Examines effectiveness of court challenges to education-finance systems in achieving need-driven educational equity, focusing on California, Kentucky, and Texas. Provides overview of education-finance litigation and goals of finance reform. Describes funding system in each state both pre- and post-litigation; uses statistical measures to discuss…

Adequacy lawsuits have, with little fanfare, emerged as a major alternative strategy in the pursuit of improved public education in the United States. Plaintiffs allege insufficient resources to provide students with the quality of education promised in their state's constitution, hoping the courts will step in and order the state to increase…

Designed to give students in grades 5 through 12 information about the Minnesota court system, this document provides teachers and students with the necessary background materials to study Minnesota's courts. Rather than an introduction to all law, the document is limited to the function and operation of the courts. The curricular materials cover…

This paper examines legislation, court decisions, and state and local policies affecting the use of corporal punishment in schools, and speculates on the particular context presented by small or rural schools. There are no universally applicable federal statutes dealing with corporal punishment in schools. Decisions by the Supreme Court and…

During the 1930s and 1940s, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) devoted much time trying to improve educational opportunities for African-Americans within the existing segregated school system. The teacher salary equalization movement began with a series of successful cases in Maryland. This paper examines how…

The United States Supreme Court has to date decided four major cases dealing with curricula or the rights of students. The Court (1) declared unconstitutional a law that prohibited instruction in evolutionary theory, (2) upheld the right of students in school to express their views on controversial subjects, (3) extended protection under the…

In October 1989 the Texas Supreme Court declared the public school finance system unconstitutional in "Edgewood ISD (Independent School District) v. Kirby" and required implementation of a new system by September 1, 1990. Four special legislative sessions resulted in the enactment of SB 1, which revises the school finance system and…

Public school districts that have new policies establishing minimal competency programs that consequently deny some handicapped students a standard diploma have been subjected to litigation. Legal decisions are discussed, addressing, first, the question of fair standards and, second, the fairness of the procedures for administering new graduation…

Courts have been reluctant to interfere with the decision-making authority of local school boards. However, a reduction-in-force (RIF) decision can be legally challenged by a discharged employee with evidence that the school board has either: (1) acted arbitrarily or capriciously, (2) failed to comply with procedural mandates, or (3) utilized…

A review of the problems of vicarious liability of parents for their children's vandalism to school property reveals that in all states parents can be held responsible if it can be established that the vandalism was the reasonably traceable result of lack of supervision or misdirected parenting. Almost all legislatures feel it is appropriate to…

During the 1970s, courts repeatedly overruled acts of administrative censorship of high school publications, even when the publication in question included "earthy" language or attacks on school officials. The trend toward expanding students' First Amendment rights began in 1969 with the "tinker" ruling, which reaffirmed the right of three…

This paper takes a brief look at how several courts have interpreted the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, generally known as Public Law 94-142, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, generally referred to as Section 504. The questions under consideration include the right of an individual to sue under 94-142 and 504; the definition of the…

Examines the Smith John case--in which the United States Supreme Court secured official recognition of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw as a tribe--as an example of "rhetorical games" used by different cultural groups to manipulate each other. Suggests alternative rhetorical strategies that would benefit the state and the Mississippi…

This lesson plan about Indiana's court system is designed to work with any classroom resources a teacher may use when teaching a U.S. history, government, or Indiana history class. The lesson also provides online suggestions, general legal links at the end of the lesson to aid a teacher or student interested in exploring other legal topics, and a…

This monograph was designed to assist school attorneys, school board members, and administrators in their efforts to prevent, respond to, and defend against claims of sexual harassment by employees. It includes discussion of the law relating to harassment of employees by other employees and employee harassment of students. Practical advice is…