| (a) Purpose. This rule ensures that each Texas Juvenile
Justice Department (TJJD) school provides a wide range of learning
resources at various levels of difficulty that appeal to a variety
of interests and represent different points of view to support, enrich,
and assist in meeting the needs of the youth and teachers in the education
program.
(b) Definitions. Learning Resource--any print, video,
or other material with instructional content or an instructional function.
(c) Responsibility for Learning Resources Selection.
The selection of learning resources is made by a Library and Media
Review Committee (LMRC) at each school, which is composed of:
(1) professional education staff;
(2) librarians;
(3) teachers or aides trained in the use of reviewing
sources; and
(4) administrators.
(d) Selection Criteria.
(1) The LMRC selects learning resources that:
(A) stimulate growth in factual knowledge, literacy,
appreciation, aesthetic values, and societal standards that will promote
lifelong learning and reading habits;
(B) present opposing sides of controversial issues
so that youth may develop, with guidance, the practice of critical
analysis and the ability to make informed decisions in their daily
lives;
(C) enrich and support the curriculum, taking into
consideration the varied interests, abilities, learning styles, and
maturity levels of the youths;
(D) 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 intelligent
judgments in their daily lives;
(E) are representative of religious, ethnic, social,
and cultural groups and their contribution to our national heritage
and the world community; and
(F) are of various formats (i.e., print, non-print,
and electronic);
(G) support and are consistent with the educational
goals of the state and TJJD as well as the goals and objectives of
the individual facility and the courses taught;
(H) are appropriate for the subject area, special treatment
needs, age, emotional development, ability level, learning styles,
and social development; and
(I) meet high standards of quality in:
(i) presentation;
(ii) physical format;
(iii) educational significance;
(iv) readability;
(v) authenticity;
(vi) artistic quality and/or literary style; and
(vii) factual content.
(2) TJJD facilities will not show videos with an R-rating
or any other rating designed for audiences age 17 or older. No video
may be shown to youth without the approval of the principal.
(e) Request for Reconsideration of Learning Resources.
(1) Any youth or person on behalf of a youth may challenge
a facility's use of a learning resource if he/she feels the material
will have a negative or harmful impact on a youth. Any such challenge
applies only to the facility where the challenge is filed.
(2) To challenge a learning resource, the complainant
must file an informal reconsideration request on the agency-provided
form. The principal must respond to the request.
(3) If the informal request does not resolve the issue
to the complainant's satisfaction, the complainant may file a formal
reconsideration request on the agency-provided form.
(4) Upon the receipt of a formal reconsideration request,
the principal must form a reconsideration committee, which is composed
of:
(A) a teacher from the area of concern and/or grade
level;
(B) a program supervisor;
(C) a case manager appointed by the facility superintendent
or designee; and
(D) the principal.
(5) The reconsideration committee must review the challenged
material, decide if it conforms to the selection criteria outlined
in this rule, and issue a written decision.
(6) The complainant may appeal the decision of the
reconsideration committee by submitting an appeal of the agency-provided
form to the TJJD superintendent of education. The superintendent of
education must respond to the appeal in writing.
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| Source Note: The provisions of this §380.9151 adopted to be effective September 22, 2003, 28 TexReg 8149; transferred effective June 4, 2012, as published in the Texas Register June 22, 2012, 37 TexReg 4639 ; amended to be effective April 15, 2015, 40 TexReg 1976 |
