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Quincy schools outline book-approval process and emphasize mirrors-and-windows approach to classroom texts
Summary
Quincy Public Schools’ literacy leaders described the district’s book-approval process, state-aligned selection criteria and classroom practices that use diverse texts to provide students both “mirrors” and “windows.” Teachers described student choice reading and district efforts to broaden access to diverse literature.
At a Teaching & Learning subcommittee meeting on April 30, Quincy Public Schools’ literacy staff reviewed how the district selects classroom texts, described tools used to evaluate books and showcased classroom practices that prioritize both representative and diverse literature.
Bridget Vaughn, coordinator of literacy and ELA for grades K–8, described the district’s reliance on the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education frameworks and described a multi-phase selection process used for curriculum adoptions: learn and prepare, investigate and select, launch, and implement and monitor. Vaughn said the district uses evaluation tools such as EdReports, the NYU culturally responsive scorecard, Common Sense Media and teacher review panels (CURATE) and pursues grants such as GLEAM (Growing Literacy Equity Across Massachusetts) to support access to high-quality instructional materials.
Grade-level teachers explained how the district’s novel-approval process works. Spencer Matthews, a grade 6 reading teacher, said a teacher who wants to use a whole-class novel checks an approved list in the district Google Drive, discusses the choice with their principal, completes a two-page form explaining curricular alignment and handling of sensitive content, and submits it to the literacy coordinator for review. Matthews cited two recently approved middle-grade novels as examples and noted the form prompts teachers to explain standards alignment and text complexity.
Teachers and students described classroom practice that balances assigned reading with self-selected independent reading. Abby Nazaro, an eighth-grade ELA teacher, said her class begins each day with 10 minutes of independent reading from a choice novel, and Victoria Cronin, a seventh-grade reading teacher, said her classes rely on daily choice reading to build stamina and engagement. River of student comments described preference for books with characters their age and the value of author visits and book-fair connections; one student said choice reading “is more rewarding” because it allows them to “challenge myself with the reading level.”
Vaughn framed selection and instruction through the mirrors-and-windows concept, citing Rudine Sims Bishop’s metaphor: windows offer views into unfamiliar experiences while mirrors reflect students’ own identities. She said teachers should audit classroom libraries for cultural representation, offer culturally specific and culturally neutral texts, and scaffold discussions so students can find both windows and mirrors in literature.
Committee members asked about student feedback on assigned books, the role of classics, parental concerns and choices for independent reading. Vaughn and classroom teachers said that while the district maintains a formal approval process for whole-class novels, independent-reading choices are handled more flexibly: teachers request parental permission for independent-reading books when needed and will remove or restrict individual titles if a parent or teacher judges a book inappropriate for school. Staff emphasized that classics remain part of curricula at appropriate grade levels and that literature circles and concurrent novel options can offer alternatives when students object to a particular assigned text.
No policy changes were proposed at the meeting; staff said they will continue to implement the approval process, support classroom libraries, and use professional development and author events to expand student access to diverse, high-quality texts.
