They do not do a good job of teaching science. And it is unlikely that most other textbooks are much better. You know that a strong science education is becoming more and more important to your children's success, today and in the future. This study makes clear that you can not count on the science textbooks alone to teach your children what they need to know. The study showed that there were three main problems with the textbooks.
Most texts cover too many topics.
The topics are discussed superficially, and not covered in depth. Classroom activities are either irrelevant to learning key science ideas or don't help students relate what they are doing to the underlying ideas. Starting with a question makes science more interesting and relevant. Science Made Simple then answers that question, simply but in depth. Each issue is written in 3 sections, specifically designed to lead children from simple basic ideas through more complex concepts.