Textbook Evaluation Tools – Frameworks & Rubrics

For Schools and School Districts

The FAIR Education Act Implementation Coalition has developed comprehensive rubrics to use when reviewing instructional materials for adoption in their schools. These rubrics provide parents, teachers and administrators a tool to help evaluate how well history textbooks and instructional materials align with the LGBT history identified in the 2016 state History-Social Science Framework. The California State Board of Education History-Social Science Frameworks for K-12 can be viewed and downloaded here:

The below tools specify grade-level (K-5, 8th Grade, and 11th Grade) subject matter frameworks, questions the texts must answer to align with the framework, tables in which to record a textbook or program’s ratings, and additional material whose inclusion would indicate more thorough alignment with the History-Social Science Frameworks (California Education Code § 60040).

For Parents and Guardians

Family voices are an important part of the process each school district follows as they review and adopt instructional materials for their schools. This resource helps explain the process of textbook review, the content standards at the various grade levels, and ideas about what to look for in instructional materials.

LGBT History Content and the California History-Social Science Framework Author:
Dr. Rob Darrow, EdD