Objectives • Responsibility • Criteria • Gifts and Donations • Appendicies • SC Policy IJL
The Library Media Centers in the Wellesley Public Schools exist to support teaching and learning in grades K-12, to encourage the development of critical thinking skills through collaboration with classroom teachers, to help foster a love of learning and reading and to provide access to informational and recreational materials for its school communities.
This policy provides guidelines for material selection for all library media centers in the Wellesley Public School System.
Objectives
The school library media center shall provide print and non-print materials that will:
- Support and enrich all segments of the curriculum;
- Present in balanced perspective the culture, history, activities and contributions of the persons and groups comprising the diverse fabric of our society;
- Be accessible to its users at all reading levels and to encourage recreational reading across literary genres;
- Promote analytical and critical thinking skills;
- Reflect varied interest, abilities, learning needs, and maturity levels;
- Supplement classroom learning and activities;
- Provide students with access to current and emerging technologies.
Responsibility for Material Selection
The legal responsibility for selection of materials in the Library Media Center rests with the School Committee. Final selection responsibilities are delegated to the school library media specialists who know the scope of school curriculum and the diversity of the students in the schools for which the materials are provided. The Director of Libraries will oversee the selection and coordinate its purchase. This selection shall be in accordance with the Procedures for Selection cited below.
The School Committee subscribes in principle to the statements of policy on library philosophy as expressed in the American Library Association’s, Library Bill of Rights and Freedom to Read Statement, copies of which are appended to this policy.
Criteria for Seletion of Materials
All materials, both print and non-print, shall be judged by the following criteria. Materials shall:
- Reflect the needs of the school and the community.
- Meet high standards of quality in factual content, presentation, artistic and technical quality.
- Be age appropriate for the grade and interest level at which they are used.
- Have aesthetic, literary, or social value.
- Reflect the diversity of our society.
- Provide a balanced perspective representing various viewpoints. .
- Be considered as a whole and its merits weighed as such.
- Be purchased within the constraints of the budget.
Gifts and Donations
The Wellesley Public School libraries welcomes donations of books and other resource materials from individuals and organizations but also reserve the right to refuse materials that do not meet the criteria for selection stated above.
In addition, financial donations to benefit Wellesley Public School libraries are accepted with the understanding the library media specialist, with input from the building principal, retains the right to use funds to purchase those curricular materials that are needed for the library based on the needs of the individual school.