It is our belief that, our school will establish learning experiences and favorable environment capable of developing learners to their fullest in the democratic society. This would be enhanced through providing the learners with an opportunity to develop mentally, morally, physically and socially for their prospective future.
Library Media Center Mission and Vision Statements
The school media center library was created to facilitate effective learning among our students by providing a wide rage of study materials necessary for enhancement of achievement of goals and objectives as stipulated by the curriculum. The vision statement of the library media center is to establish rich base of resource materials as required by the curriculum, focusing at realizing schools’ overall goals of increasing literacy at the highest capacity among the learners.
The mission statement of the school center library is to acknowledge all the needs of the diverse learners’ fraternity and avail all useful materials to them at different levels of learning, with respect to the requirements of the curriculum (Brown, 2003). Following the current changes in the society, the library shall avail all the necessary materials which would be useful for the 21st century education dominated by massive information technology.
Selection Policy and Procedures of the Library Media Center
The Muscogee County Public Schools has full understanding that it is the duty of the library media center to ensure the availability of a wide variety of learning materials on all complexity levels. Considering the wide diversity of the learners’ needs and learning capacities, the library is focused to provide all support materials capable of enriching learners’ educational programs in the schools. With reference to American Association of School Librarians (2007), the media center will endorse the Library Bill of Rights (Appendix 1) of the American Library Association to dedicate the school library the following responsibilities:
- To ensure the availability of rich learning support materials to the wide diversity of learners
- To provide relevant and effective learning resources capable of facilitating the growth of literacy among the learners at the fullest capacity
- To provide materials capable of presenting the pluralistic society, capable of reflecting the contribution of various groups and individuals to the American Cultural Heritage
- To provide opportunities to the learners to select the learning materials of the highest quality, as they choose their future careers
Criteria and the Tools used
In selecting the materials for the library, special attention was paid to the changes in the society in terms of information technology. On this basis, the materials selected for the school media center will be print, visuals and digital materials of all types. The media and the departments will evaluate the materials to be used in various levels of learning in the school (American Library Association, 1996). In selecting the materials, the following list will be used:
- School Library Journal
- Producers of both print and non-print media materials
- Commercial Publishers
- Booklist
Professional collections policy
All the material collections for the library will be selected to their relevance in the contemporary society. Teaching resources of differing viewpoints on particular subject would be selected in order to provide wider view of knowledge among the staff members. More so, resources capable of stimulating creativity among the teachers would be selected. This collection of wide rage of teaching and learning resources is believed to provide rich learning resource center for the learners in the school.
Policies and Procedures for Challenged Materials
Occasionally, objections to the selected instructional materials would be made. The Board of Education and Library Bill of Rights as adopted by the American Library Association supports the principles of intellectual freedom with regard to the learning resources used (American Library Association, 2007). On this basis, there will be a set committee to listen the complains made on the selected materials. In this case, the complaints will be required to give the committee ten days so that the reported challenged materials can be reviewed thoroughly. The committee will then decide on whether to reject the resource materials or not depending on their verdict.
Policy and procedures for gifts
Gift materials will be considered and accepted in the library if they confer to the school policy permits. More so, their evaluation shall be with regard to the selection criteria by the media for their acceptance or rejection.
Policy and procedures for weeding collection
Strong policies for evaluation of the relevance of some materials in the library would be developed. There will be an ongoing process to weed and replace learning materials on the basis of their frequency of use, prevailing legal issues, and those which have been invalidated by the changes in curriculum. By so doing, Brown, M. (2003) considers this strategy as ensuring higher utility of the materials in the library among the learners and the staff members as well.
Plan for Adoption and Communication of this Policy Document
This policy is anticipated to be adopted after being considered by the board of governors in two meetings. Through voting, this policy document will be at effect after majority of the board members vote confer to it. In communicating to the staff members about the adoption of this policy document, its copies and any corrections made will be distributed to all the staff members five days before the staff meeting. By so doing, the staff will be made aware of the changes so as to enhance their implementation immediately. After the staff meeting, the students and other library officials will be made aware of the policy document through notice boards and memos.
Appendix 1
Library Bill of Rights
The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums of information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services:
- Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.
- Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.
- Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.
- Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.
- A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.
- Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.
Adopted June 18, 1948; Amended February 2, 1961; June 27, 1967; 1980 by the ALA Council Reprinted with the permission of the American Library Association.
References
American Association of School Librarians. (2007). Standards for the 21st century learner. Chicago: American Library Association.
American Library Association. (1996). Library bill of rights. Web.
Brown, M. (2003). Essentials for Learning Resources in the 21st Century. New York: McGraw-Hill Publishers.