of choosing textbooks that are both "readable" by students and adequate in content coverage, a text selection process has been developed that can be used with or without the aid of a reading specialist. The first step in the process, a preliminary check, examines each proposed text's publication…

The booklet reviews the largely inadequate treatment of Nazi persecution of the Jews in history textbooks and presents an annotated list of other books which treat the Holocaust in depth. Studies of texts commonly used in high school, college freshman survey of Western civilization courses, and advanced university history courses show that…

The subjects for this study were 81 freshman students who were taking courses in the social sciences at Herbert H. Lehman College in New York. A Nelson Denny Reading Test showed their average reading grade level to be 10.4 Twenty-three books in the social science areas were selected for appraisal, using such procedures as the application of a…

On the basis of the frequency of family-related concepts in 60 college psychology textbooks, the article recommends that psychology teaching and research concentrate on the interaction of an individual with his familial and environmental surroundings. (DB)

Urges editors to evaluate the educational concepts underlying commercial educational materials and to determine whether the concepts are in accord with the findings of educational research. (DD)

Based on an examination of numerous manuals, the current content and approaches to the study of French contemporary civilization are presented. Analytic commentary is provided of the books considered. (SW)

Reports on an analysis of 35 American management textbooks that identifies 17 core concepts for management courses for information professionals. Each concept--accountability, accounting, authority, budgeting, change/innovation/creativity, communication, controlling, decision making, delegation and organization, ethics, fiscal management,…

Divides texts into two groups, the first of which teaches a selected group of words; the second teaches strategies for learning vocabulary as well as teaching a selected group of words. (EL)

Criticizes topical readers on the English language now being used in freshman composition classes both for implying that language constrains more than aids thinking and for providing poor writing samples for the student to analyze and emulate. Discusses the influence of general semantics on these readers and the reliance on the parodic perspective…

Of 21 beginning French textbooks evaluated according to presentation of French culture, only two met the cultural and pedagogical criteria derived from various models. Lacking this cultural content, students cannot fully learn the foreign language. (PMJ)

Describes method of analysis of textbook indexes and bibliographies. Data can be used for studying the discipline, teaching, evaluating textbooks, and making administrative/personnel decisions. (Author/KC)

Contends that, as publishers integrate international issues into professional writing textbooks, analysis is necessary about how curricular globalization is presented to students. Examines textbooks that position international students as clients, consumers, and exotics who present barriers to effective communication; most contain catalogs of…

Describes the use of the Flesch readability and interest formulae to evaluate textbooks intended for use in college level introductory educational computing courses. Variables that influence what textbook is chosen for a college course are discussed, and readability scores, human interest categories, and subject matter coverage are examined in…