6A-7.0710. Instructional Materials Evaluation Procedures

(1) Publishers and manufacturers of instructional materials may submit sealed bids or proposals for the adoption of instructional materials by the Department of Education in response to the advertisement required by Section 1006.33(1), F.S. The Policies and Procedures Specifications for the Florida Instructional Materials Adoption (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-16835) is hereby incorporated by reference (effective August 2024) and will be available on the Florida Department of Education’s Office of Instructional Materials website at http://www.fldoe.org/academics/standards/instructional-materials.

(2) The following forms shall be submitted by instructional materials publishers or manufacturers when proposing instructional materials for adoption and are hereby incorporated by reference in this rule. These forms may be found on the Florida Instructional Materials Adoption Portal at https://www.flimadoption.org or by contacting the Department of Education, 325 West Gaines Street, Room 424, Tallahassee, Florida 32399.

(a) Form IM1, Manage Bids (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06873) (Effective June 2016);

(b) Form IM2, Bid Deposit (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06874) (Effective June 2016);

(c) Form IM3, Bid Signature Sheet (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06875) (Effective June 2016);

(d) Form IM4, Bid Details (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06873) (Effective June 2016);

(e) Form IM5a, Publisher Registration (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06873) (Effective June 2016);

(f) Form IM5b, Publisher Sales/Other Representatives (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06873) (Effective June 2016);

(g) Form IM6, Publisher Acknowledgement Form (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06876) (Effective June 2016);

(h) Form IM7, Standards Alignment Form (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-10031) (Effective November 2018);

(i) Form IM8, Publisher Questionnaire (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-12108) (Effective August 2020);

(j) Form IM9, Warranty Form M (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06879) (Effective June 2016);

(k) Form IM12, UDL Questionnaire (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06880) (Effective June 2016);

(l) Form IM13, Assessment Fees (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06881) (Effective June 2016);

(m) Form IM14, Standards Alignment Assurance (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06882) (Effective June 2016).

(n) Form IM18, No Common Core and Common Core Standards Assurance (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-11182) (Effective October 2019).

(o) Form IM19, Principles of Individual Freedom Assurance for Publishers (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14917) (Effective November 2022).

(3) Instructional materials submitted by publishers or manufacturers for adoption will be evaluated as follows:

(a) The student and teacher editions of the major tool of instruction, along with any ancillary materials deemed appropriate by the Department, will be evaluated for alignment to the applicable state standards, course descriptions, and other requirements outlined in the specifications. The Department will develop rubrics for each adoption based on alignment to appropriate course descriptions, state standards, and specifications.

(b) Electronic samples of the student and teacher editions, along with any ancillary materials deemed appropriate for sampling by the Department, will be evaluated. The electronic samples must be in final form and must be made available for review on a website or server developed, hosted, or contracted by the publisher or manufacturer by the date established by the Department. Hardcopy samples will not be accepted for evaluation.

(c) Publishers may provide a virtual presentation to the state instructional materials reviewers on the merits of the materials submitted for adoption. Publishers who choose to provide a virtual presentation must prerecord the presentation for reviewers to access during the evaluation process and must limit the presentation to no more than fifteen (15) minutes in length. Publishers who choose to provide a virtual presentation must make the presentation available for review on a website developed, hosted, or contracted by the publisher or manufacturer by the date established by the Department.

(d) State and district instructional materials reviewers will evaluate materials utilizing the Department’s instructional materials database and online evaluation system accessible through the main instructional materials website http://www.fldoe.org/academics/standards/instructional-materials. The Instructional Materials Reviewer Portal (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06883) is hereby incorporated by reference and effective June 2016. The state instructional materials reviewers shall be state or national experts in the academic content area being reviewed for adoption. Prior to beginning the review process, state instructional materials reviewers shall complete a training provided by the Department of Education on how materials will be evaluated for alignment to state academic standards, applicable Florida Statutes and applicable State Board of Education rules. The state instructional materials reviewers will hold one or more of the following credentials:

1. A baccalaureate degree or higher in the field or a related field,

2. Certification in the field or a related field,

3. Substantial experience in the field, or

4. Recognition as an expert in the field. Such recognition may include, but is not limited to, awards received or publications related to the academic content area.

(e) If the state instructional materials reviewer is a Florida teacher and has a student growth model score as outlined in Section 1012.34(7)(a), F.S., that contains data from the most recent school year, then the classification of the score must be effective or highly effective as outlined in subsection 6A-5.0411(5), F.A.C.

(f) State instructional materials reviewers must complete Form IM15, Affidavit of State Instructional Materials Reviewers (Reviewer) (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06884) which is available on the instructional materials website http://www.fldoe.org/academics/standards/instructional-materials and is hereby incorporated by reference (effective June 2016). The original must be filed with the department before the reviewer completes the reviewer training and is assigned materials to review.

(g) Form IM20, Principles of Individual Freedom Assurance for Instructional Materials Reviewers (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-14918) (Effective November 2022).

(h) The approved adopted list and the associated reviewer ratings from the standards alignment portion of the state reviewer rubric will be published on the instructional materials website http://www.fldoe.org/academics/standards/instructional-materials.

(4) Technology Specification Guidelines (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-06885) will be available to publishers and manufacturers on the instructional materials website http://www.fldoe.org/academics/standards/instructional-materials and are hereby incorporated by reference (Effective June 2016).

(5) Publishers may request permission to substitute editions of adopted materials.

(a) A publisher requesting a substitution of materials must make the request in writing by completing Form IM17, Substitution Policies and Procedures, (http://www.flrules.org/Gateway/reference.asp?No=Ref-11181) which is available by request to [e-mail] and is hereby incorporated by reference (effective October 2019).

(b) Substitution of instructional materials submitted by publishers or manufacturers on a completed Form IM17, entitled Substitution Policies and Procedures, will be evaluated for approval based upon the following criteria:

1. The instructional materials are currently approved for adoption,

2. More than six (6) months have elapsed since execution of the contract with the Department of Education,

3. The materials must be revised editions that correct or update content,

4. The revised edition can be used satisfactorily with the currently adopted edition simultaneously in the same classroom,

5. The materials are identical, equal or superior to the specifications of the currently adopted edition, and

6. The materials are available at no increase in price.

Rulemaking Authority 1001.02(1), 1006.34(1) FS. Law Implemented 1006.29, 1006.30, 1006.31, 1006.32, 1006.33, 1006.34, 1006.36, 1006.38 FS. History–New 12-29-11, Amended 6-23-16, 11-28-18, 10-24-19, 8-18-20, 11-22-22, 8-27-24.