Library Policy

Weeding Policy

A. Definition and Purpose: Weeding is the process of maintaining the condition and integrity of a library collection’s holdings. Books are to be weeded on the basis of their physical condition, the accuracy of their content, and the age of the content as determined by the item’s publication and copyright dates.

1. Physical condition – Students are hesitant to checkout books that are tattered, damaged, or unattractive. If a book’s content is still accurate and up to date, but the book is in poor physical condition, it should be repaired if possible and replaced if the cost of repairing it is comparable to the price a replacement copy.

2. Accuracy of content – Portions of the collection become dated as technological, political, etc., developments occur. While we will always strive to maintain an up to date collection, the philosophy of the ISKL Melawati Library on such material is represented by the statement, “No information is better than misinformation.” As material becomes outdated it will be removed from the shelves and replaced with newer, accurate material. As developments occur within an area, dated - yet still accurate - material will be replaced with current material. The priorities guiding the maintenance of the collection are to support curriculum and the personal interests of its patrons.

3. Age of the content – Historical events such as the dissolution of the Soviet Union or technological developments such as the World Wide Web dictate the rate at which certain portions of the collection become obsolete. Nevertheless, there are certain general guidelines offered that suggest how long books in certain categories should remain in a collection.

Students and faculty trust the media center to have current information. With the exception of materials that are created by or pertain specifically to the history of ISKL, the ISKL holdings are not intended to be an archival collection, and as such, we will not hold on to dated material based on the potential value of the historical insights provided when compared to current material.

B. Responsibility: Weeding will be performed by library personnel and/or qualified volunteers who have been trained in the practice.

C. Time Frame: Weeding should be an on-going process in all sections of the library.

D. Areas to be Weeded: Every section of the collection will undergo weeding. Library personnel and qualified volunteers will maintain a record of which sections of the collection have been weeded and which books have been de-selected. After review from the librarian, these materials will be permanently removed from the shelves and deleted from the Destiny automation software library records. The librarian will then make a decision as to whether or not to replace the book. All replacement titles will be added to the current acquisition list.

Since the fiction section is not as time sensitive as most of the nonfiction sections, the condition of the book and its circulation record will be the primary determinants of whether or not it is to be weeded from the collection.

E. Procedure: See the Powerpoint presentation, “Weeding – CREW method” at Documents: Library, for training information.

A collection analysis, including an Aged Titles Report, will be conducted annually in order to assure that the entire collection gets the necessary attention. Follett’s TitleWave and Destiny reports, or a similar resource will be used to conduct the collection analysis.

After identifying the section of the collection to be weeded, the library personnel or qualified volunteer will refer to the latest collection analysis and print a list of aged titles from that section including the copyright information. After reviewing the section for books in poor physical condition and checking the section for outdated or incorrect information (see appendices for a guideline) identified books will be removed from the shelf and placed on a book cart to be reviewed by the librarian, who will then be responsible for the decision whether or not to delete them from the system, repair them or replace them.

Collection Development and Materials Selection Guidelines:

A. Library materials will represent a wide range of learning resources at varying levels of difficulty, with diversity of appeal and the presentation of different points of view to meet the needs of students and teachers - to implement, enrich, and support the curriculum of The International School of Kuala Lumpur and to meet the individual educational, emotional, developmental and recreational needs of the ISKL community.

B. Objectives of Selection

1. For the purposes of these guidelines, the term “learning resources” will refer to any person(s) or any material (whether acquired or locally produced) with instructional content or function that is used for formal or informal teaching/learning purposes. Learning resources include, but are not limited to, textbooks, other books, supplementary reading and informational materials, games, globes, kits, maps, motion pictures, periodicals, pictures, sound recordings, videos, subscription electronic databases and software.

The Internet content on the World Wide Web does not fall under this policy. Because the library has no control over its content, and because its use falls under an agreement between the student user and the school, it is recommended that each user be familiar with the school’s computer and Internet use policy (see, ISKL Acceptable Use Policy).

2. The primary objective of learning resources is to support, enrich, and help implement the educational program of the school through the interaction of professional personnel and other members of the school community. It is the duty of professional staff to provide students with a wide range of materials at varying levels of difficulty, with diversity of appeal, and the presentation of different points of view.

3. To this end, the librarians of The International School of Kuala Lumpur affirm that it is the responsibility of the library program:

a. To provide materials that will enrich and support the curriculum, taking into consideration the varied interests, abilities, learning styles, and maturity levels of the students served;

b. To provide materials that will stimulate growth in factual knowledge, literary appreciation, aesthetic values, and societal standards, complex reasoning skills, and the habits of mind;

c. To provide materials on various sides of controversial issues so that young citizens may have an opportunity to develop under guidance the practice of critical analysis and to make informed judgments in their daily lives;

d. To provide materials representative of the many religious, ethnic, and cultural groups and that contribute to our patrons’ national heritage and the world community;

e. To place principle above personal opinion and reason above prejudice in the selection of materials of the highest quality in order to assure a comprehensive collection appropriate to the school community.

C. Criteria for Selection of Learning Resources

1. The following criteria will be used as they apply:

a. Learning resources shall support and be consistent with the mission, beliefs and objectives of The International School of Kuala Lumpur and specific courses and grade levels.

b. Learning resources shall be chosen to enrich and support the curriculum and the personal needs of users.

c. Learning resources shall meet high standards of quality in:

o artistic quality and/or literary style

o educational significance

o favorable reviews and/or recommendations

o factual content

o physical format

o presentation

o readability

o technical quality

d. Learning resources shall be appropriate for the subject area and for the age, emotional development, ability level, learning styles, and social development of the students for whom the materials are selected.

e. Learning resources shall be designed to provide a background of information that will motivate students and staff to examine their own attitudes and behavior; to comprehend their duties, responsibilities, rights and privileges as participating citizens in our society; and to make informed judgments in their daily lives.

f. Learning resources shall provide information on opposing sides of controversial issues so that users may develop under guidance the practice of critical analysis.

2. The selection of learning resources on controversial issues will be directed toward maintaining a balanced collection representing various views.

Learning resources shall clarify historical and contemporary forces by presenting and analyzing inter-group tension and conflict objectively, placing emphasis on recognizing and understanding social and economic problems.

* Librarians’ Statement Regarding The International School of Kuala Lumpur Collection Development and Materials Selection Guidelines: While the library collection is to be responsive to the community and cultural mores, the nature of a diverse population with a wide variance in age and maturity dictates that not all material in the collection will be suitable for every child; therefore, it is expected and incumbent upon a student patron’s parent to monitor the patron’s reading selection. To this end the ISKL Melawati Library provides each patron with access to his/her library record wherein all items currently or previously checked out can be viewed. The objective of this practice is to encourage student/parent communication regarding the student’s choice of materials and places the onus of responsibility on the student and the parent for the student’s exposure to the influences of our high quality, but highly varied collection in terms of its scope, interest levels and age-appropriateness.

The library believes that labeling or censoring books is not in the best interest of the students or the institution because it a.) removes the onus of responsibility from the student and parents for making personal decisions, b.) can draw unwanted attention to books that are labeled or otherwise censored, and c.) can create a stigma that may dissuade readers in the upper grades from selecting books that are not labeled for their level, thus denying them access to a wealth of high-quality YA literature that might be well suited for their interests or reading level or, conversely, dissuade high-ability readers in younger grades from selecting material that may be perfectly appropriate for them.

D. Selection Procedure for Learning Resources

1. To guide the selection of learning resources, library personnel will evaluate available resources and curriculum needs and will consult reputable, professionally prepared aids to selection and other appropriate sources. Among sources to be consulted are:

a. Bibliographies (latest edition available), for example:

Booklist

Library Journal

School Library Journal

The New York Times Review of Books

H.W.Wilson’s Senior High School Library Catalog

H.W.Wilson’s Middle and Junior High School Catalog

b. Current reviewing media, for example:

HornBook

Kirkus Reviews

Booklist

Library Journal

School Library Journal

NoveList Plus online database

c. Recommendations from other professionals in the field or related fields will also be considered. Other sources will be consulted, as appropriate.

d. Whenever possible, the actual resource will be examined.

2. Recommendations for purchase will be considered from administrators, teachers, students, and community persons, as appropriate.

3. Selection is an ongoing process that should include the removal of materials no longer appropriate and the replacement of lost and worn materials still of educational value. See, III. Weeding Policy.

F. Donated Materials

Gift materials shall be judged by the criteria outlined in the Library Selection Policy and shall be accepted or rejected according to those criteria. Acceptance of donated materials does not imply that the materials will become part of the library collection. Accepted donation items may also be directed to a teacher for classroom use or to individual students, given to another institution, recycled or discarded.

Electronic Information:

In keeping with our role as a source for accessing information, the library provides Internet access to information beyond the confines of our collection. The Internet affords us an exciting opportunity to have immediate access to timely and comprehensive information as well as a wide variety of primary sources. Providing connections to global information services and networks outside the library is different from selecting and purchasing materials for the library collection. The Internet changes rapidly, frequently, and unpredictably.

As the vast amount of information on the Internet is generated outside the library, the library cannot be responsible for accuracy, authenticity, currency, availability, or completeness of information. We cannot insure that Internet communications are secure or private.

Because of the library's limitations, the user is responsible for using discretion when considering the quality of material, questioning the validity of information, and choosing what is individually appropriate.

The International School of Kuala Lumpur offers an Information Literacy instructional program based on The Standards for the 21^st Century Learner, published by the American Association of School Libraries. We offer teachers and students skills and guidelines for locating, selecting, using, evaluating, creating and publishing information in a variety of print and electronic formats. In addition, as students visit the library, the library staff is available to train them in how to use the Internet in a responsible and discriminating manner.

In the ISKL Melawati Library setting, the Internet is a resource that provides timely access to students' information needs in a 1:1 environment. Unfortunately, limited space and computer resources do not permit the library to afford unlimited patron support for all students at all times. Therefore, in order to best allocate these finite resources, patron access to the library's space and computers will be prioritized as follows:

• • Academic use will always have priority over recreational use.

  • A teacher who makes a reservation for his/her class will have priority over small groups or individual students with no reservation.

  • Streaming videos and bandwidth intensive, non-academic uses such as downloading Internet content and gaming sites with chat capability are not allowed during school hours.