Procedure and Components

1. Annual Selection Target and Rationale: choose one that has the potential of costing at least $2500. (It is possible to use more than one Target for this project, but it will be more difficult if you do.) In the Rationale, describe the reason for building up this area of the collection. Address your Rationale to your learning community, justifying your proposed purchases. It is essential that your Rationale include connections to the Media Center Philosophy, the School Mission (or Goals), the MC's Program Plan (PDEP), and student achievement (or learning).   Key themes in this rationale might include access to information, curriculum support, literacy, diversity, and intellectual freedom.  You need not be redundant, but your Rationale should cover most of these items. 
2. Order list: Using the selection policies, selection tools, and procedures described in this class, compile a consideration file of potential resources. Make sure to use quality criteria appropriate to the topic and formats chosen. Provide an active link to the appropriate policies, or otherwise make it clear the criteria you are using. Submit vendor-ready lists of materials in the current order. include plenty of information about each item for adequate description: title, author, vendor, publication date, approximate price, classification, ISBN or other ordering number, and the specific reason(s) for buying each item. Although you will be spending $2500, you must use some procedure to insure against back order delays.  Make sure to provide for diversity of learners in some way - and be explicit about this purpose.  There should be some variety among formats.
   
3. Presentation: Generate a presentation for your Media Committee in a suitable format (for example, a written "speech" or a Powerpoint presentation). Visualize the scenario of the meeting in which you formally present your order to obtain the approval of the Committee for the purchases. In your talk, you should clearly delineate your reasons for your selections, and reference the MC Philosophy. Specify how quality criteria were applied in the selection process (which means you must list the criteria or link to your Selection Policy), and how you guarded against self-censorship. Prepare your arguments as if you expect a great deal of opposition and skepticism. 
   
4. Processing checklist: As you work, compose a checklist of all the steps you followed throughout this project - so that you can remember what you did when the time comes for you to do this again.  Include all steps from initial selection target through installing or unpacking the new items.  Address how you will promote the new items. 
   

• Be sure to restate the School Mission or Goals, as appropriate.
  
• Include a variety of formats (print, nonprint, etc.) in order to address diverse young readers and learners.
• Include resources that are no more than 10 years old UNLESS there is a very good reason to purchase older materials (which you will state). Classic reading materials obviously are appropriate.
  
• Consider legal and ethical codes in your planning, ordering, and processing.  Show where these were considered and what decisions were made.  Provide links to selection policy and copyright policies as necessary.
• If you use more than one vendor, submit a list for each.
  
• Base this exercise on a real media program if at all possible. 
  
• Reasons for each purchase: most students have chosen to provide a code letter that references a particular reason for buying sets of items. These coded reasons should relate directly to the Rationale.
  
• Assume that shipping and handling charges are waived.
• Use a procedure to prevent the danger of back order delays. The classic method is to pad your list by 25% to ensure availability of materials. This means that you will have to prioritize your list in some way, which you must explain, and also provide a "do not exceed" figure. "Do not exceed" figures should total your budgeted amount. You must never plan to exceed your budget - be very sure you understand the distinction between padding an order and overspending your budget.
  
• Perform a self-assessment: fill out the rubric on your own project (as a group).
• Provide a private individual reflection, addressing group process, your specific contribution, and lessons learned.
  
• Overall, make sure you have demonstrated each of the AASL competencies quoted in the rubric. While I will not inspect your consideration file or observe many of the steps required to produce this order, you should take pains to provide evidence of doing them in your presentation or processing checklist.  Feel free to provide extra narrative if needed.
  
• A live, in-class performance of the presentation is not expected (unless the class wants to do this).
  

• Submit electronically via the WebCT dropbox, including the self-assessment rubric. Submit one per team, under one team member's name.  All group members should also submit a personal reflection within their own dropbox.  Name your files after this pattern: maryann-beth-lisa-order.doc.  Use the smallest possible number of files.  In other words, no spaces; include each member's name in filename.
  
• Number pages.  Use a sans-serif font for easy online reading (Verdana, Arial, etc.)
  
• All group members should link the entire project to their own assignment pages, and keep a complete e-copy of their own.
• This assignment tends to result in multiple, large e-files. Double check accessibility to all files from the assignment page.
• Label required elements using the Tag List. See this list for further instructions.