Why don't American elementary schools have textbooks?

I think the point that you want to make is, the textbooks are not allowed to be taken home by the students. That is absolutely a valid point. read more

American elementary schools do have textbooks. You can question their quality if you want, but they do exist. read more

Now I learn from Beverlee Jobrack’s penetrating new book, “Tyranny of the Textbook,” that that is why the $4 billion-a-year textbook business is so much a part of our schools’ mediocre performance. Textbooks don’t work well. Research shows that with rare exceptions they do not help improve student achievement much. They are not effective because effectiveness doesn’t sell. Dumping on textbooks is not new. School critics often point out the books’ mistakes. read more

Texas does statewide textbook adoption, meaning all schools in the state have to use textbooks on the approved list. Naturally, this means the books that are adopted are guaranteed to sell a lot of copies. read more