ABSTRACT
Textbooks are the tools used by a teacher to motivate students and to give them maximum understandings about a topic or problem. The well-organized teacher will use textbooks in different ways to suit different levels of students. Textbooks have become increasingly colourful, eye-catching and encyclopaedic. Good textbooks are usually very popular with teachers because they bring together a massive amount of important material in one volume. Researchers, such as M. Chambliss, R. Calfee and I. Wong have developed elements to analyse the design of textbooks, such as instructional load, mode of presentation, illustration features, access features, and display features. Textbook companies try to avoid controversial issues and content which might deter 'mainstream' education systems from accepting their products. Persons involved in selecting textbooks, whether they are high-status, state textbook committees, or classroom teachers, need to have access to criteria that can be used.
