Rich Holzknecht- Escambia District 4
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.
The special skill set that a dedicated Librarian/Media Specialist brings to public education has the potential to foster a love of reading that will well-serve students in every educational discipline and throughout life. As a professional educator, these same specialists can free up classroom teachers to focus on educational basics without having to personally master new and ever-changing educational technologies. A school library or media center, stocked with well-curated reading material is an important educational asset.
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?
Parents ultimately have sole responsibility for the education of their children. There is no "balancing" required. To suggest that students "deserve rights" on par with those of their parents is foolhardy.
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?
The appropriateness of reading material in the classroom and in the school library should be closely aligned. By law here in the State of Florida, the material in both venues should be age-appropriate, developmentally-appropriate, and free from obscenity and pornography. The standards dictated by state statute do not change in the short walk from the classroom to the library.
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.
Book challenges should first be adjudicated on the basis of the book's conformity or non-conformity to existing state statutes. A "fair and public review" should never be viewed as a means of circumventing the law. Per HB 1069, if a parent is denied the right to publicly read a passage by the school board due to "content", the material should be removed from the school library without further review.
The special skill set that a dedicated Librarian/Media Specialist brings to public education has the potential to foster a love of reading that will well-serve students in every educational discipline and throughout life. As a professional educator, these same specialists can free up classroom teachers to focus on educational basics without having to personally master new and ever-changing educational technologies. A school library or media center, stocked with well-curated reading material is an important educational asset.
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?
Parents ultimately have sole responsibility for the education of their children. There is no "balancing" required. To suggest that students "deserve rights" on par with those of their parents is foolhardy.
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?
The appropriateness of reading material in the classroom and in the school library should be closely aligned. By law here in the State of Florida, the material in both venues should be age-appropriate, developmentally-appropriate, and free from obscenity and pornography. The standards dictated by state statute do not change in the short walk from the classroom to the library.
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.
Book challenges should first be adjudicated on the basis of the book's conformity or non-conformity to existing state statutes. A "fair and public review" should never be viewed as a means of circumventing the law. Per HB 1069, if a parent is denied the right to publicly read a passage by the school board due to "content", the material should be removed from the school library without further review.