Curriculum Development and Adoption of Instructional Materials

Selection and Adoption of Instructional Materials

The curriculum of the districts shall be reviewed on a regular basis.

Instructional Materials Committee: Scope and Schedule

The instructional materials committee is formed to establish and monitor such procedures as may be necessary for the selecting, adopting and discarding of instructional materials owned and used by the district. The committee will act upon requests for text approval and removal and will evaluate and act upon citizens' requests for reconsideration of instructional materials. The function of the committee is to insure that materials are selected in conformance to stated criteria.

Duties

The committee, with the approval of the superintendent, shall establish and monitor such procedures as may be necessary for the implementation of this policy.

Citizens Participation in the Instructional Materials Process

Should a citizen wish to make a formal protest regarding specific material used in the school system, he/she must make the request to the committee through the superintendent. A request to remove an item from the schools or limit its use will be acted upon by the committee. A written decision will be delivered to the complainant within two months. Any appeal of this decision must be delivered in writing to the superintendent within two weeks. The board will make final decisions on appeals.

Selection of Instructional Materials: Responsibilities

The principal is responsible for insuring the continuing familiarity of his/her certificated staff with the requirements this policy and procedure. The district office shall provide such technical assistance as may be necessary to accomplish this.

INITIAL SELECTION

Texts shall be initially selected by such certificated staff as the superintendent may designate. Texts are major instructional materials for a given course.

Supplementary materials shall be selected by certificated staff using such materials with the understanding that while such materials do not require item-by-item approval of the committee, they must be selected under the criteria detailed below and are subject to normal reconsideration procedures. Supplementary material supplement the major text of a course and are held in five or fewer copies in a given classroom.

(Trial-use texts of an experimental, pilot nature may be authorized for use by the superintendent for a period of no more than one school year prior to board approval for general use throughout the district).

APPROVAL

Texts shall be approved by the committee. Supplementary materials shall not require committee approval.

ADOPTION

Texts shall be adopted by the board prior to their use in classrooms. Texts selected previously are exempt from this requirement.

Supplementary materials shall not require board adoption.

Tasks and Time Lines

Textbooks can be approved at any committee meeting and sent for adoption at the next board meeting.

Removal of Instructional Materials

Instructional materials may be removed from collections at any time that they no longer meet the criteria for initial selection outlined in "Criteria for Selection of Instructional Material." Any instructional materials may be removed when the administration judges such removal to be in the best interests of the district. Ordinary procedures for withdrawal of materials are outlined below:

St. John — Endicott Cooperative Schools