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Missing and Shrinking Voices

A Critical Analysis of the Florida Textbook Adoption Policy

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Book cover The New Politics of the Textbook

Part of the book series: Constructing Knowledge ((CKCS,volume 2))

Abstract

Curriculum defines what counts as valid knowledge (Bates, 2005). As a social product, curriculum and its construction and dissemination (i.e., textbook selection) are strongly influenced by systems of social and cultural control. It is a key vehicle for forming individual attitudes about other groups, and helps shape a student’s fundamental attitudes toward society (Greaney, 2006). As major staples in the curriculum of K-12 schools since the 1900s, textbooks contribute to the production of knowledge. In the U.S., the time students spend using textbooks is estimated at 75 to 90 percent (Ajayi, 2005; Watts-Taffe, 2005; Wiley & Barr, 2007). U.S. secondary school teachers, according to Apple (1991), have been found to devote three-quarters of their classroom time to textbooks, which also make up approximately 90 percent of homework time (Greaney, 2006). As noted in the report A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform (1983), individual teachers have little influence in critical professional decisions such as textbook selection. However, teachers can exercise some authority over the curriculum and autonomy by using textbooks and other instructional materials selectively (Doyle, 1992).

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Authors
  1. Randria Williams
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  2. Vonzell Agosto
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Lewis University, Romeoville, IL, USA

    Heather Hickman

  2. Lewis University, Romeoville, IL, USA

    Brad J. Porfilio

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© 2012 Sense Publishers

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Williams, R., Agosto, V. (2012). Missing and Shrinking Voices. In: Hickman, H., Porfilio, B.J. (eds) The New Politics of the Textbook. Constructing Knowledge, vol 2. SensePublishers, Rotterdam. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6091-930-5_2

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