PDMSHS Home: Collection Management

Material Selection Criteria

Teacher-librarians have an obligation to select, maintain, and support access to content on subjects by diverse authors and creators to meet the needs, interests, and abilities of the people the library serves. The library procures materials that meet the needs of the school community. To build a comprehensive collection, both print and digital materials are carefully selected to provide a balanced variety of formats, illustrating that the collection goes beyond the walls of the library.  

Materials should meet at least one of the following criteria: 

- Supports, extends, and enhances the current curriculum and learning needs of students; 

- Promotes a spirit of inquiry and a love of reading, be it for informational or recreational reading; 

- Provides accurate information that is objective, comprehensive, and uptodate; 

- Represents people’s multiple lived experiences, identities and backgrounds, exposing members of our school community to new ideas and world views different from their own. Such books should also discourage negative stereotypes and advance culturally responsive education; 

- Provides multiple perspectives empowering individuals to explore topics broadly; 

- Addresses a high degree of potential user appeal or need, meeting contemporary demands as well as varied interests of today’s students; 

- Is considered a mainstay of a particular genre or field of study; 

- Supports varied reading and maturity levels; 

- Fills a gap in the collection; 

- Holds artistic quality, merited literary style, or high production value; 

- Replaces essential, damaged or missing materials that still fit the above criteria 

Resources for Material Selection

The teacher-librarian draws upon many resources to develop the collection, including but not limited to: 

- Reviews and recommendations from reputable experts in children’s and young adult literature that support all subject areas and specialized content. These may include Booklist, School Library Journal, and Kirkus Reviews, among others; 

- Literary organizations, such as the American Library Association, Common Sense Media, Goodreads, etc.; 

- Award-winning literature; 

- Blogs and social media accounts of other librarians and educators for both current trends and recommended books; 

- Organizations dedicated to elevating underrepresented and historically marginalized groups, including The Conscious Kid, We Need Diverse Books, etc.; 

- Online collection development tools from strategic source library vendors, such as Follett Titlewave, Sora and publishers; 

- Recommendations from multiple school stakeholders: students, faculty and staff, and parents.  

The selection criteria process should be unfettered by one’s personal, political, social, or religious views.  

While the teacher-librarian consults multiple sources to develop the collection, the final decision for which materials to select rests with the teacher-librarian. 

Selection of Material Formats

The decision to purchase material in a particular format will be determined by need and availability. We strive to accommodate a variety of learning needs and preferences.  

We recognize that access to devices and digital resources can vary. Because we believe in equal access as much as possible, we support a balanced approach to print and digital media. The library finds value in both print and digital form and knows that healthy collections in both formats are vital to the success of meeting the role of the collection development policy. In addition, there may be times when books are needed quickly and digital versions may be able to be acquired in a more efficient manner. In all cases, regardless of format, we will only obtain materials that respect copyright. We will not acquire pirated or illegal copies.  

Intellectual Freedom

In accordance with the American Library Association’s Office of Intellectual Freedom and the Library Bill of Rights, the school library program plays a unique role in promoting intellectual freedom as a place of voluntary access to information and ideas. The library's professional staff assumes a leadership role in promoting the principles of intellectual freedom within the school by providing resources and services that create and maintain a spirit of free inquiry. 

As an individual or group should not define what is appropriate for all other students or teachers to read, view, or hear, the school supports intellectual freedom and the right to information access. Should an individual or group feel strongly that material should be removed from the collection, the school has a Materials Reconsideration Policy that they can consult to share any concerns and follow due process.