THE TREATMENT OF MINORITIES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS TEXTBOOKS.

THE PLURALISTIC, MULTI-GROUPS NATURE OF THE AMERICAN POPULATION DEMANDS A REALISTIC TREATMENT OF MINORITY GROUPS IN THE CLASSROOM AND A SOUND EDUCATION IN INTERGROUP RELATIONS. WHILE THE TEXTBOOK IS ONLY ONE AMONG MANY EDUCATIONAL TOOLS, IT IS A MAJOR ONE, AND PARTICULAR ATTENTION SHOULD BE GIVEN TO WHAT AMERICAN TEXTBOOKS PRESENT, IMPLY, AND OMIT. TO INVESTIGATE THE AREA OF TEXTBOOK PRESENTATIONS, A STUDY WAS MADE OF 48 LEADING SECONDARY HISTORY AND SOCIAL STUDIES TEXTBOOKS. THE STUDY CONCENTRATED ON TEXTBOOK TREATMENT OF JEWS, AMERICAN NEGROES, AND IMMIGRANTS. IN ASSESSING THE VALUE OF TEXT MATERIAL, SEVEN CRITERIA WERE EMPLOYED--INCLUSION, VALIDITY, COMPREHENSIVENESS, CONCRETENESS, UNITY, AND REALISM. THE CONCLUSION OF THE STUDY WAS THAT A MAJORITY OF THE TEXTS STILL PRESENTS A LARGELY WHITE, PROTESTANT, ANGLO-SAXON VIEW OF HISTORY AND OF THE CURRENT SOCIAL SCENE. TREATMENT OF JEWS CONTINUES TO SUFFER FROM AN OVEREMPHASIS ON THEIR ANCIENT PAST AND ON THE THEME OF PERSECUTION. FEW PRESENT A VARIED, REALISTIC PICTURE OF JEWS IN AMERICA TODAY OR OF PAST AND PRESENT CONTRIBUTIONS OF JEWISH AMERICANS. THE NEGROES' POSITION IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN SOCIETY IS LARGELY IGNORED. THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF NEGRO AMERICANS, UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES OF SCHOOL DESEGREGATION, RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION, AND SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION ABOUT RACE DESERVE GREATER ATTENTION. FINALLY, IMMIGRANTS TO THE UNITED STATES RECEIVE CONSIDERABLE ATTENTION IN TEXTS, BUT IMPROVED TREATMENT OF ASIATIC AND SPANISH-SPEAKING IMMIGRANTS IS NEEDED.