About the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE)
The Tanzania Institute of Education was established by Act No. 13 of 1975 (CAP 142 R. E. 2002). It is a public institution under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. According to Section 4 of the cited Act, the main functions of the Institute may be grouped as follows:
a) Curriculum development and review
b) Development of curriculum support materials including, but not limited to syllabi and textbooks
c) Quality assurance of educational materials
d) Training in curriculum studies, including in-service training of teachers
e) Research in education and the provision of professional advice to the government and other education stakeholders
The mandate of the Institute covers pre-primary, primary, secondary, and teacher education levels.
GUIDELINES FOR WRITING TEXTBOOKS
1. Authorship of Textbooks
This section introduces some of the basic considerations to be taken into account regarding authorship of textbooks. It also addresses the roles and responsibilities of the author. Specifically, the section presents the following:
a) definition of an author
b) attributes of an author
c) role and responsibilities of an author
d) qualities of a good author
2. Definition of an author
An author is an individual who creates information which he or she organises concisely and accurately and presents it in the form of a manuscript(s). He/she is a person who writes a textbook, an article or document. In the context of these guidelines, the author is the writer of textbook manuscripts.
3. Qualities of an author
The following are the main qualities of an author of textbook manuscripts:
a) observes efficiency when writing by applying styles that communicate the most amount of information in the least amount of reading time
b) assesses his/her audience in terms of its nature. This includes considering what the audience knows about the subject, and how it will benefit them.
c) writes in a language style that relates to the audience’s linguistic proficiency and avoids needless complexity and ambiguities
d) selects illustrations that are gender- responsive and familiar or related to the contexts of his/her audience
e) considers for inclusion cultural orientations that are both current and socially acceptable
f) considers writing constraints carefully, including audience-related ones and others that are to do with the mechanics of writing
g) critically reviews his/her own work in order to determine gaps and discrepancies, which he/she fixes accordingly
h) solicits criticism and is prepared to accept it without being unduly defensive
i) observes discipline in terms of time and the amount of work to be written
within a given time schedule
j) ethically and expertly reads a broad range of other people’s works, particularly
textbooks, as bases for what he/she is writing
Roles and responsibilities of an author
The following are the roles and responsibilities of an author:
a) Collect and interpret data honestly. The manuscript should not contain any
scientific dishonesty, and/or fraud, such as fictitious or manipulated data and plagiarised material, either from the previous work.
b) Ensure that the manuscript does not have reference omissions, false priority statements, hidden multiple publications of the same data, and incorrect authorship. Do not breach any copyright.
c) Seek appropriate permission of the relevant publishers when reproducing figures or schemes from previous publications.
d) Give due recognition to published works relating to the manuscript by correct reference and citation.
e) Disclose all sources. Moreover, if a significant amount of other peoples’
materials is to be used, seek their permission in accordance with the copyright
law.
f) Ensure that the manuscript does not contain personal criticism of other authors.
g) Give due acknowledgment to all people who have contributed to the works and list all co-authors.
h) Ensure that co-authors have agreed to the submission of the works/publication and acknowledge that they have been properly involved as co-authors.
4. Content of a Textbook
Knowing the parts of a textbook and arranging them in the right order is the first step of making the textbook credible and professional. The textbook is divided into three main sections, namely:
a) Front matter or preliminary pages
b) Body matter
c) Back matter or end matter
Each section includes certain elements which usually appear in a specific order.
Therefore:
a) Make sure the manuscript includes all the three sections combined into a single
document and in the correct format.
b) Pay attention to the kind of information that goes in each section and ensure
that the sections or elements appear in the conventional, expected order.
The components of each part are presented below:
5. Front matter
The front matter or preliminary pages is the information that appears at the very beginning of a textbook. It introduces the textbook to readers. The front matter section comprises of a few pages, namely, the cover page, title page, copyright page and table of contents page(s). Pages bearing the dedication, preface, foreword, acknowledgments, abbreviations, and introduction are also added. The front matter pages are usually numbered in Roman numerals. The front matter consists of:
a) Cover page: This page usually has the title of the textbook only. In some cases, the cover page may bear the name of the publisher.
b) Title page: This is the page that carries the title of the textbook, the name of the author(s) and the publisher. Other information may be included on the title page, depending on the type of textbook.
c) Copyright page: This includes the copyright declaration or note, the name and address of the author/publisher, the copyright sign or symbol, the International Standard Textbook Number (ISBN) and the edition number. In some textbooks, the publisher will specifically state that it is a “first edition.” With others, the edition is represented by a number. In those cases, a first edition would read like: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1. A second edition would read like: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 2.
d) Table of contents: The table of contents is the key part of any textbook. It outlines what is included in each chapter of the textbook. It acts as a road map for the textbook, listing the chapter titles and the page on which each chapter starts. There are various formats that can be used, including tabled charts, dot leaders and justified alignment.
But, basically, you just need to put each chapter number, chapter title and page number on its own line. The table of contents is usually used only in writings that have parts or chapters. Make sure it lists all the chapters, other divisions or sections in the manuscript. Chapter listings must be worded exactly as they appear inside the textbook itself.
e) List of tables: If the textbook includes several key tables that provide information or enhance the text in some way, list them on a separate page and add page numbers. If this material is included simply as a visual aid, a page listing may not be necessary.
f) List of illustrations: If the textbook includes several key illustrations that
provide key information, a page that lists them must be created, depending on the education level.
g) Foreword: The foreword contains a statement about the textbook and is usually
written by someone other than the author who is an expert or is widely known
in the field of the textbook's topics. It is a testimony of the author’s credibility.
It comprises of a short note that explains the relationship of the writer of the foreword to the author or to the contents of the textbook or both; providing some context for the textbook. The foreword is usually signed with the writer’s name, date and place. It lends authority to the textbook and may increase its potential for sale.
h) Preface: A preface is written by the author of the textbook. It is an introduction to the genesis of the textbook, that is, how the textbook came into being. It is often signed by the author and indicates the place and the date of signing. The preface usually describes the reasons of writing the textbook, data collection methods and perhaps some acknowledgments, if they have not been included in a separate section. It may also highlight the author's qualifications and expertise of the authority in the field in which the book is written.
i) Acknowledgments: The acknowledgments express gratitude or appreciation to the people who supported or helped in the writing or preparation of the textbook. This section may also include credit for illustrations or excerpts if not included on the copyright page.
If the information is lengthy, the author may choose to put this section in the back matter, before or after the bibliography.
j) Introduction: The introduction describes something about the main text that the reader should know before proceeding to read the textbook. The introduction refers to the main body of the work itself. For example, if there are questions at the conclusion of each chapter, here is where the author might prepare the reader and give tips on how best to use them. The introduction also
describes the overall concept of the textbook in more detail than the preface.
The introduction is written by the author to set out the goals and organisation of the textbook.
k) List of abbreviations: If many abbreviations are used, or if a few are used frequently, a list is useful. Its location should always be given in the table of contents. Alphabetize them by the abbreviation, not by the spelled-out form.
6. Body matter
The body matter is the core content of the textbook, or what is called the “story.”
It carries the information to be passed to the intended learners. The core content is most often divided into distinct segments, commonly known as chapters. The length of a chapter will depend on the length of the corresponding main competence/ main topic in the syllabus. Each chapter has a heading and page, which may be organised in subheadings. In some cases, there may be headers, foot notes or endnotes. The body matter is numbered with Arabic numerals, beginning with the number “1”. The body matter has the following features:
a) Chapter opening pages: Chapters often have opening pages, usually recto pages (fresh page on the right) but not always. The layout of parts and chapters is primarily a design issue.
b) Epilogue: An epilogue is often a continuation of the main narrative or is written in the voice of the author, and it provides a sense of closure to the work.
c) Afterword: The afterword is the section at the end of a textbook which contains remarks lon the main text. It can be written by the author or someone else and is designed to provide a larger context of the work.
d) Conclusion: The conclusion is a short summary of the most important
arguments of the whole textbook or chapter.
7. Back matter
The back or end matter of the textbook consists of the Appendix, Notes, Glossary,
Bibliography or References, List of Contributors, Index and Resources. Each of the sections is described below:
a) Appendix: An appendix refers to data or information that might help to clarify the text for the reader but would have disrupted the flow of the main text if
not included in the earlier body matter of the textbook. The items included in the appendix are enough to constitute a separate section. They comprise such matters as a list of references, tables, reports, background research and sources.
b) Notes: If the main text requires notes to amplify or document certain passages throughout the text, notes should be arranged by chapter in a notes section.
Footnotes are more likely to be included in the references section, described under (d) below.
c) Glossary: A glossary comprises alphabetically arranged words and their definitions. Terminologies that are not generally known to the average reader should be included. A glossary should also be included to explain ideas, if new words or phrases are coined.
d) References or bibliography: Both the bibliography and reference sections
list the sources or works used in developing the textbook. Sources should be arranged alphabetically by the author's last name. The American Psychological Association (APA) style in citation should be use.
e) List of contributors: A list of contributors is useful for multi author works where only the volume editor’s name appears on the title page. Entries should be arranged alphabetically by the last name, but name should not be inverted (“Selemani K. Hadija,” not “Hadija, Selemani K.”). If necessary, biographical notes and academic affiliations can be added for each entry
f) Index: The index is an alphabetically ordered list of words and terms used for referencing text. Keep in mind that the computer-generated keyword index that lists a page number for a key term every time it occurs in a textbook tends to be overly long and has no logical organization other than alphabetisation. Thus, a professional indexer can be hired to analyse the entire textbook, anticipate subject items the reader will most likely want to find and list them in an intuitive, accessible manner.
g) Resources: Often, readers want to buy products or join organisations in the field in which they have written. Therefore, a list of organisations and associations, manufacturers and distributors, websites and other sources is invaluable to them
