Heather Felton- Manatee District 1
1. Please share your thoughts related to the importance of the school library/media center and the role of a certified, trained librarian/media specialist in schools.
Libraries and media specialists are vital to student success. We always hear about low reading scores, but if we can inspire a love of reading by offering a variety of books in which students can find themselves, that love of reading will develop naturally. Certified media specialists/librarians are able to help those students find books based on their interests right there at school when they don't have access to books at home and are unable to get to their public library.
2. Florida school libraries/media centers have always supported parents' rights to direct their students' education. How would you balance parental rights and student access to library materials, especially given that some books trigger different reactions among parents, all of whom deserve rights?
I fully support the rights of parents to say that they do not want their child to have access to certain books. It isn't difficult or time-consuming to flag a book in the media system so that the child cannot check that book out. It is also possible to have certain books available only with a note from the parent. As I teacher, I always notified the parents what books I would be teaching and, the one time a parent was concerned, I altered my plans so that the rest of the students had a choice between two books - one the student could read, and one he couldn't. This kept him from being singled out and met with the parent's request.
3. Students have access to reading material through captive classroom instruction, read-alouds and novel studies, as well as through self-selection in libraries where they choose their own book. How would you differentiate between the appropriateness of reading material in a captive classroom vs. self-selection in the school library?
Teachers should send home a syllabus to be signed at the start of the year to let the parents know what their student's class will be reading that year. This will head of any problems early so that if there are objections, the teacher will have time to adjust their syllabus or create alternative assignments. As to self-selection, again, parents can notify the media specialist if there is a book that they do not want their child to access. This can be easily taken care of by the media specialist so the child cannot check out that book.
4. As written in Florida House Bill 1069, “Parents shall have the right to read passages from any material that is subject to an objection. If the school board denies a parent the right to read passages due to content" deemed unsuitable as defined in the bill, the school district must discontinue use of the material. If a reader is denied, explain why you would interpret the law by supporting or opposing a fair and public review of the book, as outlined in each district's objection policy.
I would support a fair and public review of any book that is contested, first, because we have Sunshine Laws so board decisions need to be made in front of the public. Further, if the chair decides not to let the reader read, then that one person is making a decision without the rest of the board's input, which is not appropriate. A public review in which the board is able to read the book and evaluate its worth should be done with experts in the field of literature/library sciences to present evidence as to why the book should stay. One person - board chair or objector - should not be making district-wide decisions on their own.
Libraries and media specialists are vital to student success. We always hear about low reading scores, but if we can inspire a love of reading by offering a variety of books in which students can find themselves, that love of reading will develop naturally. Certified media specialists/librarians are able to help those students find books based on their interests right there at school when they don't have access to books at home and are unable to get to their public library.
2. Florida school libraries/media centers have always supported parents' rights to direct their students' education. How would you balance parental rights and student access to library materials, especially given that some books trigger different reactions among parents, all of whom deserve rights?
I fully support the rights of parents to say that they do not want their child to have access to certain books. It isn't difficult or time-consuming to flag a book in the media system so that the child cannot check that book out. It is also possible to have certain books available only with a note from the parent. As I teacher, I always notified the parents what books I would be teaching and, the one time a parent was concerned, I altered my plans so that the rest of the students had a choice between two books - one the student could read, and one he couldn't. This kept him from being singled out and met with the parent's request.
3. Students have access to reading material through captive classroom instruction, read-alouds and novel studies, as well as through self-selection in libraries where they choose their own book. How would you differentiate between the appropriateness of reading material in a captive classroom vs. self-selection in the school library?
Teachers should send home a syllabus to be signed at the start of the year to let the parents know what their student's class will be reading that year. This will head of any problems early so that if there are objections, the teacher will have time to adjust their syllabus or create alternative assignments. As to self-selection, again, parents can notify the media specialist if there is a book that they do not want their child to access. This can be easily taken care of by the media specialist so the child cannot check out that book.
4. As written in Florida House Bill 1069, “Parents shall have the right to read passages from any material that is subject to an objection. If the school board denies a parent the right to read passages due to content" deemed unsuitable as defined in the bill, the school district must discontinue use of the material. If a reader is denied, explain why you would interpret the law by supporting or opposing a fair and public review of the book, as outlined in each district's objection policy.
I would support a fair and public review of any book that is contested, first, because we have Sunshine Laws so board decisions need to be made in front of the public. Further, if the chair decides not to let the reader read, then that one person is making a decision without the rest of the board's input, which is not appropriate. A public review in which the board is able to read the book and evaluate its worth should be done with experts in the field of literature/library sciences to present evidence as to why the book should stay. One person - board chair or objector - should not be making district-wide decisions on their own.