STEM literacy and textbook biases in K-12

Textbooks are a common source of science information in K-12 science education. Science literacy is a major challenge of students in K-12 and this dramatically affects students´ achievement. Biases in textbooks negatively influence students´ interest and achievement in science and engineering. This study explores types of biases in K-12 science texts. These biases primarily relate to gender, race and ethnicity. Textbook biases negatively affect students´ views of science as a field, as a career and as a college major. Achievement may also be affected by such biases. Accordingly, this research study explores the biases in K-12 science textbooks. The textbooks were analyzed using a multidimensional rubric and accompanying scoring checklist. Results of these analyses revealed dramatic biases in textbooks particularly for early elementary and high school texts. Both print and photographic biases were noted in the textbooks. In particular, the books that focused on biological sciences were found to contain significant biases especially related to gender. These biases may influence how students feel about careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) areas and therefore may impact future workforces in STEM fields.