The number of science education research papers has been rapidly rising in recent years. This number has been particularly influenced by researchers from non-English speaking countries who contribute to the field. With this number of papers, literature reviews gain in importance as they help researchers more easily orient themselves in problem areas. The authors of this study present a literature review on science textbook research. The importance of textbooks in education is indisputable, yet research in this field is surprisingly unbalanced between particular regions or states. In this paper, a review of 183 papers published between 2000 and 2018, indexed to the Web of Science database, is introduced. The results show that researchers in Europe and the USA focus on textbook research more than researchers elsewhere in the world. The textbooks most frequently researched on are science books for secondary schools. Textbook research consists mostly of analysing learning concepts and how concepts are integrated, non-textual elements in textbooks, visual representations, learning content or learning text analysis.

Understanding the intellectual demands of an intended curriculum is crucial as it defines the frames for teaching and learning processes and practice during lessons. In this study, upper-secondary school chemistry curricula contents in Czechia, Finland, and Turkey were analysed, and their objectives were compared using the Revised Bloom's Taxonomy (RBT). The intellectual demands were examined analysing the action verbs in the three curricula objectives based on their association with the intended cognitive process dimensions in the RBT. The Turkish upper-secondary chemistry curriculum was found to be more structured, detailed, and containing more objectives than the Czech and Finnish curricula. The domineering objectives in cognitive demands were understand (77.2%) and analyse and apply (both 7.1%). Conceptual items dominated (59.8%) with procedural items identified (29.1%). Also, there are five metacognitive items (3.9%). The Czech curriculum, compared to the Finnish and Turkish curricula, does not take modern trends in the field of chemistry into account. The cognitive demands in the Czech curriculum were skewed toward apply (40%) with understand and evaluate accordingly represented by 20%. Conceptual items dominate with a 53.3% of occurrence. In the Finnish curriculum, the cognitive demands were skewed toward apply (47.1%) with create (23.5%) and understand (17.6%). Procedural (35.3%) domains predominate, although metacognitive objectives represent a significant share (23.5%) too. These findings from the contents and intellectual demands of the curricula in each of the three countries have the potential to help teachers and other actors in education design the interventions and assessments implemented in the classes. Comparing the distribution of intellectual demands between the countries provides an international reference for educational reforms in hand in many countries.

The (written) state curriculum is one of the cornerstones influencing education. Its specifically mediated by textbooks. In an open textbook market, the influence of the state curriculum is limited, and the main responsibility passes to individual schools or teachers. In order to understand education from the potential attainment of curriculum goals’ point of view, it is necessary to pay attention to the teachers’ textbook preferences. This research was focused on the field of lower-secondary chemistry education in Czechia, with special attention paid to the textbooks in use, their choice, and teachers’ perception of them. The data were gathered using a questionnaire distributed to a representative sample of 387 lower-secondary school chemistry teachers. The results showed that teachers favor traditional chemistry teaching conceptions. Most teachers stated that textbooks play a vital role for them when preparing lessons and new textbooks are mostly chosen by the most experienced teachers. Most teachers also expressed their preference for textbooks which contain subject-matter ordered according to the structure of chemistry, i.e. not adjusted for learners, as well as textbooks dominantly orientated towards the transmissive approach to education. Regarding the teachers’ perception of textbooks, potential limits were identified in implementing innovations in (chemical) education. Keywords: chemistry textbooks, lower-secondary school science education, teachers' teaching conception

This study explores the pedagogical challenges in teaching chemical equations, focusing on the ability to balance chemical equations and understanding related basic chemical concepts among chemistry teacher students. Based on Johnstone’s representation theory, we examined the efficacy of digital tools designed to enhance equation-balancing skills. The key findings of this study seem to be the disconnection between students’ procedural proficiency in balancing equations and their conceptual understanding of underlying chemical reactions. Surprising was the relatively low ability to balance chemical equations when compared to the expected level of upper-secondary school students. An analysis of the results showed that students could be distinguished into four different groups of solvers based on their total score and solving time: efficient, persistent, impulsive, and inefficient solvers. Utilizing an eye-tracking study, the findings reveal a predominant reliance on symbolic representations, with additional sub-microscopic representations provided by digital applets failing to significantly improve equation-balancing capabilities. This reliance potentially hinders students’ ability to conceptualize reactions at the particulate level, impacting overall chemistry comprehension. This study underscores the need for a pedagogical shift toward integrating multiple representations into chemical education to bridge the gap between procedural skills and deep conceptual understanding. By highlighting the limitations of current teaching approaches and the use of digital tools, this research contributes to improving chemical education strategies, fostering a more integrated and nuanced understanding of chemical principles among students.

According to research findings from all over the world, textbooks play an important role for teachers in the choice of methods, content and educational goals. However, the open textbook market, where the state's influence is limited, results in a significant gap between the state (written) curriculum and actual classroom practice. To understand this phenomenon in more detail, teachers’ ( N = 387) conception of lower-secondary chemistry textbooks was evaluated, based on their perception and use of particular textbook components. Data obtained with an online questionnaire were subjected to a thorough analysis using CRISP-DM data mining methodology. The results showed a high consistency in chemistry teachers’ perception of textbooks and also that only a limited number of textbook components are frequently being used in teaching practice. The vast majority of teachers mentioned using textbook content to prepare lessons, which indicated textbooks’ influence over lesson content. The other most frequently used components are graphical representations, questions and tasks. Textbook components which can be used to apply a student-centred approach are considered less important by the majority of teachers, which confirms the persisting teacher-centred approach in chemistry teaching. The results also helped identify textbook components whose innovation could have the highest impact on education (educational illustrations, structured text, photographs and tasks). This study therefore sheds more light on chemistry teaching, as well as bringing important knowledge to new textbook authors. The data mining methodology proved useful in this sort of research, showing multiple relations which would not be considered in standard data analysis.