Lietuvos bendrojo ugdymo mokyklos vadovėlio sampratos kaita (1990–2012)
Change of the Concept of the Textbook of the Lithuanian School of General Education (1990–2012)

Summary/Abstract: The article analyses the change of the concept of the textbook of the Lithuanian school of general education in 1990-2012. It attempts to answer how the approach towards the purpose, functions and content quality of the textbook changed over time. Requirements for the textbook content and the content of recommendations developed for authors and assessors are analysed. It reveals how the concept of the textbook was developed and updated with regard to the changes in the curriculum of the Lithuanian school of general education and gradually implemented in the practice of assessment of textbooks. The analysis of the documents, methodological literature for the authors and assessors of textbooks and other sources of the period under analysis leads to the following conclusions: At the outset of the Lithuanian education reform, major attention was paid to the development of textbooks and the quality of their contents. The theorists of the education reform and the developers of the curriculum were convinced that the implementation of the reformed curriculum did not only depend on the concepts and programmes of the general education school and individual subjects but also on the updating of the content of textbooks; the first draft concepts of the textbook (1992, 1995) defined the theoretical model of the textbook which was later revised, specified and supplemented but its principal provisions have remained intact to this day. The textbook was referred to as the principal, though not the only, learning aid. Authors were ncouraged to develop sets of textbooks: a student’s textbook, a teacher’s book and an exercise-book. It was recommended to ground the development of textbooks on the Lithuanian education concept and the system of educational objectives, goals and values defined therein. A requirement was brought forward for the textbook material to be consistent with various educational contexts; the first time when the concept of the textbook and the requirements for the content of textbooks were officially approved after the restoration of the independence of Lithuania was in 2003. For over ten years the assessment of the content of textbooks and the competitions for textbooks launched by the Ministry of Education and Science took place in line with the draft concepts of the textbook and assessment criteria and the internal resolutions of expert commissions. The new concept of textbooks highlights that the textbook is primarily intended for a student; therefore, it is essential to adjust the material presented in it for the independent learning of students. The textbook had to assist in forming the system of values in students, developing their abilities, organising teaching/learning and (self)education and providing the material necessary for learning. A provision was refused according to which authors were expected to develop sets of textbooks. ..

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