Reading is an integral part of chemistry education. The language of chemistry plays a major role when reading chemistry texts and textbooks. Reading textual and non-textual explanations impact students' understanding of chemistry texts and textbooks. In our review we outline the importance of reading texts and textbooks in chemistry education. We…

Features of eighth-grade history textbooks were examined through replication of a 20-year-old study that investigated "considerateness" of textbooks. Considerate texts provide clear, coherent information and include features that promote students' comprehension, such as explicit use of organizational structures, a range of question types…

English education in Japan and Korea are similar in some respects. Although both countries are not completely but mostly monolingual societies, where citizens do not need English in their daily life, they have begun to realize the importance of English as a tool for international communication, and as a result their English education is becoming…

A study investigated the readability levels of different editions of six college textbooks published in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s ("A History of Civilization,""Government by the People,""Economics,""Introduction to Modern Business,""Introduction to Psychology," and "Pscyhology"). The study also compared the number of pages and chapters appearing…

Eight college listening texts were selected and evaluated by the following criteria: organization, supporting material, and readability. Text organization was assessed by preface material, table of contents, index, and references. Text supporting material was evaluated by the use of hard data, soft data, visual aids, and bibliographies. Text…

Although the popular press has reported that college textbooks are becoming easier to read in response to the lowered reading skill level of entering freshmen, a recent study found that newer editions of college texts were more difficult to read than earlier editions of the same texts. A study was undertaken to determine which of the two views was…

Six readability formulas (Flesch, Kincaid-Flesch, Dale-Chall, Gunning-Fog, Raygor, and Fog) were used to evaluate 260 vocational textbooks. The formulas were effective in discriminating ease or difficulty. Human interest scores, but not writing style, were a strong factor in identifying accessible texts for special populations. (SK)

Reviews 16 successful, college-level anthropology textbooks, examining content, clarity, readability, audience level, scholarship, and focus. Advocates greater coverage of topics such as applied anthropology and suggests attention be given to alternatives to the standard cultural institutions of marriage, religion, etc. States that the scientific…

A study of physical and pedagogical characteristics, determination of basal difficulty, and story contents in West German and United States reading texts shows that basal readers are more often similar than dissimilar, perhaps having undergone similar developmental changes across cultures. (JM)

Examines readability of elementary science textbooks regarding visual supplements (color, visuals, and page layout). Significant relationships were found between cloze scores and both grade level and content. Also found significant interaction between grade and sex in favor of older males. Eight of nine texts were at or near readability…

Reports the means, standard deviations, and relevant statistics on an examination of the readability of 24 contemporary textbooks that employ a hybrid approach to the basic speech communication course. Discusses some strategies for developing reading skills. (KEH)

Fry's Readability Graph was used to determine the readability levels of the 1981 Scott, Foresman and Co. basal textbook series for grades one through six. The readability levels were then compared to those established for the 1978 edition. In the 1981 edition, all stories were handscored. Poems, skill lessons, and plays were not examined in order…

A study examined 52 stories for grades 1-6, randomly chosen from 10 American and Canadian literature-based reading series containing well-known selections by well-known authors. The study compared the reading series selection to the original story cited in the series acknowledgments, seeking patterns of difference in wording, paragraph structure,…

Two representative samples of expository prose from sixth grade textbooks (one in science and one in social studies) were analyzed for clarity of explanation. Four text criteria were applied to the analyses: structure, unity, coherence, and audience appropriateness. The results of the analysis suggested that many children's textbooks are not…