Dimensions and implications of the role of the federal courts in the formulation of educational policy are discussed. Emphasis is placed on the function of social scientists and social science data and techniques in the legal process. The document contains seven articles. Article I presents background information on the relationship between social science, constitutional rights, and the courts. The article concludes that social equality must be left to the courts because legal perspectives are not influenced by majority prejudices and power. Article II maintains that social science data should be used selectively in judicial decision-making. This article is followed by an analysis of the uncertainties in the relationship of social sciences to constitutional rights. Article IV proposes that social science data should focus on how to improve desegregated educational programs rather than how to devise alternative remedies. Article V comments on the roles played by social science in recent school finance cases and maintains that the courts should not surrender judicial responsibility to a deference for social science. In article VI, the relationship between social science and social policy concerning schools and race is explored. The concluding article reports on the struggle for a useful role for the social sciences in school integration. (Author/DB)