The authors examine the first-grade materials in five new basal programs submitted for the 1993 Texas state adoption.1 These series are compared with program materials currently in use in the state (copyright 1986/1987). The analysis focuses on features of the pupil texts (e.g., total number of words, number of unique words, readability levels, literary quality) and features of the teachers' editions (e.g., program design, organization, tone). Results of the analysis indicate substantial changes in the more recent series. The findings are interpreted in terms of historical trends as well as recent developments in the literature-based and whole-language movements. Implications for future research are identified that relate to the study of the implementation and effects of these new programs.Publishers of educational materials have played a significant role in American reading instruction since the early seventeenth century (Smith, 1965). The days of a single dominant material/program like Webster's "blue-back" speller or McGuffy's readers are gone. Also gone are the days when a multitude of programs competed equally in the market place (e.g., Smith reported on 17 "new" programs in the period 1925-1935-a decrease from the previous period). Today, we find the national market dominated by just five or six basal programs. The shrinking number 1 One of the authors of this paper and codirector of the research project is an author for one of the basal programs included in the analysis. No portion of the research was supported by any publisher. Four publishers did provide copies of their materials for this review. We gratefully acknowledge their cooperation. 47 48Journal of Reading Behavior of competitors is not surprising given the current costs of program developmentconservatively estimated at over 40 million dollars (Goodman, 1989). The competition among publishers for a share of the estimated 400-million-dollar annual market sales (Goodman, 1989) is incredibly intense. These publishers must anticipate changes in teaching practices if they are to remain viable; they must walk the fine line between not offering a product that is so new and different that it appeals only to the high "risk-takers" and something that is so conservative and traditional that it is viewed as outdated. In the past, the safe position for most of the successful publishers has been to take a rather conservative stance toward change. Those who have examined the history of basal readers point toward their resistance to innovative ideas (e.g., Chall 1983;Venezky, 1987;Shannon, 1989). Basal systems have been a strong force in sustaining the status quo by offering teachers materials that encourage them to continue to do what traditional teachers have done in the past with only the slightest modifications.This conservative stance may be a thing of the past. Recent changes in the market place have driven publishers to assume a rather different philosophy and direction toward product development. Classroom teachers are taking a much more active...

S In a longitudinal study of teachers in four districts across the state of Texas, we used a survey, interviews, and observations to examine changes in teacher practices related to the adoption of the new literature‐based basal reader programs. Through surveys we collected the views of over 250 teachers statewide and focused on 14 teachers for a more in‐depth examination. We present our results in two stages: Year 1 was the baseline year before the adoption of the new programs, and Year 2 was the first year of the adoption. The survey and interview data suggested that in Year 1 almost all teachers were satisfied with the quality of instruction they provided students and had not made significant program modifications. However, we found major differences in teachers' practices; these differences were displayed on a continuum from those who did not use a basal but developed their own literature units, to those who used the basal including the teachers' manuals, to those who supplemented the basal with additional skills instruction, to the teacher who used only skills worksheets. In Year 2, we found some adjustments in practices. Some teachers did not use the new basal at all, continuing in their literature only or skills only programs. Some teachers adopted the new basal with new methods of instruction; others adopted the new basal, but imported their old instructional methods; still others continued to use the old basals. We found that teachers' epistemological orientations were determining factors in how they responded to changes in teaching context and how they adapted their practices to the new programs. Using Belenky et. al's (1988) ways of knowing framework, we found that most teachers worked within the same epistemological framework in Years 1 and 2. Additionally, we found that there was little staff development in any of the districts to support teachers' implementations of the new programs. EN UN estudio logitudinal de docentes de cuatro distritos en el estado de Texas, usamos una encuesta, entrevistas y observaciones para examinar los cambios en las prácticas docentes relacionados con la adopción de los nuevos programas de lectura con libros basados en la literatura. A través de las encuestas recogimos las opiniones de más de 250 docentes a través del estado y nos centramos en 14 docentes para un examen más profundo. Presentamos nuestros resultados en dos etapas: 1° año fue el año de base antes de la adopción de los nuevos programas y 2° año fue el primer año de la adopción. Los datos de las encuestas y las entrevistas sugieren que en el 1° año casi todos los docentes estaban satisfechos con la calidad de la enseñanza que proporcionaban a los estudiantes y no habían hecho modificaciones significativas a los programas. Sin embargo, encontramos diferencias importantes en las prácticas docentes; estas diferencias se organizaron en un contínuo que abarca desde aquellos que no usaron libro de texto, sino que desarrollaron sus propios materiales de literatura, los que usaron los libros de texto, incluyen...

This article describes ratings and ranking by both researchers and children of the new and old basal text series and then describes categories of students' responses to the texts. Using the perspective of engagement, the authors found that the 1993 basal reading series received higher ratings than thel986/87 series on scales measuring holistic qualities, content, language, and design. When kindergarten, first, and second graders ranked twenty of the basal stories, their rankings agreed with the researchers' in seven of the ten pairings. Categories of students' responses validated the researchers' categories of content, language, and design and also extended into familiarity, personal experience, and realism. The findings identify some engaging qualities of text and extend previous research which was often limited to readability.