The selection of textbooks

Contents

Editor's Introduction v

Preface ix

I. The Textbook a Necessary Tool in Teaching i

Preface

Textbooks are indispensable tools in school. They are considered by many people as second to the teacher in importance. Millions of copies are purchased by the public every year. Practically all the great publishing companies have departments devoted to the publication of schoolbooks, and several large publishing houses devote their entire attention to this field. Few questions of public school administration have secured more space in the daily press than has the selection of textbooks. Few questions of school administration have secured less scientific attention by professional educators than has this topic. It has been considered a political and financial problem rather than an educational one. This attitude has unduly emphasized the secondary features of the problem. It has caused many poor selections.

The author has felt for several years that textbooks should be selected by competent persons after a careful examination of available material. Hit-and-miss methods are no longer tolerated in efficient business management. We should not ix

PREFACE

accept a more complacent attitude toward education. There are indications that both the public and school executives are beginning to appreciate the need of scientific methods applied to all phases of the educational problem. Haphazard choice of schoolbooks by persons not in touch with the actual school situation must be discarded. An intelligent examination by persons directly responsible for results in the schools should be the policy of the future. The author of this monograph will feel repaid for his labor if it helps to further this movement.

The author wishes to acknowledge the assistance of many colleagues who have criticized the outlines. He is especially indebted to Dr. W. W. Theisen, Supervisor of Educational Measurements, Wisconsin State Department of Public Instruction, whose suggestions were particularly valuable.

C. R. M.

Laramie, Wyoming

I

THE TEXTBOOK A NECESSARY TOOL IN TEACHING

The textbook is an accepted tool in teaching. It is impossible to think of the traditional school without thinking of a textbook. Most teachers would be as hopelessly lost without one as would a mariner without a compass. Dependence upon a book is not wholly desirable. It is in some degree a reflection upon the ability of the teacher. The teacher is supposed by laymen to have a mastery of the subjects he teaches. Should we grant that many teachers are forced to rely on a textbook because of inadequate knowledge, it would not account for the dependence of those with scholarly attainments. It will be our purpose to consider briefly the reasons why the textbook plays such an important part in school life. Books came into being when man reached a stage of development where he could realize the need of the permanency of concepts for further progress. There has been slow progress from the clay tablets of the ancient nations to the artistic productions of our modern bookmakers. The books we have to-day are a comparatively modern invention. The universal availability of books has increased by leaps and bounds in recent years, and it is scarcely too much to say that every crossroads has its library. Philanthropists of great means have felt that the endowment of a library is one of the best means of social amelioration. The great increase in the number of books in our country might imply an increased emphasis on the textbooks in the schools, but it has had, indeed, the opposite effect. The multiplication of books has increased the dissemination of knowledge and it has given people a broader point of view. People who read widely are not content to accept the statement of one authority; consequently, the textbook does not have the prestige it once possessed. The increase in the number of books has developed a taste for good books, not only for books for the general reader, but for school texts in a like or even greater degree. It is frequently stated that there has been greater progress in the making of textbooks than in the making of other books. Dr. Winship has said: "There has been no improvement in great works of fiction, in great poems, or in great essays in half a century, but American schoolbooks have improved marvelously, almost miraculously. Nowhere in the world have they improved as in the United States. There is not a nation on earth in which the schoolbooks approach even faintly those of America." *

A few decades ago the textbook was held in reverence second only to the Bible. A multiplicity of texts, together with a changed ideal of school procedure, has placed the center of gravity outside the authority of any particular book. Many textbooks have meant better books, a more extensive use, a more skillful use, and a more critical and independent attitude toward them. It has meant an extensive use, not an intensive study of one text, even though the author of such a text is an authority in his particular field. To meet the exigencies of everyday life it is necessary to take a broad and liberal point of view. It is only through seeing all points of view that one can be in a position to combat erroneous ideas. The use of many textbooks assists the student in getting a broad point of view, in critically examining data and opinions, and in refus- 1 A. E. Winship, Proceedings, N.E.A. 1915, p. 274. 3 ing to make a judgment until all the evidence has been considered.

The textbook is an aid in instruction because it is a convenient means for having at hand necessary data. It would be possible, and in many cases quite ideal, to have the sources of all material investigated by students who are pursuing a particular topic. From a practical point of view this is impossible especially for the immature, undeveloped student. His problem is to get command of essential subject-matter with the least possible expenditure of energy. The problem of the conservation of energy in our generation is important. There is such a wealth of experience to be assimilated, if the student is to become an efficient member of the social organism, that time must not be wasted. The textbook serves this purpose, for it contains the supposedly pertinent material that must be mastered in order to appreciate the phase of experience represented by the text. Several representative texts on any subject contain practically all the usable available material in condensed form that one would find in a large library. Amplification of a textbook by the teacher with a judicious use of sources seems to meet the needs of the larger number of students.

The textbook is an aid in instruction because it presents a definite organization of material. The inexperienced teacher who approaches a subject of study finds grave difficulty in organizing it in a logical way. Unless he has a complete mastery of the topic from the standpoint of instruction, he fails to appreciate relative values; he fails to see the part which certain portions play in the development of the whole topic; he fails to outline the material so that the necessary subordinate points are grouped under large and proper headings. The organization of the material in the text will give him a cue for arranging his material in a development that will be progressive. Most writers of textbooks will grant that the logical organization of material under any topic is not entirely sufficient for a teacher's needs. It is essential, however, for the teacher to know what this organization ought to be from the standpoint of the subject-matter itself. A well-organized text furnishes him with a readymade point of view.

The textbook is an aid because it furnishes the teacher a means of selecting pertinent subject-matter. Any phase of experience has many aspects. The emphasis given to one will depend upon the set of the mind of the individual analyzing it. The textbook represents the experience of persons who have given this particular subject careful consideration. Authors realize that a text cannot cover the entire field of knowledge because of its breadth. They choose the parts deemed by them essential to gain command of the specific field of knowledge treated by the textbook they have written. The text, if a desirable one, has had the chaff winnowed, and there remains the substantial portion of knowledge that is requisite for a command of the field.

It was stated earlier in the discussion that it is impossible for teachers and students to seek out original sources owing to limits of time. The author has had time and opportunity to consult sources; he has selected the requisite material to develop important ideas, and he has made them available for other persons who wish to get command of the field. It rarely means that a person will get a comprehensive and exhaustive treatment of a subject in a textbook, but the text should present a view whereby one may have adequate basis for elaboration. The topics, or the point of view of topics, and problems presented are the ones deemed by the author of most worth.

An ideal social situation in school would mean that students are constantly working on prob- 6 lems that arise from their own activities. Few people would claim that such an ideal is possible of realization. In such a scheme the textbook would have little place. The socialization of the school, however, does not mean the elimination of a textbook. It means rather a modification of its use. Teachers frequently fail to realize the intense concentration of the material in our textbooks. Thus assignments cause mental indigestion which produces many fatalities. Students fed exclusively on a textbook diet become as dissatisfied as boarders fed entirely on canned goods, but textbooks, when rightly used, furnish an excellent means for presenting definite problems to students. The student who is assigned in history a topic on the compromises in the Federal Constitution has a definite task that requires considerable energy to solve his problem. The children in the seventh grade who have to work a page of problems on the application of percentage in profit and loss have a task that challenges their ability. There is a joy in the accomplishment of a definite task well done. The writer believes that children are happiest when they are using their energy in the solution of definite problems. The textbook is an aid to raising problems that supplement the pupil's own experiences.

The textbook indicates the trend of current educational thought. Ideals in education are constantly changing. Modes of procedure considered of major importance in one generation sink into insignificance in another. Change in a social situation necessitates a change in subject-matter and in methods of treatment. Conditions that have demanded emphasis upon one phase of material no longer exist, for other problems have arisen on the horizon. The subject-matter in courses of study in the early years of the twentieth century is vastly different from the material we find in courses in the last decade of the nineteenth. Subjects which were considered necessary for the many are now demanded only by the few. The materials of education are being scrutinized and analyzed more carefully to-day than ever before. We are rapidly approaching a stage when any subject, or portion of a study, must justify its worth before it finds a place in the curriculum. Economic necessity makes it impossible for a publisher to place on the market textbooks which are not in harmony with present-day ideals. If publishers wish to reform educational practices the financial situation confronting them would make it inadvisable; consequently, they tend to be followers rather 8 than leaders in the development of educational ideals. The textbooks indicate changes and the publishers have a large amount of influence which is frequently exercised in a judicious way, yet there are handicaps as noted by the following writer:

Education, more and more utilitarian, is fighting to get upon a scientific basis, and the register of this change rests as much in the textbook as in the teacher. . . . Education to a large extent is in the hands of the publisher. The old order of books is passing — new types of texts are coming into use with the gradual evolution of new theories of instruction and pedagogics. The publishers, on the whole, are adequately meeting this demand, for large sums alone are spent in finding texts which will have wide popular appeal. But there are many cases where the commercial expediency of getting rid of stock in hand — books which have been published, but have been surpassed — has stood in the way of advancement. 1

The textbook must meet both the demands of the conservative and the progressive. The problem of the maker is to see that he is modern enough in his treatment to appeal to persons who are not hidebound by traditions; he

1 George Middleton, " The Textbook Game and Its Quarry,' ' The Bookman, vol. 33, p. 147.

must also follow convention both in the selection and treatment of subject-matter in order not to antagonize the conservative. The attempt of the author of a textbook to satisfy both the radical and the conservative is a great handicap in the selection of a book to meet specific needs. It possesses a modicum of virtue for the one who wishes to steer a middle course. When school officials select textbooks wholly on the basis of meeting needs, authors and publishers will not make the compromises that now occur constantly.

The textbook presents a better basis for organization than could be expected from the average teacher. Authors of textbooks usually have a broad point of view. Frequently they have been students for many years in the particular field in which they are writing. They understand the development of the subject in its historic aspects; they understand the changes that have taken place in its evolution; and they understand the place that the subject occupies in the general field of knowledge. The authors have considered carefully a desirable type of organization. They have organized material in accordance with their ideals of the purpose and development of the subject, and they have in 10 most cases tested this organization in the classroom. Very frequently authors have asked the cooperation of other persons in testing the organization of subject-matter before putting it in final form.

An author's familiarity with the field of knowledge in which he is working tends to make him emphasize unduly its importance as a necessary portion of social experience. He sometimes introduces material that is interesting to him because of his superior knowledge. He fails to realize that it will possess little value to the person who needs a knowledge of the fundamental factors. He fails to appreciate that the greatest value accruing from subject-matter is its application in everyday life. Merely because the author is an authority in his field makes it no less necessary to scrutinize his organization, to note whether it represents a logical one; that is, the organization of the subject within itself without an ulterior purpose, or whether it is organized in accordance with the needs of the persons for whom it is prepared. The teacher will be influenced in his teaching by the organization of his basic text. The teacher is not a specialist. Rarely does he have a knowledge of the development of the subject he teaches; rarely does he ii understand its relation to the other subjects, and rarely does he appreciate its significance. As a student he has met so many different subjects in his short period of training that he is not sufficiently oriented to organize material to be of most value to those he is teaching. The obligation rests on him, nevertheless, to adapt subject-matter to the needs of his classes. The adjustment must rest with the teacher, but it is too much to expect him to be responsible for the complete organization.

Economy of time is a necessary condition in school procedure. The textbook is an aid in this direction. It would be possible for a teacher of good ability, with a large amount of initiative, with energy and a great capacity for work, to secure all essential data that a given class might use in pursuing any subject. It would be a waste of time, though, to require a teacher to do this. Much of the material in any subject is formal in nature. There is a type of material that can be utilized in various situations, and it is advisable to have this phase of the subject-matter in permanent form. Much drill must be given to formal material and to furnish this requisite drill a wealth of material must be at hand. The textbook serves this purpose and frees the 12 teacher to employ his time advantageously in other ways. If a teacher furnishes to a class material that could well be in textbook form, he wastes a large amount of time in dictation. It is a sign of inefficiency to waste the time of a class in dictating matter that should be available in texts. If no text contains the subject-matter the teacher wishes to use, he should see that it is put in such form that it can be given to pupils. This is in many cases the mode by which our good texts have had their inception.

II The Common Basis For Selection Of, Texts

The selection of textbooks presents a large problem to school officials. It is this problem that has brought most criticism on school systems and administrators. This has been due to the pernicious activity of unscrupulous representatives of book companies and petty politicians who represent the people on the school board. The business ethics of the publisher of schoolbooks is much higher to-day than it was a decade or two ago. The men who represent a reputable book company are men of character and integrity. The unsavory business methods which were formerly used to influence school authorities to select inferior textbooks are still remembered by the public, and it therefore sometimes causes a storm of protest in cities when teachers request a desirable change in books; the public looks with suspicion on a request for a change of books, feeling that there is an ulterior motive underneath. An idea has prevailed that the publisher who could send into the field an agent skillful in the 14 manipulation of the politicians on the board of education and in working a form of petty graft was frequently the one who secured the business. The tactics of the unscrupulous publishing houses frequently required other publishers to resort to means many of them deplored, yet they were powerless to do otherwise in order to save their business. The arguments used by these men were the ones that would appeal to school board members. They were not the arguments that should appeal to school officials who wish to secure the best texts for teachers. Fortunately, progress has been made in the making of textbooks, and progress is in evidence in the methods of the selection of books. We shall discuss at this point the basic considerations that have been used for selecting textbooks, appreciating, also, that they unfortunately are still to some extent in operation. Later we shall elaborate standards that would seem to be necessary and justifiable as basic principles for choosing textbooks for our schools. Prestige of an author has been one of the stock arguments for the excellency of a textbook. It may be a valid argument, but it is not necessarily so. The author who is known as a scholar may not be a person who is able to write a textbook satisfactory for children in the elementary school pursuing the elements of the subject. He may be an excellent and accurate scholar, he may see his subject in a large way, he may be an investigator in this particular field; yet these facts do not mean that he can write a satisfactory treatise to be used as a textbook for children. The mere fact that he is an authority in his field may be a handicap in fitting him to write a text suitable for children in their immaturity. A savant is concerned with the problems confronting the investigator who wishes to extend knowledge of his particular science or art. He is rarely interested in the adaptation of the elements to the needs of the novice.

The writer of a textbook, it is needless to say, should have a broad knowledge of the field which the subject covers. He must, however, be more interested in adapting it to the needs of the undeveloped student than to the extension of knowledge in the field. The prestige of an author as an authority is not a valid reason for selecting a text written by him for elementary-school pupils, unless he is equally interested in adapting the material to the needs of the students for whom the text is prepared. The following quotation indicates the proper attitude of the author toward a textbook:

The textbook is a teacher of teachers. If it is not a force which the teacher may substitute for himself, or as the text of an author stands for the great truths which the commentator interprets, it is at least a condition through which the teacher presents a subject to the class. The best textbook of the generation represents the union of two elements — a proper knowledge of the subject and a proper knowledge of the mind of the child. 1

The prestige of the publisher is a standard which school boards frequently apply to the selection of particular texts. This factor should receive a certain amount of consideration,, but it should not be a fundamental factor. One wishes to be assured that a publishing company will live up to its contract and that it is in financial condition to make this possible. One needs to guard against an irresponsible publisher just as he does against an irresponsible banker, broker, or grocer. The mere fact that a company has an excellent financial standing, that its imprint represents character, that it publishes many books, and that all books it publishes are carefully edited, does not mean that it publishes necessarily the best history, arithmetic, or reader for a particular school system. The publisher who does not have

1 Charles F. Thwing, "Improvement of the Textbook," Nation, vol. 90, p. 424.

a wide reputation may place on the market a textbook best adapted to the needs of a particular school. School officials investigating suitable texts should get in touch with all publishers who have the reputation of putting desirable books on the market in this particular field.

The efficiency of the sales force will always be a factor in the selection of textbooks as well as in the selection of automobiles. The man who has the ability to secure and hold the attention of his customer, presenting his goods in a pleasing, courteous manner, emphasizing the strong points together with the reasons for the same, will secure business. This factor is appreciated by most of the good publishing houses to-day, and the type of men who represent them as salesmen is quite superior. These men understand human nature, the psychology of salesmanship, know when to press a point and when to retire. The publishers who have a good line of books and who are represented by such men are the ones doing the most business to-day. The person who purchases an automobile because a glib salesman has demonstrated the strong points of the car he represents will frequently be disappointed in his choice. The person who has an independent attitude, who investigates the merits of all the well-known makes of cars, and selects the one apparently best suited to his needs, will be satisfied with his choice for a much longer period of time. The person who buys a suit of clothes because of the persuasive powers of an efficient salesman will be disappointed occasionally when he gets his reflection in the mirror. The person who is choosing textbooks should realize that the salesman, although he should be allowed to present the strong features of his books, should play no part in influencing his choice. He should make the same unbiased selection that he would make had no agent presented the excellent features of his books.

The general appearance of a book is another factor in the selection of texts. A textbook should be well bound, printed on good paper, with clear, accurate, appropriate illustrations. One needs to be careful that the appearance does not influence his opinion as to the merits of the material which the book contains. A text should be artistic in appearance and should foster instead of interfere with the development of good taste. A child who has used artistic textbooks in school will not be apt to buy for his own private library, when he reaches mature years, the monstrosities that we now see in

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the bookcases of many homes where books are used to indicate a certain kind of social prestige. Books are printed to be read. Schoolbooks are printed to be used by children. A book that will stand constant use without becoming dilapidated in a short time is essential. General appearance is only one factor — one should guard against giving it undue importance.

The wide use of a text is often used as an argument for its selection in a particular school system. Book companies make this argument very prominent when they are pushing the sale of a text. It would be a justifiable argument for selling a washing machine to a housewife, for her problem of washing clothes on a Monday morning is practically the same one that confronts millions of other women. Applied to a textbook, we can easily see the fallacy underlying such an argument. Textbooks are sometimes widely used when their influence is waning. School administrators rarely dispose of a book until they are sure they have secured something that will more readily meet their needs. A text may be in use when it is not satisfactory because school people have not found what they wish, because they lack money to purchase new books, or because certain political influences make a change 20 impossible. The statement that a book is widely used requires careful investigation to find whether it is gaining or losing ground. One can think of a few texts that are still widely used, but if a large number of the cities in which they have holdings were to make a selection at the present time, these books would receive no consideration. Again, the wide use of a text means that it meets general conditions in an admirable way, that it is published by a company of large reputation, that the selling force has been exceptionally efficient. The fact that a book meets general conditions may be an argument against its use in a system having specific problems which it is attacking. The argument of wide use would have force only in a similar situation.

; The cost of a book is an argument that appeals to school boards. The fact that they may secure one book for a cent or two a copy less than another makes a decided appeal. A business man considers the worth of an article the prime factor in purchasing it; and he will rarely, if ever, purchase one article in preference to another merely because the cost is slightly less, unless he is convinced that he gets an equal value. Mr. Business Man, when a member of the school board, frequently takes quite a different attitude. He lacks the requisite knowledge of texts to be able to form an estimate of the value of one in relation to another. His training of necessity has taught him the advisability of purchasing at the lowest possible price. He fails to take into consideration that in his own business he is a competent judge of the value of the article he is purchasing; whereas, in the school business, he does not have the requisite knowledge. He employs persons who are supposed to be experts, who are supposed to know which book is best suited to the needs of the schools, who are supposed to make a careful examination of an article before recommending it. Very frequently, however, he overrides their best judgment and reaches a conclusion solely on the basis of cost. It is gratifying to note that school board members are beginning to place more confidence in the judgment of trained experts who are in direct charge of the schools. This attitude is reacting favorably on the schools. The public has more confidence in the judgment of superintendents and teachers in meeting everyday situations. More consideration can be given individual differences in children, and the textbooks that are being selected are a greater aid in carrying out the ideals of the people who are responsible for the conduct of the school.

We have discussed the common bases used in the selection of textbooks. We have examined each briefly, and we have seen that the selection should not be based on the prestige of the author or publisher, the suavity of the salesman, the general appearance of the book, its wide use, or its low cost. These are factors which should be considered merely as minor elements for consideration. The sole-test should be the adaptability of the text to meet the needs of a particular school system.

Ill

CURRENT METHODS OF SELECTING TEXTBOOKS

The method of selecting textbooks has not received the attention it has deserved. Faulty methods of selection have often meant a choice that has failed to meet the requirements of a school system. The selection of texts is made in several different ways. The wisdom of the selection will depend on the efficiency of the agency upon whom this duty devolves. It will be our purpose to consider briefly various methods of selection, the advantages and limitations of each plan.