Tendencias didácticas en los libros de texto de matemáticas para la ESO

Abstract

This article brings together the findings of a research project carried out on the structure of Mathematics textbooks for Compulsory Secondary Education.The study is focused on the didactic units that deal with chance as a topic of special relevance for the current education of the students, and with significant problems when planning its teaching.The methodology followed in the investigation is the analysis of the content of a sample from four publishing houses. The textbooks of four education levels and the two options in the 4th year of Compulsory Secondary Education are analysed for each publishing house. The study provides information on the different elements that characterize the structure of a didactic unit. First, the presentation of the unit, which includes the analysis of its aims and contents, as well as the activities to motivate, explore or assess students' previous knowledge. Second, the development of the unit, which includes how to organize and arrange in sequence the contents and the structure of the discourse determined by the different ways of presenting the theoretical notions and activities. Finally, the end of the unit, which includes the study of the different types of activities to consolidate and evaluate the contents learned, together with a brief summary. Besides, the contrast with the theoretical framework differentiates two possible didactic trends that underlie this structure