The Development and Publication of Elementary Mathematics Textbooks: Let the Buyer Beware

Mathematics textbooks are critical tools for student learning in American classrooms. Teachers use them daily to plan and deliver lessons, and students use them in class to explore and learn mathematics. Given textbooks' potential to support student learning, it is important to understand how t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Phi Delta Kappan 2006-01, Vol.87 (5), p.377-383
Main Authors: Reys, Barbara J., Reys, Robert E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
Business structures
Curricula
Curriculum Development
Elementary education
Elementary School Mathematics
Evidence
Fractions
Guidelines
Instructional Leadership
Instructional Materials
Learning
Math Education: Teaching for Understanding
Mathematics
Mathematics curricula
Mathematics Curriculum
Mathematics education
Mathematics materials
Mathematics teachers
Prior Learning
Publishing industry
Quasiexperimental Design
Research and Development
Research and Development Centers
Series convergence
State Regulation
State Standards
Success
Teachers
Teaching Methods
Textbook Content
Textbook Evaluation
Textbook Publication
Textbook Selection
Textbook Standards
Textbooks
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Summary:Mathematics textbooks are critical tools for student learning in American classrooms. Teachers use them daily to plan and deliver lessons, and students use them in class to explore and learn mathematics. Given textbooks' potential to support student learning, it is important to understand how they are developed. While pressure is growing on curriculum developers and publishers to gather and share evidence of the effectiveness of textbooks, several forces are working against the production of high-quality, research-based curriculum materials. These forces include a lack of consensus on what mathematics should be emphasized at particular grade levels and a highly competitive, market-driven industry that produces textbooks under very tight time lines and, in some states, under very strict guidelines. What can and should school leaders do to select good textbook materials? This article examines the current environment and offers some advice for those considering new elementary mathematics textbooks. (Contains 1 table, 1 figure and 11 endnotes.)
ISSN:0031-7217
1940-6487
DOI:10.1177/003172170608700510