When did 'Withitness' Become More Important than Educational Psychology? Analyzing Textbook Vocabulary

N

75

Vocabulary; Textbooks; Glossaries; Content Analysis; Educational Psychology; Jargon

The purpose of this study was to conduct a content analysis of educational psychology textbook vocabulary published during or after 2000. Seven textbooks have been published and are currently in print. Textbook keywords, key concepts, vocabulary words and/or glossaries were analyzed to create a descriptive account of all words defined in the texts. Initial results found that, in sum, the seven texts introduce and define 1,763 different vocabulary- or key-words. 1,198 (67.9%) of the keywords appear in only one text meaning that almost 70% of the keywords are unique to individual texts. Further, only 30 (1.7%) of the 1,763 words are listed and defined in all seven texts; 199 (11.2%) are used in 4, 5, 6, or 7 texts; whereas, 1,564 (88.8%) are listed and defined in three or fewer texts. One implication is that 88.8% of the keywords introduced have less than a 50% consistent- use agreement from the current published texts (i.e., only 3, or less, of the 7 authors define the word). The paper concludes with the question of which of the following pedagogical metaphors best describes the presentation of textbook vocabulary: "inundate with an abundance of terminology," or "the heart of the discipline." Educational Psychology Vocabulary (Including 2006 Texts.) is appended. (Contains 8 tables.)

Author

21

2006

ED491707