Textbook Analysis

     The goal of a social studies textbook is to develop citizen literacy in students.  By studying and examining their text, students should gain greater knowledge and understanding of skills and civic values.  America Will Be and America’s Story represents similar yet different examples of a social studies textbook.  Both books provide a wide range of multicultural and ethical examples, stories, and concepts throughout the units.  Both textbooks do an excellent job at integrating the content of social studies into other subjects.  In contrastive measurements, America Will Be used geographical themes more often than America’s Story which provide several activities with reteaching in each lesson of the book.
     Integration is one of the largest themes within both textbooks.  The teacher’s manual of America Will Be, list and describes a variety of integrative objectives.  A connection with other subjects can been seen clearly.  For example, a math connection about time zones is found on page 44 and a music connection can be found on page 20.  America’s Story contains a multiple of tables within each lesson and after each unit connecting ideas to other subjects and ideas.  It not only allows students to use information in language arts that can be found on page 370, but has links on bulletin board ideas.  This textbook also provides schedules on how to integrate social studies into the daily planner like of page 382f.
     Many textbooks in the past have left out the important element of multiculturalism and ethicalities.  These two books that we analyzed focused on presenting the information from diverse perspectives.  America Will Be displays the history of women just as much if not more then the typical wealthy, white landowners’ history.  This particular textbook also destroys the stereotypical politically correct idea of minorities and replaces with their roles and importance to and in history (ex. Ch14.4, 18).  The second textbook provides a wide variety of photographs in the table of contents to go with each unit.  The textbook also spends many units on minority groups like women, Indians, African Americans, and Immigrants (ex. Ch 13-15, 19).  A thought: If four-fifths of the world are colored then how can they be called minorities?
     There is also a great deal of emphasis placed on the importance of knowing where you are and where you came form geographically speaking.  In the textbook, America Will Be, it contains many sections on how to read maps and locating where someone might be.  Its purpose is to help create geographically literate students, which is what our educational system has been lacking.  Maps, charts, and other visual representations are present in America’s Story, but it is not one of its stronger points.
     America’s Story does a wonderful job at listing and explaining ways to reteach previously learned material.  Usually the material will be retaught in the same lesson that it was taught to the students.  For example, a teacher can reteach many ideas with chapter 1-20.  This reinforces what the students having been learning.
     Overall, these two textbooks have done well at gathering information, providing students with appropriate information, visuals, and evaluation of other textbooks.  The two books compliment each other, so we would probably pick a textbook that contains most of the points mentioned.
 

References

     Boehm, R., Hoone, C., McGowan, T., et al.  America’s Story.  New York:  Harcourt Brace & Co, 1997.
      Jorge, J., Wilson, Louis, Wixson, K., et al.  America Will Be.  New York:  Houghton Mifflin, 1994.