Many debate textbooks give few examples of well structured arguments, and often the examples which the books do give are inconsistent with current debate practice. All too often, young debaters learn how to structure and deliver arguments from more experienced teammates, or even from debate competition opponents. The clearest example of…

THE FOLLOWING IS THE FULL TEXT OF THIS DOCUMENT: Choosing the textbook for an introductory course can be a frustrating, haphazard, and time-consuming process. This year, members of the sociology department at Mercy College tried a selection process that eliminated at least the first two of those three problems. To begin, the department sent…

Over half of all the introductory sociology books on the market today pay relatively little attention to quantitative sociological methods and research design. (Author/DE)

Research and reviews of college introductory sociology textbooks reveal that most do not accurately reflect the diversity of views and perspectives in sociology and do not accurately convey the research-based knowledge of the discipline. Content analysis of textbooks published in the last 20 years indicates that most textbooks are comprehensive,…

Confirms findings of other studies indicating that textbooks used by college freshmen were in most cases several grade levels above the students' reading abilities. (RB)

The new edition of Eckermann's and Piert's textbook: "English" (Klette, Stuttgart, 1974) is analyzed in regard to topics such as problem-oriented texts and linguistic requirements for the college diploma. (Text is in German.) (IFS/MS)

Presents a summary review of 36 introductory college level astronomy textbooks for nonscience majors. References to more detailed reviews published elsewhere are provided where they exist. (SL)

Proposes that the Conference on College Composition and Communication organize a task force charged with recommending specific solutions to the problems of textbook reviewing and selection. (MS)

Examines approximately one-third of the more than 100 college-level U.S. government textbooks, separating them into four general categories: traditional, thematic, essentials, and ideological. Evaluates texts on the basis of accuracy, readability, adequacy, coverage of certain topics, treatment of women and minorities, and particular policy areas.…

Examines the state of economic education with respect to the natural environment, discussing the role of textbooks in the formation of public policy and the effect of environmental economics on classroom literature. Surveys widely-used college texts, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, and notes possible directions in the field's future.…

Describes "Research in Technical Communication" as a superb resource appropriate for anyone interested in business, technical, even legal communication. Notes that the book contains a wealth of bibliographic citations as well as comprehensive coverage of a diversity of topics. (JD)

Six behavioral statistics textbooks listed by their publishers as "bestsellers" during 1982 were reviewed by the author. The intent was to detect the presence of and to discuss the nature of some theoretical inferential inaccuracies, misinterpretations and errors. (Author/LMO)

Proposes four criteria for evaluating college readers (anthologies), highlighting features that might foster those proficiencies of active reading discussed by Bleich, Rosenblatt, Holland, Dillon, Fish, and other prominent theorists. Applies those four criteria to four best-selling college anthologies. (HTH)

Examined 55 speech communication textbooks published since 1980 and found few that consider the issue of sexism in language. Explores reasons for this neglect, focusing on one area of change: masculine generics. (PD)

Description of the method and results of a study that evaluated introductory psychology textbooks according to their human interest and readability. It updates a previous study. (ND)