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##  High School Biology Textbooks Do Not Meet National Standards. ERIC              Digest.                                                                      

Apparently bigger is not better when it comes to selecting biology              textbooks.   That is the conclusion of a recent study by Project                2061, the ongoing science and mathematics education reform effort of            the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS,                  2000).  Following the publication of guidelines for what                        scientifically literate students should know and be able to                     do (AAAS, 1989, 1993), Project 2061 began developing a                          curriculum-materials analysis process (Kulm, Roseman, & Treistman,              1999) to determine the degree to which science and mathematics                  textbooks are aligned with the National Science Education Standards             established by the National Research Council (NRC, 1996),                       Benchmarks (AAAS, 1993) and other standards. Previous reports of the            Project 2061 group have focused on science textbooks for the middle             grades (Roseman, Kesidou, Stern, & Caldwell, 1999), mathematics                 textbooks for the middle grades (AAAS, 1999), and algebra                       textbooks (Kulm, 2000) (Available online at                                     www.project2061.org/newsinfo/ research/textbook/index.htm).  All                four studies found serious weaknesses in the science and mathematics            textbooks evaluated, the most widely used science and mathematics               textbooks in American schools.  These are sobering findings given               the extent to which teachers use textbooks to guide instruction and             determine curriculum content (Association for Supervision and                   Curriculum Development, 1997). EVALUATION PROCESSTwo                      independent teams of biology teachers, science curriculum                       specialists, and professors of science education evaluated each of              ten leading biology textbooks and teacher guides. (AAAS, 2000) using            a benchmarks-based process (Kulm & Roseman; 1999). For more details             on the evaluation teams, see the description online at                          www.project2061.org/newsinfo/research/textbook/hsbio/about.htm. The             evaluation process included both content analysis and instructional             analysis. 
Content analysis focused on the alignment of textbook               content with selected learning goals from Science for all                       Americans (AAAS, 1989), the National science education                          standards (NRC, 1996), and the Benchmarks for science                           literacy (AAAS, 1993).  Textbook content relating to learning goals             in the following topic areas were examined: 
* Cell structures and             functions 
* Matter and energy transformations 
* Molecular basis             of heredity 
* Natural selection and evolution 
For more detail               regarding the specific content analyzed, see the report by                      AAAS (2000, p. 202) or view the key ideas online at                             www.project2061.org/                                                            newsinfo/research/textbook/hsbio/ideas.htm. 
Instructional analysis            included an examination of each textbook's instructional design                 using criteria derived from research on learning and effective                  teaching, as well the knowledge of experienced teachers.  Analysis              focused on only those textbook activities and lessons that are                  aligned with the identified content learning goals, and evaluators              used criteria within the following categories: 
* Providing a sense            of purpose 
* Taking account of student ideas 
* Engaging students            with the relevant phenomena 
* Developing and using scientific                 ideas 
* Promoting student thinking about phenomena, experiences               and knowledge 
* Assessing progress 
* Enhancing the science                  learning environment 
For more detail regarding the specific                   criteria used, see the report by AAAS (2000, p. 201) or view the key            ideas online at                                                                 www.project2061.org/newsinfo/research/textbook/hsbio/criteria.htm.              MAJOR FINDINGSNone of the evaluated textbooks was given high              ratings.  Following are examples of common problems (AAAS,                      2000): 
* In designing activities and questions, textbooks fail to             take into account the research that shows essentially all students              having predictable difficulties grasping many ideas covered in the              textbooks. 
* Textbooks ignore or obscure many of the most                     important concepts by focusing instead on technical terms and                   trivial details that are easy to test. 
* The lavish illustrations             of textbooks "are rarely helpful because they are too abstract,                 needlessly complicated, or inadequately explained." 
* Students are            given little help in interpreting the results of activities in terms            of the science concepts to be learned. 
Graphic summaries of the               content analysis results can be downloaded in PDF format at                     www.project2061.org/newsinfo/research/textbook/hsbio/ findings.htm,             and charts illustrating the findings of the instructional analysis              can be downloaded at                                                            www.project2061.org/newsinfo/research/textbook/hsbio/charts.htm.                
What seems most striking from content analysis is the omission of             some key concepts in the topics examined, and the general lack of               connections made among the key ideas of biology.  For instance, in              the category of cell structures and functions, the key idea that                various organs and tissues function to serve the needs of all cells             for food, air, and waste removal is typically omitted.  In the                  treatment of the molecular basis of heredity, the idea that an                  altered gene may be passed on to every cell that develops from it is            typically omitted.  Within the topic of natural selection and                   evolution, the key idea that heritable characteristics influence how            likely an organism is to survive and reproduce is typically                     omitted.  In this same category, there is a set of important                    supporting ideas about the nature of scientific theories and how                evidence is gathered and interpreted that is typically omitted. 
In            reviewing the results of the instructional analysis, it is                      immediately obvious how profoundly dominant the poor ratings are for            every textbook in every category.  There are few exceptions.  Of the            91 data points for each textbook, none received a rating higher                 than "fair" on more than 28 of the factors examined.  All but one               textbook received a rating of "poor" on 63 or more of the 91                    criteria considered.  The only unconditional "excellent" ratings                were given to three textbooks for "conveying unit purpose" in a                 topic area.  No book received this rating for more than two of five             topic areas. Every textbook received uniformly "poor" ratings for               every criterion in the category "taking account of student ideas."              Ironically, despite decades of emphasis on experiential learning in             science, few textbooks earned a rating above "poor" on any criterion            related to "engaging students with relevant phenomena" in any topic             area other than natural selection and evolution. Perhaps we should              declare all topics in biology controversial. ACTIONS TEACHERS CAN             TAKEIn addition to the longstanding admonition for science                  teachers to avoid relying solely on textbooks to define and                     structure the curriculum, here are some specific recommendations by             the textbook evaluators (AAAS, 2000): 
* Use trade books on science            topics to enhance your own understanding and compensate for lack of             content coherence in textbooks. 
* Study the research on student               learning cited in the evaluation reports to enrich classroom                    activities and develop new ones. 
* Participate in professional                development opportunities that include attention to both knowledge              of key ideas in biology and strategies for teaching those ideas more            effectively. 
* Encourage support for curriculum development                   efforts that focus on creating a coherent picture of key ideas for              specific biology topics, "using a research-based development and                testing process to ensure that the instructional strategies promote             learning the key ideas" (p. 200). 
Action of a more immediate                  nature includes helping students get more meaning out of the                    textbooks currently in their classrooms.  Acknowledging the                     difficulties in learning from textbooks, Ulerick (2000) suggests                some alternative ways to use and learn from textbooks.  She suggests            that the most powerful strategy is to give students more meaningful             purposes for reading textbooks, such as: (a) obtaining background or            explanatory information for projects; (b) obtaining data, or (c)                challenging their own ideas with new viewpoints.  In short, present             reading as a way of obtaining answers to their questions.   One way             to make this process more effective is to help students generate                questions themselves from classroom experiences. 
Ulerick also                 suggests using graphic strategies, such as concept mapping and                  related techniques, to assist students in visualizing how key ideas             are related to each other.  Given the particular weakness of                    textbooks in promoting the connections among ideas, this seems a                particularly important strategy.  It is further suggested                       that "students' personal 'maps' of ideas can be related to text                 readings. Prior to reading, students can map their understanding of             how concepts...are related to a particular topic. As they read, they            can add to their map or revise it, in light of the information                  presented. Or they can make a map of the reading and compare it to              their own." For more strategies, see Ulerick (2000) online at                   www.narst.org/research/textbook2.htm. 
In the final analysis, it is            crucial to realize that our current biology textbooks have many                 shortcomings and cannot be relied upon to provide the sole content              and structure for biology instruction at the high school level.                 Teachers must take on the responsibility of contextualizing the role            of textbooks within effective instructional practices that include              enriching activities, purposeful reading, and a questioning                     attitude.  Beyond participating in ongoing professional development             and continually supplementing textbook resources with other                     materials, teachers are encouraged to become familiar with the key              ideas in biology that are identified by the "National Science                   Education Standards" (NRC, 1996) and other reform documents and take            action to ensure that their students engage those                               ideas. REFERENCESAmerican Association for the Advancement of              Science. (1989). "Science for all Americans." New York: Oxford                  University Press. 
American Association for the Advancement of                 Science. (1993). "Benchmarks for science literacy." New York: Oxford            University Press. 
American Association for the Advancement of                 Science (1999). "Middle grades mathematics textbooks: A                         benchmarks-based evaluation."  Washington, DC: Author. 
American               Association for the Advancement of Science. (2000,                              September/October). Big biology books fail to convey  big ideas,                reports AAAS's Project 1061.  "Science Books & Films", 36(5),                   199-202. (Available online at                                                   www.project2061.org/newsinfo/press/rl000627.htm) 
Association for              Supervision and Curriculum Development. (1997). "Education Update,"             39(1). 
Kulm, G.  (2000, May/June). Rating algebra                             textbooks. "Science Books & Films," 36(3), 104-106. 
Kulm, G., &               Roseman, J.E.  (1999, July/August). A benchmarks-based approach to              textbook evaluation.  "Science Books & Films," 35(4),                           147-153. 
National Research Council (1996). "National science                  education standards." Washington, DC: National Academy                          Press. 
Roseman, J.E., Kesidou, S., Stern, L., & Caldwell,                     A.  (1999, November/December).  Heavy books light on learning: AAAS             Project 2061 evaluates middle grades science textbooks.  "Science               Books & Films," 35(6), 243-247. 
Ulerick, S.L. (2000). "Using                  textbooks for meaningful learning in science." National Association             for Research in Science Teaching. Retrieved December 24, 2000, from             the World Wide Web:                                                             http://www.narst.org/research/textbook2.htm 
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This digest               was funded by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement,               U.S. Department of Education, under contract no. ED-99-CO-0024.                 Opinions expressed in this digest do not necessarily reflect the                positions or policies of OERI or the U.S. Department of Education.           **Title:** High School Biology Textbooks Do Not Meet National Standards. ERIC              Digest.                                                                      **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** ERIC/CSMEE, 1929 Kenny Road, Columbus, OH 43210-1080. Tel:                      800-276-0462 (Toll Free); e-mail: [email protected]; Web site:                     http://www.ericse.org.                                                       **Descriptors:**  Biology, High Schools, National Standards,  Science Education,                 Scientific Literacy,  Textbook Evaluation                                    **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests                                                                 
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