Policies » Section I: Instruction » IJL: Selection Of Learning Resources

Policy Date: 10/12/2010

ASD File: IJL
AUBURN SCHOOL DISTRICT
SELECTION OF LEARNING RESOURCES

The policy of the Auburn School District is to provide a wide range of age appropriate learning resources at varying levels of difficulty, with diversity of appeal and the presentation of different points of view to meet the needs of students and teachers.

Objectives of Selection:
For the purposes of this statement of policy, the term “learning resources” will refer to any person(s) or any material (whether acquired or locally produced) with instructional content or function that is used for formal or informal teaching/learning purposes. Learning resources include textbooks, other books, charts, maps and globes, models and artifacts, pictures, games, data files, websites, motion pictures and DVDs, periodicals and monographs, slides, sound recordings, printed music, and transparencies. Community people, agencies and organizations are vital “learning resources,” as well as national and international agencies, museums, libraries and other educational institutions that offer programs via the Internet or satellite.

The primary objective of learning resources is to support, enrich, and help implement the educational program of the school through the interaction of professional personnel and other members of the school community. It is the duty of professional staff to provide students with a wide range of materials at varying levels of difficulty, with diversity of appeal, and the presentation of different points of view.

To this end, the Auburn School Board affirms that it is the responsibility of its professional staff:

To provide materials that will enrich and support the curriculum, taking into consideration the varied interests, abilities, learning styles, and maturity levels of the students served;

To provide materials that will stimulate growth in factual knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic values, and societal standards;

To provide materials on various sides of controversial issues so that young citizens may have an opportunity to develop, under guidance, the practice of critical analysis and to make informed judgments in their daily lives;

To provide materials representative of the many religious, ethnic, and cultural groups who contribute to our national heritage and the world community;
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 to the school community.

Responsibility for Selection of Learning Resources:
The Auburn School District delegates the responsibility for the selection of learning resources to the professional staff employed by the school system.

While selection of learning resources involves many people (administrators, teachers, students, community persons, resource center personnel), the responsibility for coordinating the selection of school learning resources and making the recommendation for purchase rests with the principal and professional personnel.

Criteria for Selection of Learning Resources:
The following criteria will be used as they apply: Learning resources shall support and be consistent with the general educational goals of the state and the district and the aims and objectives of individual schools and specific courses.
Learning resources shall be chosen to enrich and support the curriculum and the personal needs of students.

Learning resources shall meet high standards of quality such as:
• artistic quality and/or literary style
• authenticity
• educational significance
• factual content
• physical format
• presentation
• readability
• technical quality
Learning resources shall be appropriate for the subject area and for the age, emotional development, ability level, learning styles, and social development of the students for whom the materials are selected.

Learning resources shall be designed to provide a background of information that will motivate students and staff to examine their own attitudes and behavior; to comprehend their duties, responsibilities, rights and privileges as participating citizens in our society; and to make informed judgments in their daily lives.

Learning resources shall provide information on opposing sides of controversial issues so that students may develop, under guidance, the practice of critical analysis. The selection of learning resources on controversial issues will be directed toward maintaining a balanced collection representing various views. Learning resources shall clarify historical and contemporary forces by presenting and analyzing inter-group tension and conflict objectively, placing emphasis on recognizing and understanding social and economic problems.

Procedures for Selection of Learning Resources:
In selecting learning resources, professional personnel will evaluate available resources and curriculum needs and will consult reputable, professionally prepared aids to selection and other appropriate sources.

Among sources to be considered are current reviewing media:
•Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
•Horn Book
•Kirkus Reviews
•Booklist
•Book Links
•Library Journal
•School Library Journal

Other sources will be considered as appropriate. Whenever possible, the actual resource will be examined. Recommendations for purchase involve administrators, teachers, students, district personnel, and community persons, as appropriate. Gift materials shall be judged by the criteria outlined and shall be accepted or rejected by those criteria.
Selection is an ongoing process that should include the removal of materials no longer appropriate and the replacement of lost and worn materials still of educational value.

Legal References: NH Admin Rule, Section Ed 306.0; NH Admin Rule, Section ED 306.14(e)
Adopted: February 10, 1983
Revised: October 23, 2001
Revised: October 12, 2010