In the past, science textbooks have been the target of criticism by educators and feminists in studies of sex bias in education. The purpose of this study was to develop a useful tool that could be used in formative or summative evaluation of the level of sexism in science textbooks and as a research tool to study the effect of sexist…

This issue of the "Interracial Books for Children Bulletin" has three major articles. The first deals with the book titled, "The Five Chinese Brothers". This is one of the most widely circulated children's books in the United States. Although this book has been tauted as being authentically "Chinese", it is being…

Thirty-six textbooks used by the Pittsburgh public schools at grade levels K-5 were reviewed to see how they treat girls vs. boys and men vs. women. Language, reading, science, social studies, and mathematics texts were evaluated. Blatant sexism is found in all areas. Different ideas of behavior and mores are propagated for boys than for girls;…

Seven representative elementary school textbooks used in the United States were examined, as part of an international study of sex-stereotyping in textbooks, to determine whether the depiction of males and females was qualitatively and quantitatively sex-equitable. The analysis used a gender models checklist developed by M. Gonzalez-Suarez (1986)…

This study examined the portrayal of women in current U.S. history textbooks which are used in the classroom. Among the questions explored were the following: who among outstanding women is or is not noted, what topics are covered or omitted, how are average women of selected eras treated, and how are women who fought for currently controversial…

In the past, science textbooks have been the target of criticism of science educators in studies of sex bias in the past. The purpose of this study was to examine the illustrations in the biology textbooks most commonly used in high schools in the United States. Seven textbooks were examined for their representation of women in illustrations of…

To determine whether elementary reading textbooks from a socialist country contained less sex-role stereotyping than previously-studied United States readers, an analysis of 374 books from the German Democratic Republic (G.D.R.) was undertaken. A sex bias index was calculated for both the G.D.R. and the U.S. books by finding the average difference…

Prepared for those interested in providing nonsexist education, this guide offers information pertaining to sexism in textbooks and educational materials. Parts one and two contain a discussion of ways to identify forms of bias and provide guidelines for eliminating sex bias and for analyzing content and language usage in educational materials.…

Analysis of sex and race representation in almost 3000 stories drawn from 77 basal readers in 7 series published between 1980 and 1982 shows that, although minority and female numerical representation has increased, there has been little progress in role models offered. In terms of representation in the labor force, males of all races were…

Evaluates the Greek governments' gender equality educational policy; new reading books that the Greek government presented in 1983 as solving previously reading books' sexism; and views of the educational establishment, women's organizations, and teachers concerning old and new books and new books' efficacy in light of textual analyses. (RLC)

Presented in this guide are summary descriptions of programs developed by several institutes to: (1) assist educators in examining their personal attitudes, biases, and behaviors vis-a-vis the changing roles of males and females; (2) encourage participants to take responsibility for the consequences of their behavior; (3) assist educators in…

This report on sex discrimination in the Kalamazoo Public Schools describes the findings from a study of materials used during the 1971-72 school year. Conducted by a task force on elementary school textbooks, the study evaluated 172 texts, 65 supplements, and 24 study-print sets for sex stereotyping and sexism. Sex roles depicted for both…

A group of six feminists undertook this study because they felt it important that people learn about racial and sexual discrimination in textbooks used in Baltimore City and other U.S. schools. The task force chose five series of basal readers widely used in Baltimore. These series are used in most, if not all, Elementary Secondary Education Act…

Practical methods and materials for changing sexist practices in the classroom are offered as a resource for teachers in their efforts to eliminate sexual stereotyping from the schools. Discussing why sexist practices should be changed are reprints of articles on women's role in social change and in the curriculum, development of sexual…

Highlights the need in Nigeria for equal representation of the sexes in young adult reading materials. (AUTH/ARH)