Education System

Instructional Materials

For assistance, call 850-245-0425 or visit https://www.fldoe.org/academics/standards/instructional-materials/index.stml

What is the purpose of the program?

The purpose of the program is to ensure that instructional materials, aligned to applicable state standards, are available to all Florida students. 

What are instructional materials?

For state adoption purposes, instructional materials are defined in s. 1006.29(2), Florida Statutes, as items having intellectual content that assist in the instruction of a subject or course. Instructional materials may be available in bound, unbound, kit, or package form, and may consist of hard backed or soft backed textbooks, electronic content, consumables (e.g., workbooks), learning laboratories, electronic media, and computer courseware or software. However, electronic or computer hardware is not included in the definition even when bundled with software or electronic media.

How do instructional materials relate to state standards?

All instructional materials must be aligned with state academic standards. Instructional materials include items necessary to meet the intended outcomes of the course or subject for which they are designed.

How are instructional materials adopted?

There are two ways instructional materials as are adopted: using the state process or a district's (or consortium of school districts) own process. Chapter 1006 Part F, Florida Statutes, outlines a detailed method for adopting instructional materials purchased with state funds.

State Process. Each year, Florida adopts instructional materials for specific curriculum content areas. Selected content areas are identified for adoption on a rotating basis, usually for a period of five years. Prior to each adoption, the Department of Education publishes instructional materials specifications for the subjects to be adopted, outlining the courses for which materials are being sought, as well as the standards that those materials are expected to meet. The Commissioner of Education appoints a team of instructional material reviewers for each content area and is responsible for evaluating and recommending instructional materials using criteria developed by the department. The commissioner is responsible for formally adopting materials based on the reviewers' recommendations. Each school district superintendent can nominate one classroom teacher or district-level content supervisor to review two or three of the submissions recommended by the state reviewers.

Districts that use the state process must meet several requirements, such as

  • purchasing instructional materials for core courses within the first three years of the adoption cycle;
  • reporting their planned instructional material purchases to the Department of Education by April 1; and
  • requisitioning materials from the publisher's depository.

District Process. Section 1006.283, Florida Statutes, establishes a district school board instructional materials review process that gives districts, or a consortium of school districts, the flexibility to implement their own instructional materials review, approval, adoption, and purchase program. School districts or consortia that choose to implement their own process have discretion in several areas, some of which include

  • adhering to a review cycle;
  • purchasing instructional materials off the state-adopted list (however, they still must align with the Florida Standards);
  • establishing a process that certifies the accuracy of instructional materials; and
  • requisitioning materials from the publisher's depository.

Regardless of which process is used, districts are responsible for all instructional materials content used in a classroom, including those available in a school library or on a reading list.

What additional responsibilities do districts have in relation to instructional materials content and access?

School districts have additional responsibilities for instructional materials content and public access. These responsibilities include
  • discontinuing using a material that the school board finds inappropriate or unsuitable;
  • providing access to any material or book, specified in a written request, that is maintained in a district school system library and is available for review; 
  • maintaining a current searchable list of instructional materials purchased by the district on its websites; and
  • ensuring that personnel involved in the selection of instructional materials are properly trained and certified before reviewing and selecting age-appropriate instructional materials.  

How are publishers involved in the adoption process for instructional materials?

Section 1006.38, Florida Statutes, defines the responsibilities of instructional materials publishers in the adoption process.  These responsibilities include delivering to the Department of Education fully developed electronic sample copies of all instructional materials upon which bids are based, and providing evidence that the instructional materials address the Florida Standards and can be accessed by a variety of electronic, digital, and mobile devices.

Are there any specific requirements for instructional materials in school library media centers?

Section 1006.28, Florida Statutes, establishes several requirements specifically related to instructional materials in school library media centers, including those listed below.

  • Each district school board must adopt procedures for developing library media center collections and post the procedures on each school’s website. These procedures must create a collection in support of state academic standards and provide for the regular removal of books based on alignment with standards and relevancy to the curriculum. 
  • Each elementary school must publish on the school website, in a searchable format prescribed by FDOE, a list of all materials maintained in the school library media center or required as part of a school or grade-level reading list. (State Board of Education rules clarify that library media centers include classroom libraries.)
  • Each book made available to students through a school district library media center or included in a recommended or assigned school or grade-level reading list to be selected by a school district employee who holds a valid educational media specialist certificate, regardless of whether the book is purchased, donated, or otherwise made available to students.

What input do parents and the public have into the selection of instructional materials when a district uses its own adoption process?

Section 1006.28, Florida Statues, gives parents and county residents input into district selection of instructional materials. School district instructional materials policies must include
  • a process by which parents of public school students or county residents may contest the district school board's adoption of a specific instructional material; and
  • a process to handle all objections and provide for resolution.
Districts implementing their own instructional materials program must also make student editions of recommended instructional materials available to the public to be accessed and viewed online at least 20 calendar days prior to an open, noticed school board hearing to receive public comment on recommended materials and an open, noticed public meeting to approve an annual instructional materials plan. The public meeting must be held on a different date than the school board hearing.

Can parents review their children's instructional materials or exempt their children from the teaching of certain subject matter?

Section 1006.283, Florida Statutes, requires school boards to establish a process to notify parents of their ability to access their children’s instructional. The notification must be displayed prominently on the school district’s website and provided annually in written format to all parents of enrolled students.

Section 1006.28(2)(e), Florida Statutes, requires school districts to make instructional materials available online for parents of students to review.

Section 1002.20, Florida Statutes, requires each school district to notify parents on the district’s website homepage of their right to access and review the instructional materials used to teach about reproductive health or any disease, including HIV/AIDS. They must notify student's parents in the same manner about their right and process to request an exemption from such education, and provide a link to access and review the instructional materials. 

How are these activities funded?

Instructional materials are funded through the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP). The sources of these funds are general revenue and trust fund dollars, and are allocated to school districts based on a growth allocation calculation. If school districts have completed all instructional material purchases for the fiscal year, after March 1, they have the flexibility to use these funds to purchase electronic devices and technology equipment and infrastructure for student instruction.

Updates

The 2023 Legislature enacted Ch. 2023-105, Laws of Florida, which addresses several items related to instructional and library materials.

Changes to Scope of Instructional Materials. The legislation expanded the scope of instructional materials and classroom materials to include classroom libraries as well as school libraries.

Changes to Parental or Residential Objection to Materials. The legislation expanded the rules for objecting to instructional materials in schools, requiring districts to

  • adopt and publish on its website the process for a parent to limit their student's access to materials in the school or classroom library;
  • ensure that the objection form and the district's process for objecting to instructional materials be easy to read and understand, is accessible from the home page of the school district's website, and identifies the point of contact for submission of an objection;
  • remove objected too materials within five school days of receipt of an objection, and remain unavailable to students until the objection is resolved;
  • ensure parents have access to objected-to materials; and
  • notice meetings of committees convened for the purpose of resolving an objection, and ensure they are open to the public.

In addition, if a parent disagrees with the determination made by the district school board regarding the use of specific material, they may request the Commissioner of Education appoint a special magistrate to make a recommend a resolution to the State Board of Education within 30 days of receipt of the request.

Where can I find related OPPAGA reports?

 Academic and Fiscal Transparency, December 1, 2021

A complete list of related OPPAGA reports is available on our website.

Where can I get more information?

Other Reports
The Rise of Standards-Aligned Instructional Materials for U.S. K–12 Mathematics and English Language Arts Instruction: Findings from the 2021 American Instructional Resources Survey, RAND Corporation, October 2021
Policies and Procedures Specifications for the Florida Instructional Materials Adoption, Florida Department of Education, August 2020

Websites of Interest
Association of American Publishers
Center for Digital Education
CPALMS (Information on Florida's standards and course descriptions)
eSchool News
Florida Association of District Instructional Materials Administrators
Florida Department of Education, Bureau of Standards and Instructional Support
Florida Department of Education, Instructional Materials
Florida Electronic Library
Florida Instructional Materials Center for the Visually Impaired
National Center on Accessible Educational Material (AEMS)
National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS)
State Educational Technology Directors Association Digital Instructional Materials Acquisition Policies for States (DMAPS)
State Educational Technology Directors Association Open Educational Resources

Performance Measures


Performance measures and standards for the department may be found in its Long Range Program Plan.

What are the applicable statutes?

Sections 1001.10(6)(n)(o), 1001.42(9) and (19)(a), 1001.54(4), 1002.20(3)(d) and (19), 1003.02(1)(d), 1003.621(2)(j), 1006.03(2)(e), Ch. 1006 Part F, 1007.271(6)(b)(17)(24),1009.30(3)(a)(b), 1010.215(5)(b)6., 1010.82, 1011.62(6)(b)(3)(10), 1011.67, and 1011.71(2)(d), Florida Statutes

Whom do I contact for help?

Florida Department of Education, Instructional Materials, 850-245-0425
Website