In this post, I’m going to attempt a first draft of a collection development policy for my school.
Purpose
The purpose of this collection development policy is to clearly outline the goals of the school library collection and how these goals will be met as well as provide a method for the selection and deselection of resources in our school library and provide a rationale for this process.
Description of library users.
The collection is being developed for *Clairview Public, a primary school in Sydney’s east with approximately 400 students. There are a significant number of students for whom English is an additional language or dialect (EALD). The school community, including students, staff and families includes a wide range of cultural backgrounds. Greek and Turkish are both offered as community languages in the school. There is a population of students from Mongolia, with parents studying for a period in the local university.
The school includes a support unit, with 7 classes for students with learning support needs.
The core values of the school are Responsibility, Kindness, Success and Resilience, which form the basis of the school wide wellness program. These core values are explicitly taught throughout the school and require resources to support the explicit teaching.
Mission Statement
Our overall mission for the * Clairview School Library is to empower learners to be critical thinkers, enthusiastic readers, skilful researchers and ethical users of information. We are dedicated to providing our staff and students with up to date, high quality books and resources to enhance and enrich the teaching and learning in our school, promote a love of reading and stimulate interest and curiosity, independence and literacy across a range of skills for life.
The staff at *Clairview Public School understand and undertake the responsibilities identified in the International Federation of Library Associations/UNESCO School Library Manifesto and the Australian School Library Association’s Bill of Rights.
The Nature of Collection Currently
The current collection contains non-fiction, junior fiction, senior fiction and Premier’s Reading Challenge sections. a small collection of books in a variety of languages is also included. Teacher’s resources, including big books, readers, book sets and teaching resources is also a part of the library collection. The entire collection is print. The collection small in nature, with popular series having one to two copies of books. Many of the non-fiction books are outdated and some of the entire collection is in poor condition.
Priorities and Goals
The priorities for the collection are to weed and select new non-fiction resources, in order to provide more up to date information. Reintroducing the Indigenous section back in to the main library space and increasing the number of Indigenous own voices books and teaching resources. The creation of a graphic novel/comic section in to the library and increasing the number of graphic novels across a variety of genres as high interest books is another goal for the library. Consultation with staff and students to identify the areas of greatest need.
Selection Criteria
General Criteria
Resources will;
- Address the learning needs and goals of the school community
- Be created by credible authors, including own voices when appropriate
- Be chosen collaboratively and agreed upon with members of the community, including teachers, students and parents
- Be current and relevant to learners
- Be easily accessed by the whole school community
- Be appropriate to the school context
- Be matched to curriculum goals, in terms of content, scope and authority
- Be accurate and use appropriate language and terminology
- Be well organised and sequenced for the development of learning
- Be engaging and appeal to the interests of the school community
- Be selected using searches on SCIS OPAC, Scootle, ReadPlus, Magpies and any authority on specific subjects
Acquisition Processes
General books will be acquired locally through sources such as The Children’s Bookshop, where schools are offered a 15% discount on all purchases and delivery is timely. The Children’s Bookshop offers advice and quick quotes for ease of purchasing. Scholastic will also be used for purchases via Book Club, the Book Fair and popular titles featured in catalogue, so that points may be acquired and for inexpensive book prices. For teaching resources, this will be examined at the time of purchase, depending upon the publisher and availability of the resource.
Promotion of Resources
Resources will be promoted through the school Sentral and email systems once new resources have been accessioned. The school notice board will inform the community of the new sections and book series purchases.
Policy Review
This policy has been prepared in May, 2021 and will be reviewed in 2024.