Adopted: 01/18/1992
Revised: 361 Rule (1)
School District of Prairie Farm
Library Materials Selection Policy
I. Objectives of Selection
The
primary objective of the school's educational media center is to
implement, enrich and support the educational program of the school. It
is the duty of the center to provide a wide range of materials on all
levels of difficulty, with diversity of appeal, and the presentation of
different points of view which depict in an accurate and unbiased way
the cultural diversity and pluralistic nature of American society.
To this end the Board of Education of Prairie Farm assets that the responsibility of the library media center is:
· To
provide materials that will enrich and support the curriculum, taking
into consideration the varied interests, abilities, and maturity levels
of the pupils served;
· To provide materials that will stimulate growth in knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic value, and ethical standards.
· To
provide background of information which will enable pupils to make
intelligent judgments in their daily life and to provide materials on
opposing sides of controversial issues so that young citizens may
develop under guidance the practice of critical analysis of all media.
· To
provide materials representative of the many religious, ethic, and
cultural groups and their contributions to our American heritage.
II. Responsibility for Selection Materials
The Prairie Farm
Board of Education is legally responsible for all matters relating to
the operation of the Prairie Farm Schools.
The responsibility
for the selection of high school and elementary materials may involve
principals, teachers, students, supervisors, people of the community,
and media specialists. The responsibility for
coordinating the selection of instructional materials and making the
recommendation for purchase rests with the professionally trained media
personnel.
III. Criteria for Selection of Instructional Materials
Needs of the
individual school based on knowledge of the curriculum and of the
existing collection are given first consideration.
Materials for purchase are considered on the basis of: overall
purpose; timeliness or performance; importance of the subject matter;
quality of the writing production; readability and popular appeal;
authoritativeness; reputation and significance of the author, artist,
composer, producer; format and price.
Request from faculty and students are given consideration.
IV. Procedures for Selection
In selecting materials for purchase, the media specialist evaluates the existing collection and consults: reputable,
unbiased, professionally prepared selection aids; specialists from all
departments and/or all grade levels; the media committee appointed by
the principal to serve in an advisory capacity in the selection of
materials.
In specific area the medial specialist follows these procedures: gift
materials are judged by basic selection standards, and are accepted or
rejected by these standards; multiple items of outstanding and much in
demand media are purchased as needed; worn or missing standard items
are replaced periodically; out of date or no longer useful materials
are with dr4awn from the collection; sets of materials and materials
acquired by subscription are examined carefully, and are purchased only
to fill a definite need; salesmen must have permission from the
District Administrator's office before going into any of the schools.
V. Challenged Materials
Occasional objections
to a selection will be made by the public, despite the care taken to
select valuable materials for student and teacher use and
qualifications of persons who select the materials.
The principles of the
freedom to read and of the professional responsibility of the staff
must be defended, rather than the materials.
CROSS REFERENCE: 361- Selection of Classroom Instructional and Library Media Center Materials
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