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    Textbook Policies in Asia: Development, Publishing, Printing, Distribution, and Future Implications
    Textbook Policies in Asia: Development, Publishing, Printing, Distribution, and Future Implications
    Textbook Policies in Asia: Development, Publishing, Printing, Distribution, and Future Implications
    Ebook192 pages1 hour

    Textbook Policies in Asia: Development, Publishing, Printing, Distribution, and Future Implications

    By Andy Smart and Shanti Jagannathan

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    About this ebook

    This comparative study provides an overview of the textbook production chain, starting with its origins in the curriculum, and suggests ways in which policymakers can make improvements at every point in the chain. With evidence from a range of countries, mainly in Asia, the study is intended as a resource for policymakers and as a reference and benchmark for education systems. Although the study focuses on textbooks, which are the priority for governments and teachers and represent the greatest item of expenditure on teaching and learning materials, it also includes other teaching and learning materials including digital resources.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAsian Development Bank
    Release dateDec 1, 2018
    ISBN9789292614133
    Textbook Policies in Asia: Development, Publishing, Printing, Distribution, and Future Implications

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      Textbook Policies in Asia - Andy Smart

      TEXTBOOK POLICIES IN ASIA

      DEVELOPMENT, PUBLISHING, PRINTING, DISTRIBUTION, AND FUTURE IMPLICATIONS

      Andy Smart and Shanti Jagannathan

      DECEMBER 2018

      Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO)

      © 2018 Asian Development Bank

      6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, 1550 Metro Manila, Philippines

      Tel +63 2 632 4444; Fax +63 2 636 2444

      www.adb.org

      Some rights reserved. Published in 2018.

      ISBN 978-92-9261-412-6 (print), 978-92-9261-413-3 (electronic)

      Publication Stock No. TCS189651-2

      DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.22617/TCS189651-2

      The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent.

      ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by ADB in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned.

      By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term country in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area.

      This work is available under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/. By using the content of this publication, you agree to be bound by the terms of this license. For attribution, translations, adaptations, and permissions, please read the provisions and terms of use at https://www.adb.org/terms-use#openaccess.

      This CC license does not apply to non-ADB copyright materials in this publication. If the material is attributed to another source, please contact the copyright owner or publisher of that source for permission to reproduce it. ADB cannot be held liable for any claims that arise as a result of your use of the material.

      Please contact [email protected] if you have questions or comments with respect to content, or if you wish to obtain copyright permission for your intended use that does not fall within these terms, or for permission to use the ADB logo. Photos in this publication are property of ADB.

      Notes:

      In this publication, $ refers to United States dollars, unless otherwise stated.

      Corrigenda to ADB publications may be found at https://www.adb.org/publications/corrigenda.

      ADB recognizes China as the People’s Republic of China; Hong Kong as Hong Kong, China; and Korea as the Republic of Korea.

      On the cover: In Bangladesh and Malaysia, students benefit from ADB-supported education programs

      Photos in this publication are taken from the ADB Photo Library unless otherwise stated.

      CONTENTS

      BOXES

      PREFACE

      Good textbooks are a key component of quality education together with good curriculum, teachers, and other learning resources. Improving student learning almost always includes enhancing the quality and relevance of textbooks. The 2014 study by Cambridge Assessment, Why Textbooks Count, emphasizes the role and function of high-quality textbooks in enhancing learning and system performance. Despite the pervasive spread of information and communication technologies and the proliferation of digital learning resources, textbooks remain highly relevant in the education process and consume considerable budgets and resources in Asia’s developing countries.

      However, the digital era has challenged conventional practices on textbooks. While digital learning materials are becoming indispensable in the modern era, policymakers need to support the development of high-quality and next-generation physical textbooks that contribute to enhancing students’ learning and competencies. Textbooks need updating more frequently and also need to support new pedagogical methods such as interactive and collaborative learning. Textbooks are crucial to the education process and provide a road map for grade and subject-specific learning attainments. In the context of recent global trends and digitalization, it is important to envision a future role for textbooks. There is a need to ensure alignment between curriculum aims, textbooks, pedagogy, learning materials, and student learning assessment to bring about holistic improvements to the quality of education.

      The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has ongoing or planned programs relating to school education in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, the Federated States of Micronesia, India, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, the Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Viet Nam. The continuing need for high-quality textbooks and digital learning tools and systems calls for more intensive efforts and investment by governments to upgrade the quality and relevance of textbooks, in tandem with digital resources and linked to improving student learning attainments.

      This report goes into different aspects of textbook policy and practice—textbook writing and authorship; production, publishing, and printing; and distribution and use by teachers and students. We hope that this report helps to trigger a wider discourse on the importance of getting textbook policy and practice right in the journey to improve the quality of education.

      Sungsup Ra

      Director, Human and Social Development Division

      South Asia Department, Asian Development Bank

      ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

      The authors thank Chris Spohr, Principal Social Sector Specialist, Myanmar Resident Mission, Asian Development Bank (ADB), for his peer review and comments on the draft report. Marion Young provided valuable comments and suggestions on the draft report. The following ADB colleagues are also gratefully acknowledged for sharing their experiences and providing information on country-specific policies and practices: Chimi Thonden, Senior Education Specialist, Pacific Department; Eiko Izawa, Unit Head, Project Administration, Central and West Asia Department; Itgel Lonjid, Senior Social Sector Officer, Mongolia Resident Mission; Khamtanh Chanthy, Senior Project Officer, Lao People’s Democratic Republic Resident Mission; Rudi Van Dael, Senior Social Sector Specialist, Indonesia Resident Mission; Sophea Mar, Senior Social Sector Officer, Cambodia Resident Mission; and Sutarum Wiryono, Project Officer (Education), Indonesia Resident Mission. Elaine Thomas from the Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department provided helpful inputs.

      The authors would also like to thank the following for reading early drafts and for other support to the report: Vincent Bontoux, Lianghuo Fan, Saranavan Gopinathan, Valerie Haugen, Trasvin Jittidecharak, Jim McCall, Hitoshi Nakagawa, Akira Ninomiya, Kathy Rooney, Gayoung Song, and regional offices of Oxford University Press.

      ABBREVIATIONS

      EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

      Good textbook policy is a complex hybrid of different factors that contribute to the quality of education, linking good curriculum, teacher competencies, market practices in learning materials, and school level autonomy. Textbook policymakers need not only an understanding of education in terms of curriculum and subject matter, they also need to be familiar with issues of textbook writing, financing, production, publishing, distribution, and use of textbooks and other materials in the classrooms. This report draws on published evidence, interviews with academics and professionals, including publishers, and suggests ways in which policymakers can make improvements at every point in the textbook development and distribution chain.

      An effective textbook policy will address system improvement

      The process of developing a textbook policy is valuable in itself. It can help align what are often described as the quality components of education—that is, the curriculum, textbooks, and assessment systems—in a golden triangle that lies at the heart of what takes place in the classroom and the learning of students.

      In spite of recent technological advances, the importance of textbooks has not diminished. A textbook (or learning and teaching materials) policy can help with difficult decisions about how to invest in new technology to support teaching and learning while retaining and upgrading traditional textbooks and learning materials. A continuously updated textbook policy can facilitate allocation of budgets to physical textbooks and digital materials; ensure coherence between curriculum, classroom processes, and learning objectives; and bring innovations to the teaching and learning process. A well-prepared textbook policy will help to strike the balance between physical and digital materials and gear the textbooks to support improvements in student learning. Well-designed textbooks help teachers and students to make progress on the learning ladder and to attain grade and subject-specific competency levels. Increasingly, interactive textbooks can help students to tailor learning to their own pace and style of learning.

      Good textbooks contribute

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