Jacob, B. (November 2001). Implementing Standards: The California Mathematics Textbook Debacle, Phi Delta Kappan, pp. 264-272.

• Math Textbooks
  • “I examine California’s recent ‘standards-aligned” mathematics textbook adoption process, which provides a lens to scrutinize the impact of high-stakes policies on classroom practice”
• Background on California
  • Standards by content areas
  • Revised every 7 years
  • K-8 only, High schools chose their own
• 1996-1997 Math Adoption
  • Drafted by 4 voluntary Standards Commission
  • Met for 1 year with researchers, mathematicians, and educators
  • Published for review and comment
  • State Board of Education rejected and created a new one
    • 4 Stanford mathematic professors wrote it
    • Removed examples and clarifications
    • Done without input from the teachers
    • Problem solving techniques substituted by extensive practice and direct instruction!!
  • Dixon report
    • Douglas Carnine of the University of Oregon
    • Research review – selection biased towards board’s ideology – rote computation, not mathematical reasoning
  • 1999 Adoption
    • Story repeats itself – still rote computation + tell teachers exactly what to do
  • 2001 Adoption
    • Professor Hung-Hsi Wu from UC: could not explain his math reasoning “I’m puzzled as to why this is so difficult…”
    • Scripted instruction – “Teacher stupidification movement”  Richard Allington

Woodward, A., & Elliot, D. (1990). Textbooks: Consensus and Controversy. In Textbooks and Schooling In the United States, 89th Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 146-161.

• Stakeholders are resistant to change in education
• Publishers have to adapt content to political ideologies
• Cost effective to have a national, neutral, and bland textbook as opposed to local books