FILE: IFAB
SELECTION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS
The Sabine Parish School Board is legally responsible for all matters relating to the operation of the Sabine Parish Schools. The responsibility for the selection of library materials is delegated to the professionally trained and certified staff employed by Sabine Parish Schools. (The term library materials or materials includes printed and audiovisual materials.)
While selection of materials involves many persons (principals, teachers, students, supervisors, community persons, and library media specialists), the responsibility for coordinating the selection of library materials and making the recommendation for purchase rests with certified library media personnel. The school district subscribes to the principles as stated in the School Library Bill of Rights for School Library Media Center Programs:
To provide a comprehensive collection of instructional materials selected in compliance with basic, written selection principles, and to provide maximum accessibility to these materials.
To provide materials that will support the curriculum, taking into consideration the individual's needs, and the varied interests, abilities, socio-economic backgrounds, and maturity levels of the students served.
To provide materials for teachers and students that will encourage growth in knowledge and that will develop literary, cultural, and aesthetic appreciation, and ethnical standards.
To provide materials which reflect the ideas and beliefs of religious, social, political, historical, and ethnic groups and their contribution to the American and world heritage and culture, thereby enabling students to develop an intellectual integrity in forming judgments.
To provide a written statement, approved by the Board, of the procedures for meeting the challenges of censorship of materials in library media centers.
To provide qualified professional personnel to serve teachers and students.
To place principle above personal opinion and reason above prejudice in the selection of materials of the highest quality in order to assure a comprehensive collection appropriate for the users of the library.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS
Materials shall support and be consistent with the general educational goals of the district, the school and the curriculum.
Materials shall meet high standards of quality in factual content and presentation.
Materials shall be appropriate for the subject area and for the age, emotional development, ability level and social development of the students for whom the materials are selected.
Materials should support the development of reading skill and aid instruction in the use of books and libraries.
Materials shall have aesthetic, literary, artistic and/or social value of recognized significance.
Materials chosen shall be by competent and qualified authors and producers.
Materials shall be chosen to foster respect and understanding of minority groups, women, various ethnic groups and all major religions and shall realistically and factually represent our pluralistic contemporary society along with the roles and lifestyles open to both men and women.
Materials shall be chosen that examine various economic, political and ideological systems and the historical impact of such systems.
Materials shall provide students with opportunities and experiences which foster critical thinking in an atmosphere of free inquiry.
Materials should present the varied aspect of our society, including some that may be considered undesirable.
Materials should present a reasonable balance of opposing sides of controversial issues.
Materials shall be selected for their strengths rather than rejected for their weaknesses.
Physical format and appearance and appearance of materials shall be of high quality and be appropriate for their intended use.
Due to budget limitations, it is not possible to acquire all materials that might be considered useful by some. Generally excluded will be expensive items such as the following: art books, art prints, long-running 16mm films, ephemeral items such as materials dealing with the current fashions, professional reference books and materials that would duplicate items held at the local public library. Also excluded would be textbooks, workbooks, foreign language listening tapes, and certain esoteric items that do not deal with curriculum related subjects.
SELECTION OF LIBRARY MATERIALS
In selecting materials for purchase, the library media specialist will evaluate the existing collection and the curriculum needs and will consult reputable, unbiased, professionally prepared selection aids. Further, he/she will consult with professional staff, curriculum specialists and subject area specialists when appropriate.
Recommendations for purchase will be solicited from faculty, administrators, and students.
Gift materials shall be judged by the criteria listed above and shall be accepted or rejected by those criteria.
Selection is an ongoing process and also includes the removal of materials no longer appropriate and the replacement of lost or worn materials still of educational value.
RECONSIDERATION OF QUESTIONED OR CHALLENGED MATERIALS
The student's parents or concerned citizen should contact the student's teacher and/or librarian and a Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials should be completed.
At that time the librarian and principal should explain the procedure to be followed:
The material will be turned over to the School Review Committee that has been appointed by the principal, composed of the principal, the librarian, a teacher, and a parent.
The material will be reviewed in light of objections raised as follows:
Read and examine the materials referred.
Check general acceptance of the material by reading reviews.
Weigh values and faults against each other and form opinions based on the material as a whole and not on passages pulled out of context.
Meet to discuss the material and to prepare a report on it.
File a copy of the report in the school and administrative offices.
The complainant will be notified of the decision of the Committee.
If the findings of the Committee are unsatisfactory to the complainant, he/she has the right to appeal to the Superintendent of Schools.
Finally the Superintendent's decision can be appealed to the Sabine Parish School Board.
Sabine Parish School Board