ArtPlantae Today

Finding an answer to this question was the focus of a study created by
Elisabeth E. Schussler, Melanie A. Link-Perez, Kirk M. Weber and Vanessa H. Dollo. They reported their findings in Exploring Plant and Animal Content in Elementary Science Textbooks.

To determine how plants and animals were presented in nationally-distributed textbooks, they reviewed two sets of general science books — the Science series (2006) by Harcourt and the Science series (2005) by Macmillan McGraw-Hill. Schussler, et al. (2010) conducted a detailed analysis of the textbooks used in grades 1-5.

General science textbooks address concepts from many areas of science and this information is presented in many ways. Schussler, et al. (2010) studied only the life science units of each textbook and focused their analysis on the body of text within each section. They decided to leave sections of complementary information within each chapter (i.e., text boxes, special features, activities, chapter summary questions, etc.) out of their analysis. They searched specifically for plant-focused and animal-focused content to determine the following:

• The number of sub-sections and pages of plant and animal content.
• The number of plant and animal examples used in each text.
• The number of plant and animal topics included in each text.

Here is a summary of what Schussler, et al. (2010) discovered:

• In both textbook series, the number of sub-sections dedicated exclusively to non-human animals was greater than the number of sub-sections dedicated exclusively to plants. The number of content pages about animals was equal to the number of content pages about plants in the Harcourt series. In the Macmilian McGraw-Hill series, there were more animal pages than plant pages.
• In both publisher’s textbooks, the number of animal examples used exceeded the number of plant examples used. The most repeated examples of plants in the Harcourt series were tree, grass, moss, pine and fern. In the Macmillian McGraw-Hill series, the most repeated examples of plants were tree, grass, corn, cactus and oak. The most repeated examples of animals were almost identical. They were bird, fish, insect, frog and deer. In the Harcourt series, snake tied with deer.
• More animal-related topics were included in the textbooks than plant-related topics.

How did the research team sift though all that content and decide what was an animal-related topic and a plant-related topic?

The topic categories were identified after a careful analysis of the text. Schussler, et al. (2010) identified categories such as “seed germination”, “plant growth”, “reproduction”, and many others. After sorting through their list of categories, they came up with a list of topics that encompassed all the categories they identified. This final list addressed the following topics: Parts, Needs, Types, Growth, Reproduction, Uses, Adaptations, and Where Specimens Live (Schussler, et al., 2010). As far as plants were concerned, the topic “Plant Parts” received more attention than the topic of “Animal Parts” in both series. After this, though, content about animal needs, animal types, animal adaptations, etc. was more prevalent than the needs of plants, the types of plants growing on Earth, their adaptations and the landscapes they call home.

Schussler, et al. (2010) propose that textbooks may be contributing to the gap in knowledge observed in students when students are asked to name plants and animals. They also propose that textbooks may be contributing to students’ perception that plants are boring because plants are presented more as “parts” and not as living entities with needs, adaptations and all the rest.

Schussler, et al. (2010) recommend a thorough analysis of textbooks in all countries to find out if the differences they found in the Harcourt and Macmillian McGraw-Hill textbooks are present in other general science books. They also call upon botanists and all botany educators to use as many real world examples about plants as possible to encourage a comprehensive, big-picture view of plants.

Did You Know?

• Elisabeth E. Schussler and James Wandersee coined the phrase
  plant blindness?
• Botanical gardens are view by some as parks without playgrounds?

Literature Cited
Schussler, Elisabeth E. and Melanie A. Link-Perez, Kirk M. Weber, Vanessa H. Dollo. 2010. Exploring plant and animal content in elementary science textbooks. Journal of Biological Education. Vol. 44(3): 123-128.

Buy this article online from Taylor & Francis Online ($36) or visit the reference section at your local college library.