Philosophy
The role of the library collection is to support the needs of our diverse school community, which has a broad range of interests and backgrounds. We provide our patrons with resources with diverse appeal and having a wide variety of perspectives to encourage understanding, tolerance and critical thinking. While the library collection aims to serve a diverse scope of community and cultural viewpoints, not all material in the collection is suitable for every child. As age and maturity levels vary in students, we encourage parents to have conversations with their children about what they are choosing to read.
Sometimes, members of the community feel that information or ideas in recreational or educational library materials are offensive, controversial or inappropriate. Concerns about these resources should be considered an important part of the democratic process and should be treated as legitimate concerns. Challenges to the inclusion of library materials are considered, keeping in mind that no parent or any patron has the right to determine what children other than their own are reading.
Procedure
An individual with concerns about the content of a library book may ask the school to reconsider whether it should be part of the school’s library collection. The following outlines the steps for book reconsideration.
Initial Concern
1. The concerned individual should express his/her/their concern to the Librarian. They should engage in conversation about the resource in question to understand the role of this material in the collection and with hopes of resolving the concern.
2. If the individual still has concerns, the Librarian will then give them a copy of the Shanghai American School Collection Management Policy.
3. The concerned individual will read the resource in question in its entirety, if he/she/they have not already read it.
4. The Librarian will check for any previous reconsiderations of this material at the school. If it has already gone through a reconsideration process, the Librarian will give the concerned individual a copy of those findings. No further action will be taken unless the grounds for concern are quite distinct from the original.
Formal Concern
1. If the above criteria are met and the concerned individual would formally like the school to reconsider the material, he/she/they can request a Library Materials Reconsideration Form from the Librarian (or download it from this page). This form includes the individual’s name, contact details, the title of the challenged resource, and the specific nature and context of the concern. The Librarian will email the form to the concerned individual and will cc: the divisional Principal, the Head of Ed Programs, and the Head of Campus so that they are also made aware that the individual has concerns about the book. Digital communication helps ensure that requests are tracked and documented.
2. The concerned individual will complete the form and return it to the Librarian. The form must be signed, dated and returned electronically by the concerned individual to the Librarian's school email address before any further action will be taken. The Librarian will acknowledge receipt of the form.
3. Upon receiving the form, a Materials Reconsideration Committee (MRC) will be established. This committee will consist of:
a. The Librarian
b. A Divisional Administrator (Principal or Vice-Principal)
c. The Director of Student Services or a Divisional Counselor
d. One Divisional Teacher or a member of Educational Programs
e. A Divisional Parent Representative selected by the Principal
4. The MRC will receive a copy of the concerned individual’s completed Library Materials Reconsideration Form, the Library Materials Reconsideration Policy, the SAS Collection Development Policy, School Values and Learning Goals, and SAS DEIB Guidelines. Committee members will also individually review the resource in its entirety, as well as look at reviews, awards, and consult recommended lists to check for general acceptance.
5. The MRC will meet within three working weeks of receiving the concerned individual’s signed and dated Book Reconsideration Form to discuss the concern, make their decision, and choose a subsequent course of action. The concerned individual will be invited to speak at this meeting to express his/her/their viewpoint.
6. The Principal will notify the concerned individual in writing within 48 hours following the MRC’s decision about the outcome and the subsequent action to be taken. All members of the MRC will be cc:ed. Subsequent actions may include, but are not limited to:
a. The title stays in the SAS library collection as is;
b. Redistribution of the title to a higher divisional level;
c. Removal of the title at the divisional level;
d. Removal of the title from all SAS libraries.
7. Should the individual wish to appeal the committee’s decision, he/she/they may then take the case to a team consisting of the Head of Campus, the Head of Ed Programs, and the Head of School. They will receive a copy of the concerned individual’s completed Library Materials Reconsideration Form, the Library Materials Reconsideration Policy, the SAS Collection Development Policy, School Values and Learning Goals, SAS DEIB Guidelines, the MRC’s working documents (i.e. external book reviews), and the MRC’s final decision and rationale. They will review the resource in its entirety. The final decision about subsequent actions taken by the MRC will rest on the joint decision of the Head of Campus, the Head of Ed Programs, and the Head of School.
The resource in question will remain in circulation to all students until the result of the materials reconsideration process is known.