Content and Context of Textbooks in Britain

Chapter 3 ‘Content and Context of Textbooks in Britain’ provides a wide chronological framework of the development of language primers and school textbooks in Britain approximately from the mid-18^th century to the end of the 19^th century. This chapter argues for important connections between literacy, nation building and identity formation, as Britain evolved into an imperial power. An assessment of the content and context of textbooks used in Britain in this period indicate the epistemological shifts in British imperial education that adapted to the changes in the British imperial image.