Poor Math Textbooks

School Administrator, April, 1999

In a rigorous analysis of 12 middle school mathematics textbooks by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, only four recently published series received high ratings, while the other more well-established textbooks were rated as unsatisfactory.

The analysis, part of Project 2061, AAAS' long-term math and science education reform initiative, found that no popular commercial textbooks were among the best rated. The study also found:

* The best series contains both in-depth mathematics content and excellent instructional support;

* Most textbooks are inconsistent and often weak in their coverage of conceptual benchmarks in mathematics as well as in instructional support for students and teachers;

* Most textbooks do a satisfactory job on number and geometry skills; and

* Many textbooks provide little development in sophistication of mathematical ideas from grades 6 to 8.

The study evaluated textbooks on how likely they are to help students achieve six key learning goals from Project 2061's Benchmarks for Science Literacy.

A summary of the rating of each of the 12 textbooks is available at the AAAS Web site (project206l.aaas.org).