The curriculum of a district shall be reviewed on a
regular basis. The district shall adopt a cycle with the input of the
The success of the educational program of the Camas Public Schools in meeting the needs of pupils and teachers depends to a great extent upon the size, range, and quality of the instructional materials available for their use. Every effort shall be made to provide the textbooks, library books, periodicals, audiovisual materials and other resources essential to an effective instructional program. As knowledge expands, it is essential that selection of suitable instructional materials from the best materials available be a continuous process.
Criteria for the selection, development, and adoption of
instructional materials as adopted by the Washington State Board of Education
and
1. Instructional materials shall enrich and support the curriculum taking into consideration the varied instructional needs, abilities, interest, and maturity levels of the students.
2. Instructional materials shall stimulate student growth in conceptual thinking, factual knowledge, physical fitness, literary appreciation, aesthetic values, and the development of ethical standards.
3. Instructional materials shall be of sufficient variety so as to present opposing views of controversial issues in order that young citizens may develop the skills of critical analysis and informed decision-making.
4. Instructional materials hereafter developed or purchased shall contribute to the development of an understanding of the ethnic, cultural, and occupational diversity of American life.
5. Instructional materials shall objectively present the concerns and build upon the contribution, current and historical, of both sexes, and members of the several specific religious, ethnic and cultural groups. It should be recognized, however, that under certain conditions, biased materials may represent appropriate resources in presenting contrasting and differing points of view.
6. Instructional materials shall provide non-stereotyped models which may be used as a vehicle for the development of self-respect, ethnic pride, and appreciation of cultural differences based on respect for the worth, dignity and personal values of every individual.
7. Instructional materials, including textbooks (single or multiple), programmed learning, tele-courses, package or units, film courses and the like are generally the basic resources for teaching and learning. Therefore, all the above criteria should be adhered to in their selection.
The superintendent and his/her administrative staff, with the advice and counsel of the professional staff, shall be delegated the authority to select instructional materials. The district will establish an instructional council which shall:
1. Be
organized as a part of the instructional section of the superintendent's office.
2. Have broad representation.
3. Have the responsibility for recommending action on instructional and curricular matters including modifying or initiating programs to the superintendent for action or referral to the board.
4. Have
the responsibility for examining, evaluating, and selecting instructional
materials and recommending the purchase of these materials to the school board.
Committees composed of teachers, administrators, and the curriculum director
will be formed. These committees will research and recommend adoptions to the
Instructional Council.
5. Review
any challenged materials and recommend action to the superintendent.
6. Review materials which are considered to be obsolete and recommend action to the superintendent.
Instructional materials selected for use shall be
available for review by any citizen of the
Instructional materials are to be disposed of when procedures have become established for the disposal of obsolescent materials.
Purposes:
1. To
evaluate and recommend plans for major curriculum modification to the
superintendent.;
2. To create an organized process that will insure staff involvement in the development of the instructional program;
3. To communicate the activities of the council to the staff and community;
4. To
aid the administration in establishing school district priorities.
Council Membership: The following members to be appointed or elected by the group that they represent. The term of membership shall be for three (3) years.
· Three (3) elected teachers representing grade levels K-2
· Three (3) elected teachers representing grade levels 3-6
· Two (2) elected teachers representing grades 7-9
·
Two (2) elected teachers representing grade
levels 10-12
· One (1) at large teacher from the any grade level
· One to two district administrators appointed by the superintendent
· Two parents appointed by the superintendent or designee
Each member of the council is responsible to communicate with the people they represent so that everyone is informed and has an opportunity to express his/her opinions.
There will be one (1) vote per person on the council excluding the chairperson. The chairperson will vote only in case of a tie.
A chairperson will be elected from the council membership at the first meeting of each school year. Individuals who vacate the council prior to the expiration of their term will be replaced by the group that they represent with a new member to fulfill the unexpired term.
The
All major recommendations for needs assessment or curriculum modification that have any effect on the continuity of a program, either vertically or horizontally, will be referred to the instructional council.
The instructional council will evaluate all proposals and advise the superintendent as to the disposition of the proposal. These recommendations could take the following forms:
· Recommendation to implement a program or program modification.
· Recommendation that a pilot project be established.
· When a recommendation is made that includes multiple proposals, the proposals will be prioritized.
· Recommendation that a needs assessment take place.
· Recommendation of non-support of the proposal.
Meetings of the council are open to all interested individuals and will be scheduled frequently during the school year. Special meetings may be called by the chairperson.
When program needs are identified that do not affect the
district program horizontally or vertically, the superintendent may act without
receiving advice from the council.
A
recording secretary from the district office staff will be charged with
completing minutes of each meeting of the Instructional Council.
Every effort should be made to resolve concerns as to
retention or restriction of materials at the building level. When a complaint
is received from any resident of the district regarding the use of
instructional materials in a specific school, the teacher or media specialists
and principal (“building personnel”) shall be notified of the complaint
and its source. If the building personnel are in agreement that the disputed
material should be retained, they should contact the complainant in an effort
to resolve any misunderstanding. There is no time limit for these discussions as
long as they are productive. If the complainant continues to dispute the
propriety of using the material, the principal shall assist the complainant in
executing a Request for Reconsideration.
The Request for Reconsideration Form allows the complainant
an opportunity to identify very specific concerns and or remedies
proposed. Once the building
personnel receive the completed form, they should address these issues and
respond to the complainant accordingly.
If the building personnel cannot reach agreement among themselves, or if
they concur that materials should not be removed, they should notify the
superintendent who will refer the matter to the
1. Set a time and place for an open hearing of the complaint by the instructional council. Such hearing shall be within thirty (30) school days of the board secretary's receipt of the completed request form.
2. Notify the complainant and appropriate staff members, including teachers using the materials, of the time and place of the meeting. Such notification shall include an invitation to present relevant information, oral or written.
3. Assemble such data, including reviews and professional opinions of the materials, the teacher's objectives and or rationale for using the materials, and the specific objections of the complainant, as may be necessary for the Instructional Council to properly judge the request for consideration.
Hearing of citizens' request for reconsideration shall be open to the public. The committee shall consider all matters presented and give reasonable credit to such matters according to the weight they are in reason entitled to. Decisions shall be by majority vote of the committee. Decisions of the committee shall be delivered to the complainant and affected staff members in writing within twenty (20) days.
Following are procedural guidelines for the chairperson conducting hearings on challenged materials:
1.
All
2. Requests for reconsideration of materials should be filed and made available for public perusal as soon as they are received.
3.
Each
member of
4. Dates and times of hearings should be established as soon as possible and communicated in the time frame allowed by policy.
5. During the hearing, testimony related to the material in question will be heard for one hour. The chairperson will inform audience members of time parameters for individuals testifying within this hour. He or she will notify those testifying when their time is up. Individuals representing both sides of an issue will be given equal time to present their views.
6. After one hour of testimony, the hearing will be closed and the Council will meet to consider the request.
7. A quorum of the Council must be present for a hearing to occur.
8. A majority vote is required to accept any motion.
9. Four motions can be made related to challenged materials:
a. The Council can recommend retaining the materials.
b. The Council can recommend moving the materials to another level.
c. The Council can recommend removing the materials from use.
d. The Council can recommend retaining the materials on a restricted shelf.
Free textbooks and other instructional materials may be made available for loan to students when, in the judgment of the members of the board, the best interests of the district will be served by such a decision. It will be the responsibility of the professional staff to maintain the records necessary for proper accounting of all instructional materials and to set forth conditions for student replacement of lost or badly damaged materials.
Except for normal wear, all instructional materials furnished for student use must be returned in good condition when called for by the instructor of the course.
Students shall pay the price of any lost or damaged book or books furnished by the district, based upon the depreciation scale provided in this policy.
When books or other instructional materials are not needed in a given building, they should be relocated within the district or declared obsolete. Before declaring selected materials obsolete, safeguards shall be taken to assure that the materials are no longer useful to any segment of the school district.
When selected materials have been declared obsolete by the Board of Directors, the district shall:
Make the textbooks
and/or library books available for purchase to district students.;
Offer materials for
purchase to those private schools in the state of .; and
Dispose of the material by a sale to the highest bidder, following public notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the area. In the event reasonable efforts to dispose of such materials via the bidding process fail, the district will then make reasonable efforts to negotiate an exchange of the materials for some value. If both of the foregoing efforts fail, the district may then discard such obsolete instructional materials upon a finding that they are without value and that further retention would impose unnecessary and unrecoverable cost upon the district.
The following are guidelines for selection of instructional materials that may be of a controversial nature:
4. Religion: Factual unbiased material which represents all major religions should be included in the schools' collections.
5. Ideologies: The schools should, without making any effort to sway reader's judgment, make available basic factual information on the level of its reading public any ideology or philosophy which exerts a strong force in government, current events, politics, education or any other phase of life.
6. Sex and Profanity: Materials presenting accents on sex should be subjected to a stern test of literary merit by the librarian and teachers who take into consideration their reading public. While we should not in any case include the sensational or over-dramatic, the fact of sexual incidents or profanity appearing should not automatically disqualify a book. Rather, the decision should be made on the basis whether the book presents life in its true proportions, whether circumstances are realistically considered, and whether the book is of a literary value. Factual material of an educational nature on the level of the reading public should be included in the library collection.
The following forms are recommended for use to:
Date: May 2005
INSTRUCTION INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS
Date
Department Head/Teacher Principal/School
Title:
Author:
(Last
Name) (First
Name)
Publisher:
Copyright Date: Paperback: Yes No
Instructional Purpose: Basic Experimental Supplemental
Required
Use
Grade: Course Title:
Unit within Course of Study:
Teacher-directed Study:
Readability Level: Fry Readability Formula*
Readability Level: SMOG Readability Formula*
Readability Level: Fog Readability Formula*
For average or heterogeneous class For the remedial student
For the able learner group or class For students needing special motivation
*Use the Fry
Readability Formula, SMOG Readability Formula or Fog Readability Index to
ascertain readability.
Description and
Rationale
A brief review of the book:
Have you read the book? Yes No Report based on review? Yes No
Identify source of review:
The selection committee has reviewed the book regarding:
Management System Supplementary Materials
Program and Student Objectives Readability
Evaluation Techniques (testing, etc.) Organization and Approach
If this book appears on a book list for your particular discipline or age group of students, please explain:
Is this book one of a series: Yes No
Does the book have:
· few concepts per chapter fully developed? Yes No
· many concepts per chapter with minimal development? Yes No
Other:
Why is a new text needed?
What other materials have been
considered?
&nbs