Preconceived notions of scientists lead students to picture them as "different" kinds of people and view science itself as an "exclusive" practice. These images, and the students' ability or inability to identify with them, influence students' involvement with science. The role of the school curriculum and curricular material needs to be examined to understand how our curricular materials, especially textbooks, respond to these stereotypes. This article examines the standard textbooks for Classes IX and X to understand if they reinforce or counter the stereotypical images of scientists.
