A Review of High School Economics Textbooks

Abstract:     
This is the first review of U.S. high school economics textbooks using the Voluntary National Content Standards as the reference. The textbooks are divided into two categories: Comprehensive and Specialty books. Both types of books are evaluated by identifying the number of pages devoted to the major concepts contained in VNCS. Most textbooks cover the content standards to some degree, but the variation in coverage is substantial. In the case of the government failure standard, the coverage is almost non-existent. The study also investigates coverage of concepts included in the NCEE Framework but excluded from the content standards. While we are hesitant to label one text superior to another based on a pagination study, the data presented should give teachers, administrators, and school districts some valuable insights into the relative emphasis each book gives to the economics content standards.

Keywords: high school textbooks, economics standards

JEL Classifications: A210

Case and Teaching Paper Series