Reforming social studies: Implications for curriculum and textbooks

The present role of textbooks in the social studies is reviewed, and recent experiences in California provide a case study illustrating the reform process. The future of textbooks and their reform is discussed, including the place of technology, new roles for textbooks, possibilities for their improvement, and the importance of extending reform beyond textbooks into teaching and school governance. David L. Elliott is director of Educational Materials Associates, consultants in textbook research, staff development, and curriculum improvement. With Arthur Woodward, he is the coeditor ofTextbooks and Schooling in the United States, the 89th Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education.