Abstract:

This proposal examines the results of Duval County Public Schools’ (DCPS) review of texts and other instructional materials conducted as a result of HB1467, commonly known as Florida’s Curriculum Transparency Law. The law, signed by Governor Ron DeSantis in May 2022, requires that all instructional materials in schools be free of pornography and other obscenities as defined by Florida Statute 847.012, suited for student needs and their ability to comprehend presented material, and appropriate for the grade level and age group for which the materials are used and made available. The law requires Florida’s 67 school districts to adopt procedures that provide for the “regular removal or discontinuance” of texts and instructional resources maintained in school libraries and available to students deemed inappropriate.

A corresponding law, HB1069, which took effect in July 2023, requires that each school district adopt and make public the process for a parent or other community member to object to a specific text available in a school. DCPS, the sixth largest school district in Florida and 20th largest in the nation, has implemented a “request to limit access to books and media materials” process on the district’s website (https://dcps.duvalschools.org/Page/29424). Here, any adult resident in Duval County, Florida can request a review of a text or instructional resource. The request, made via an online form, triggers the school to remove the material in question from the school’s (or teacher’s) library and a review of the material by the District Materials Review Committee consisting of at least three members, including a state-certified media specialist. Committee membership can include a district-level supervisor, parent or legal guardian, classroom teacher, content-area director, a student representative, a member of the School/Parent Advisory Council, or English Language Arts director.

For this proposal, we have examined the DCPS District Materials Review Committee’s decisions regarding the approximately 400 texts and other instructional materials it has reviewed as of December 2023. For context, we will also present the review guidelines and procedures as defined by the related laws and within the training program established by the state. We will present data related to the committee’s decisions (banned, restricted, or approved) regarding these materials as well as the reasons presented by the community members that initiated the reconsideration process. Finally, we will present select examples of materials that were restricted or removed by the committee to illustrate and understand the committee’s decision-making.

Keywords:

School policies, curricular resources, PreK-12 education.