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The Board is legally responsible to approve and to provide the necessary instructional materials used in the District.  Textbooks and instructional materials should provide quality learning experiences for students and: 

• Enrich and support the curriculum;

• Stimulate growth in knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic value, and ethical standards;

• Provide background information to enable students to make intelligent judgments;

• Present opposing sides of controversial issues;

• Be representative of many religious, ethnic, and cultural groups and their contributions to our American heritage;

• Depict in an accurate and unbiased way the cultural diversity and pluralistic nature of the American society;

• Be matched to the appropriate skill levels of students.                

• Basic instructional course material in the fundamental skill areas of language arts, mathematics, science and social studies should be reviewed at intervals not exceeding five (5) years.  All instructional materials must be sequential, and must be compatible with previous and future offerings.

GUIDELINES FOR SELECTION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

1. Definition of Instructional Materials

   • Classroom instructional materials include print and non-print materials obtained primarily for use with classes, courses, grades, and particular student groups.

   • Library media center materials include print and non-print materials for general use by students and school personnel.

   • Technological instructional materials include, but are not limited to, computer software, related peripheral devices, CD-ROM, DVD, video-disc, television, databases and online resources for general use by students and school personnel.

2. Objectives of Selection

   • To provide materials and information that will implement, enrich and support the curriculum, taking into consideration individual needs, varied interests, abilities and maturity levels of the pupils served.

   • To provide materials and information that will stimulate growth in factual knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic values, and ethical standards.

   • To provide materials which will stimulate reading and the desire to learn.

   • To provide a background of information on many sides of controversial issues so that young citizens may develop, under guidance, the practice of critical analysis.

   • To provide materials which will help students gain an awareness and understanding of the contributions to our heritage made by both sexes and by the various religions and cultures of the world.

   • To provide materials that will meet the needs of the professional staffs in fulfilling the schools’ educational objectives.

   • To place principle above personal opinion and reason above prejudice in the selection of materials to assure a comprehensive collection.

   • To provide technological instructional materials which meet the NETS (National Educational Technology Standards).

3. Responsibility for Selection

The Manchester Board of School Committee is legally responsible for all matters relating to the operation of the Manchester Public Schools. 

• The responsibility for the selection of instructional materials is delegated to the professionally-trained personnel employed by the school system.  Selection of materials may involve the Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, principals, supervisors, directors, building level instructional coordinators, guidance personnel, teachers, library media professionals, and other support specialists.

   

• The responsibility for coordinating the selection of instructional materials for the library media center and resource centers and making the recommendation for purchase rests with the professionally-trained media personnel.  The responsibility for coordinating the selection for textbooks rests with the instructional unit, which is defined as teachers, building level instructional coordinators, and principal at the senior high school level; teachers in departments and principals at the junior high school level; teachers and principals at the elementary school level.  System-wide selections would abide by the Agreement between the Board of School Committee and the Manchester Education Association.

4. Criteria for Selection

The needs of the individual school, based on knowledge of the curriculum, is given first consideration.  These are determined by reviewing teacher and student requirements and by evaluating the existing collection. 

The following criteria, in general, are the bases for the selection of materials:

• general suitability to educational objectives

• timeliness and/or permanence

• importance of the subject matter

• quality of the writing or production

• appropriateness to the needs of the student

• authoritativeness and authenticity

• reputation of the publisher or producer

• reputation and significance of the author, artist, or composer

• format and price

• contribution to the development of a comprehensive collection

5. Procedures for Selection

A.   In specific circumstances

1. Worn or missing standard items are replaced periodically and out-of-date or no longer useful materials are withdrawn from the collection.

2. Materials acquired by subscription are purchased to fill a diversity of needs.

3. Multiple items of outstanding and much-in-demand media are purchased as needed.

4. Gift materials are judged by the above selection criteria.

5. All materials are obtained in compliance with existing copyright laws.

Classroom materials will be selected as follows:

Textbooks will be selected by system wide textbook selection and piloting committees following the development of revision of the respective curriculum area.

GUIDELINES FOR RECONSIDERATION OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

1. Rationale.

   • The principles of intellectual freedom are inherent in the First Amendment of the Constitution.  The freedom to read, the professional responsibility of the staff and the student’s right of access to materials must be affirmed, except as pertains to the Manchester School District’s Intranet/Internet Responsible Use Policy.

The Freedom to Read* propositions used in the selection process are:

1. It is in the public interest for publishers and librarians to make available the widest diversity of views and expressions, including those which are unorthodox or unpopular with the majority.

2. Publishers, librarians and booksellers, do not need to endorse every idea of presentation contained In the books they make available.  It would conflict with the public interest for them to establish their own political, moral, or aesthetic views as a standard for determining what books should be published or circulated.

3. It is contrary to the public interest for publishers or librarians to bar access to writings on the basis of the personal history or political affiliations of the author.

4. There is no place in our society for efforts to coerce the taste of others, to confine adults to the reading matter deemed suitable for adolescents or to inhibit the efforts of writers to achieve artistic expression.

5. It is not in the public interest to force a reader to accept with any expression the prejudgment of a label characterizing the book or author as subversive or dangerous.

6. It is the responsibility of publishers and library media directors as guardians of the people’s freedom to read, to contest encroachments upon that freedom by individuals or groups seeking to impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at large.

7. It is the responsibility of publishers and librarians to give full meaning to the freedom to read by providing books that enrich the quality and diversity of thought and expression.  By the exercise of this affirmative responsibility they can demonstrate that the answer to a bad book is a good one, the answer to a bad idea is a good one.

However, 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 the qualifications of persons who select the materials.

In accordance with the American Library Association (ALA) “Resolution on Challenged Materials,” the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) “Right to Read” and the National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) “Academic Freedom” statements, challenged materials will remain available during the following process.

2. Procedure

    

   1. Requester must request a conference with the staff member, teacher or library media professional concerned who will:

      • Listen to and discuss the request.

      • Provide the requester with the opportunity to read, view, or listen to the complete work in question.

      • Provide the requester with the “Guidelines for Selection of Instructional Materials.”

      • Provide, if necessary, a further opportunity to discuss and resolve the request at this level.

   2. If the issue is unresolved, the staff member:

      • Gives the “Request for Reconsideration of Instructional Materials” form to the requester to be completed and returned to the principal.

      • Immediately notifies the building level instructional coordinator/principal in writing of the request including a report of the conference.

   3. Upon receipt of the completed Reconsideration Form the principal notifies the Superintendent and appoints a local review committee comprised of:

      • Principal and/or representative.

      • Library media professional assigned to the school.

      • Person(s) involved in the original selection.

      • Staff member(s) using the materials.

This committee reports to the principal in writing within ten (10) school days.  The principal informs the requester of the committee’s decision in writing within three (3) school days after receipt of the committee report.

5. If the issue is still unresolved, the principal notifies the Superintendent by submitting a complete report within three (3) school days.

6. The Superintendent convenes a System-wide Instructional Materials Reconsideration Committee (SIMRC) within five (5) school days.  SIMRC is comprised of:

   1. Superintendent and/or representative.

   2. Principal and/or representative at the appropriate level and within the district.

   3. Library media professional at same grade level within the district.

   4. Another teacher at same level in the district.

   5. Student representative on the secondary level.

   6. One (1) outside parent.

   7. Representative from the Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) Committee.

SIMRC must submit a written report to the requester and the Curriculum and Instruction (C&I) Committee of the Manchester Board of School Committee within a period of five (5) school days.

7.  If the issue remains unresolved, the requester appeals to the C&I Committee.  At the ensuing meeting of the C&I Committee, the requester and representatives of SIMRC will be present.

Only residents of the City of Manchester shall have standing to challenge the validity or request reconsideration of any library or instructional materials.  

Freedom to Read Statement adopted by the American Library Association 1/28/72, Revised 1/16/91, Revised 7/12/00

Reference:

          ED 306.18 (a) (5) (Basic Instructional Standards) 

NHSBA Code IJ 

Revised from  12/10/00, 1/8/01, 5/29/13

First Reading Coordination: 2/3/16

Second Reading and Adoption BOSC: 3/14/16