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Selection and Purchase of 91ÊÓƵ³ÉÈËÍøÕ¾ Library Materials

Birdville librarians select and purchase library materials following Board Policy and the Birdville Library Selection Guidelines.

??Overview and Purpose

The school district is governed by the - EF(LOCAL). District librarians follow the adopted overall selection policy for library materials. 

The purpose of this policy is to describe the processes and standards by which our campus libraries acquire, maintain, and withdraw materials as outlined in the new Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TASLAC)

??Goals

The goals of the collection development policy are to ensure that all materials in our libraries support the curriculum and interests of students, staff, and families, considering the diverse interests, age levels, ability levels, learning styles, and emotional and social development levels. Materials should encourage an appreciation for informational and recreational reading, viewing, or listening.

All library materials for students and faculty will support student achievement and present varying levels of difficulty, diversity of appeal, and a variety of points of view. 

??Objectives

The school library collection should include materials that are age-appropriate, suitable to the campus and students it serves, and include a range of materials. 

Librarians will choose library materials following guidelines adopted by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. In selecting library materials, librarians and other professional staff shall ensure that the materials:

1.  Provide materials that will enrich and support the curriculum, taking into consideration the varied interests, abilities, and maturity levels of the students served.

2. Provide materials in an appropriate and current format to effectively complement the curriculum.

3. Provide materials that will stimulate growth in factual knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic values, and ethical standards.

4. Provide background information that will enable students to make intelligent judgments in their daily lives.

5. Provide materials on opposing sides of controversial issues so that young citizens may develop the practice of critical analysis of all media under guidance. 

6. Provide materials reflective of the pluralistic nature of a global society.

7. Place principle above personal opinion and avoid prejudice in selecting materials of the highest quality to ensure a comprehensive collection appropriate for the library and technology center users.

8. Anticipate and meet needs through awareness of subjects of current interest.

9. Provide materials with a recent copyright date as appropriate to the subject.

10. Ensure that multilingual programs have a diverse and wide range of materials available.

11. Earn two favorable reviews in standard reviewing sources and or favorable recommendations based on preview and examination of materials by professional personnel

12. Encourage the enjoyment of reading, foster high-level thinking skills, support personal learning and encourage discussion based on rational analysis

The diverse needs of students are taken into account when materials are selected, with an emphasis on ensuring that materials are free from bias and address student needs concerning equity, race, poverty, gender communities, mental health, language, and technology. 

Note: Students' First Amendment rights are implicated by the removal of books from the shelves of a school library. A district shall not remove materials from a library for the purpose of denying students access to ideas with which the district disagrees. 

A district may remove materials because they are pervasively vulgar or based solely upon the educational suitability of the books in question.

Obscene content is not protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Bd. of Educ. v. Pico, 457 U.S. 853 (1982)

??Use the Navigation Menu on the left to view the Birdville Library Selection Criteria