ERIC Number: ED119114
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1974
Pages: 15
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
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Available Date: N/A
Biased Textbooks: Images of Males and Females in Elementary School Textbooks in Five Subject Areas; What You Can Do about Biased Textbooks.
Weitzman, Lenore J.; Rizzo, Diane
This research report focuses on the latent content of textbooks, the information attempting to instruct the child in ethical and moral values. Textbooks being used in the average classrooms in the United States today in grades one through six were examined and analyzed to discover the way the two sexes are portrayed and the types of behavior encouraged for each. The major focus of this analysis was textbook illustrations. Three major classifications were used: age, race and sex of individuals portrayed. Illustrations of adults comprise 28% of the pictures in the first grade and 73% in the sixth grades. Eighty-one er cent of the illustrations portrayed whites, while only 8% portray blacks. The percentage of illustrations of females varies by grade level from 32% in the second grade to only 20% by the sixth grade. The world of boys is shown as one of action and energy; the world of girls is shown as one of passivity, watching, and waiting for boys. While men are shown in over 150 occupational roles, almost all the women in textbooks are housewives. Science was discovered to have the most male oriented tests. Suggestions for what individuals can do about biased textbooks are listed for students, teachers, teacher groups, administrators, and parents and community groups. (MKM)
Descriptors: Elementary Education, Mathematics Instruction, Racial Discrimination, Reading Instruction, Science Instruction, Sex Discrimination, Sex Stereotypes, Social Bias, Social Sciences, Textbook Bias, Textbook Research, Textbook Selection, Textbook Standards
National Foundation for the Improvement of Education, 1156 15th Street, N.W., Suite 918, Washington, D.C. 20005 ($1.00)
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
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Authoring Institution: National Foundation for the Improvement of Education, Washington, DC.
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