Selection and Adoption of Instructional Materials

A. Review of Standards and Instructional Materials
The superintendent or designee will establish a regular cycle of instructional materials review that includes review by district subject area experts and, as appropriate, external content area experts. This review cycle should be based on student achievement and revisions to state standards, as well as budget capacity to support materials adoptions. The process should review the following qualities of current materials:

• Relevance, rigor, and alignment to state learning standards
• Alignment to District Strategic Plan
• Efficacy of instructional materials that support student learning
• Resources used to assess student progress

Recommendations of this review may lead to:

• Affirmation of continued use of current instructional materials
• Initiation of an instructional materials adoption to be launched by the Instructional Materials Committee (IMC)
• Identification of projected budget needs in accordance with established timelines
• Communications with impacted stakeholders

B. Instructional Materials Committee
The Instructional Materials Committee (IMC) is formed following the guidance in Policy 2020. Appointed members will be shared with the school board for approval by June 30 for the following school year. Its primary functions are the following: 

1. Appoint adoption committees for review and selection of new core instructional materials
2. Support and advise the adoption committee as they move the adoption process, reviewing and ensuring bias review, and sponsoring the adoption committee’s recommendation of new core instructional materials to the Board
3. Receive, consider and act upon written complaints regarding district instructional materials not resolved at the school level

C. Adoption Committees
The Superintendent or delegate will identify an administrative staff member to chair the adoption committee. The IMC will convene adoption committees by inviting staff who will be directly involved with implementing the adopted materials. The IMC will select an adoption committee that fully represents grade levels and program types, and representation across schools. Once formed, the Adoption Committee membership and progress in the adoption process will be shared publicly.

D. Adoption Process
Throughout the process, the Adoption Team will share updates on the process through a public website and provide specific opportunities for input.

Once formed, the adoption committee will deepen their content knowledge of the current standards as well as student achievement and related considerations. They will then develop criteria to determine the degree to which they:

A. Demonstrate likelihood of impact as shown by scientific or evidence-based research;

B. Enable implementation of the district’s developed goals and priorities and meet state  standards and College Readiness requirements;

C. Provide sufficient flexibility to meet the varied needs and abilities of the students served;

D. Provide clear and appropriate differentiation components for Multilingual Learners, students who qualify for special education, students with academic opportunity gaps, and students identified as highly capable;

E. Support a full range of program types, including dual language

F. Where appropriate, present balanced but differing views of issues, controversial or otherwise, in order that students may develop critical analysis and informed decision-making skills;

G. Demonstrate consideration of appropriate format(s) (including technological, visual, and/or auditory components);

H. Support an equitable access to learning and learning materials for all students; including the provision of appropriate, high-quality accessible instructional materials to all students with disabilities who require them; and

I. Are free of gender, race, class, and other forms of bias as outlined in Policy 2020. The Washington Model Resource: Screening for Bias Content, published by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) should be consulted in the selection process to further to the goal of eliminating content bias: https://ospi.k12.wa.us/policy-funding/equity-and-civil-rights/resources-school-districtscivil-rights-washington-schools/reviewing-instructional-materials-bias 

The adoption committee will use identified criteria to initiate a request for proposals (RFP). In addition to commercial vendors that respond to the RFP, the adoption committee may also consider Open Educational Resources (OERs).

The adoption committee will narrow the number of options and proceed with developing a plan for a materials use pilot, which will include evaluation criteria and opportunity for public review.

Materials use pilots provide an opportunity to investigate the effectiveness of curricular approaches and instructional materials.

Materials use pilots may be authorized for use by the superintendent for a period of no more than one school year prior to adoption through the formal process. Parents and legal guardians will be informed when pilot materials are in use and have the opportunity to review the materials and provide feedback on them.

The adoption committee will advertise and provide opportunities to gather input from students, parents and guardians on the piloted materials. Opportunities may include public meetings, asynchronous online engagement, and webinars. The intent of the adoption committee will be to gather input from a representative range of students, parents, and guardians.

Once the materials use pilot concludes, and all data is available for review, the adoption committee will make a recommendation to be reviewed by the IMC. In addition to a rationale for the selection based on the criteria and data, the adoption committee, in collaboration with the IMC, will provide an implementation plan that addresses budget capacity, professional development, and any additional considerations to launch a successful materials adoption.

D. Procedure Materials Complaints
The IMC will review the policy addressing Materials Complaints, provide training for IMC members on how to respond to potential complaints, communicate process to school administrators, and ensure responses to complaints are archived.

Highline School District 401
Adopted by the Superintendent: August 1985
Revised by the Superintendent: 5.90, 5.11, 6.14; 9.15, 01.16, 1.25