essay about law of education

What Is Educational Law and Why Is It Important?

Much of the population has experience with a public school system growing up, but what they may not have experience with is navigating the many laws that created and protected that experience. Educational law involves so many different facets of the educational system , so it can be challenging to identify where educational law ends and constitutional rights begin. Educational lawyers are well versed in both of these legal areas and will be able to answer: what are the different types of educational law? 

Educational law governs the statutes, cases, and policies that regulate educational institutions, balancing them with constitutional rights promised to all individuals in the U.S. Issues educational law addresses range from daily operations like school lunch programs, to funding issues like property tax challenges, to student discipline and teacher contracts, or to regulations protecting equal access to education. 

Why Are Educational Laws Important?

Who practices educational law.

Because educational law impacts so many parties, educational lawyers can represent a wide variety of clients. Depending on the issue at play, lawyers may work for local districts, nonprofit or advocacy groups, or families. While they may not be licensed attorneys, educational administrators at the national, state, and even district level often need to be well-versed in educational law as they engage in day-to-day operations while abiding by the laws established in their particular context.

It is worth noting that all American public education systems fall under the U.S. Department of Education. However, education systems are managed at the state level, so laws can vary among states. Therefore, it is important for an education attorney to be licensed in the state they are practicing in and well versed in the laws of that particular education system.

What Are the Different Types of Educational Law?

Educational law can involve a wide variety of issues impacting a wide variety of interests. Here, we’ll break down different types of laws within educational law:

• Laws protecting student access to education
• Laws protecting individual student rights
• Laws governing student conduct and discipline
• Laws regulating educational standards and monitoring funding
• Laws protecting people against discrimination in schools
• Laws protecting teachers that are employed by schools
• Laws regulating unique situations at the college level

How Does Educational Law Protect Student Access to Education?

All children are required to attend school for a determined amount of time. These regulations are upheld by compulsory education laws, and they can vary by state. Families can choose public education, private education, or homeschooling, and educational laws set standards for all of these environments to protect a child’s right to receive an education.

Special needs may require that some students receive special accommodations at school, and educational laws exist to make sure that students get the assistance that they need . How a student qualifies for special accommodations, what accommodations are given, how those accommodations are monitored and tracked, and how accommodations are funded are all factors that are discussed when navigating special education law. Educational systems follow processes laid out by the Individuals with Disabilities Act to evaluate students and customize programs to meet their needs.

How Does Educational Law Protect Individual Student Rights?

In the 1969 First Amendment case, Tinker v. Des Moines, the U.S. Supreme Court set a precedent that minors do not necessarily “shed their constitutional rights when they enter the schoolhouse door.”  Practitioners of Educational Law help students, families, and school systems navigate student rights in the school context . Often this includes a focus on freedom of speech and religion or prayer in schools.

Student drug testing policies are also needing more focus as schools establish drug testing policies in the wake of the 1995 U.S. Supreme Court decision to uphold suspicionless drug testing in public schools. Each situation and context is unique to the student and school, so students, families, and schools rely on educational lawyers to help them navigate the statutes and precedents related to each incident.

How Does Educational Law Govern Student Conduct and Discipline?

The majority of student conduct issues are handled by the school administration as they uphold the Student Codes Conduct established at each individual school. Student Codes of Conduct often include policies on dress code, technology use, school behavioral expectations, and minor disciplinary issues.

Schools will discipline students and deal with these issues as they arise, but sometimes, there can be issues more serious in nature that require input from legal authorities like the police. Theft, vandalism, drug possession, and other more serious offenses may require that students become involved with the law, in which case educational law could come into play.

How Does Educational Law Monitor and Impact Educational Standards and Funding?

Educational law helps to establish funding sources for schools and guide how they develop curricula, which maintains standards for student learning. Schools receive a small portion of federal funding, but the majority of school funding comes from the state, mostly from taxes. Educational law can help to navigate issues with funding and help schools understand their funding sources or how to allocate funding.

To monitor student learning, schools establish and follow educational standards for learning. Educational standards can be set nationally, at the state level, at the district level, or even as locally as each individual school. This, too, varies by state and by the school. Funding can sometimes be tied to these educational standards with programs like the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 which provided financial incentives to schools that improved the performance of “economically disadvantaged” students.

Understanding and navigating programs like these, their legality, how they tie into funding, and how standards impact access to education can all be areas of focus in educational law.

How Does Educational Law Protect Against Discrimination at School?

Several notable court cases have further protected students’ rights to access an education. Perhaps the most well-known educational law case dealing with discrimination is the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case that ruled segregation in schools unconstitutional. The Equal Education Opportunities Act of 1974 ensured that individuals are not denied equal opportunities to education based on race, color, sex, or national origin. Precedents like these and other educational statutes help to protect these rights for students and give schools support in protecting these rights.

Language can often be a barrier in a student receiving equal access to education, so laws around bilingual education and support for non-English speakers also help to support educators and students in preserving the right to access an education.

Laws about how to handle sexual discrimination in schools are also something educational law can touch on. From defining sexual harassment to how to handle it in a school setting, educational laws provide resources and tools for students, teachers, and schools to protect everyone involved in this environment.

How Does Educational Law Protect Teachers?

Like students, teachers’ rights are protected in a school environment, even though they are employees. Because they are employed by the district, there may be specific policies teachers are required to follow, but generally speaking, they are still protected by the same general rights that citizens are protected by. Educational law can help to protect these rights for teachers in this context.

Educational law can also help teachers navigate how to engage in collective bargaining by unionizing. Forming a union, making adjustments to a union, and navigating disputes within a union are all practices that could require the involvement of educational lawyers.

As with any other employer, there are also employment laws, regulations, and programs that become relevant when discussing normal issues related to teacher employment. Because teachers sign contracts for employment, educational lawyers can also provide support in drafting these contracts to make sure that both parties are fairly represented.

Does Educational Law Extend to Colleges as Well?

Many issues that K-12 schools deal with are also issues that colleges deal with such as funding, preserving rights of students and teachers, and providing equal access to education. But there are some added unique issues, like issues involving student-athletes, that can require additional attention from educational lawyers.

Many of these issues are also regulated by organizations like the NCAA, but educational law can also be involved to make sure that the rights of students are protected. As with younger students, certain unique circumstances may require the involvement of lawyers as schools, states, and students navigate these situations and determine the best course of action.

The good news is, there are many resources available to help people understand the laws and precedents that govern educational laws. Knowing and understanding the laws and regulations can be important for people that work in this context, but if you find yourself involved in a situation that requires to you navigate these laws and protect your interests, it may be time to involve an educational lawyer to better guide you through the best course of action in that situation.

Laura Bengs (she/her/hers) is a midwest-based freelance journalist and copywriter covering parenting, food and beverage, education, entertainment, and health/wellness. Her work has appeared in Milwaukee Magazine, Sing at Home Mom, and OnStageBlog. laurabengs.com

Related Posts

10 solid dictation tools and software options for attorneys.

Since you speak 125 to 150 words per minute, as a lawyer, you can get more done speaking than typeing or handwriting.  Sure, some people…

Read More »

How Do Private Prisons Make Money?

Private prisons are big business in the USA. No other country in the world has more people in prison than in the United States. According…

877-757-8189

Student Login

The 14th Amendment Protects the Right to a Public Education

Over the years, the 14th Amendment of the United States Constitution has had an enormous impact on protecting individual rights in public elementary and secondary education. This has occurred through the United States Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Equal Protection Clause, the Due Process Clause, and the incorporation of other rights (like freedom of speech) to the states through the 14th Amendment.

Equal Protection Clause

The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment provides that a state may not “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” It applies to public elementary and secondary schools, as they are considered to be state actors. In 1954, the Supreme Court interpreted the Equal Protection Clause’s requirements in  Brown v. Board of Education . In perhaps one of the most famous and important cases issued by the Court, it stated:

We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of "separate but equal" has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. Therefore, we hold that the plaintiffs…are, by reason of the segregation complained of, deprived of the equal protection of the laws guaranteed by the 14th Amendment.

That language, and the Court’s decision, had a dramatic impact on public education. Schools were required to end the discriminatory practice of segregating students based on race. While segregation was more prevalent in some states than in others, all public schools in all states that had segregated students needed to desegregate, or face claims that they were in violation of the 14th Amendment. What followed was roughly 50 years of desegregation efforts in public schools, and numerous court decisions regarding the constitutionality of those desegregation efforts.

Over time, the focus evolved from ending and remedying the vestiges of discriminatory practices to integration efforts that sought to promote the diversity of the student population in public schools. In some instances, these integration efforts were voluntary, meaning they were done by schools that had not segregated students in the past. These integration efforts continue to this day, and the predominant legal issues revolve around the extent to which race can be used as a factor in the assignment of students to certain schools in order to diversify the student body.

The language, and the logic, of the  Brown v. Board  decision also found its way into other types of Equal Protection claims. For example, in the mid-1970s, students with disabilities challenged their exclusion from public school on equal protection grounds. Two very influential lower court decisions,  PARC v Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , and  Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia , relied on  Brown v. Board  and determined that students with disabilities could not be excluded from public school because of their disabilities.

Those court decisions led to a federal statute that imposed similar requirements on all public schools that accepted certain federal funds. That law turned into the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which today applies to all public schools. The law requires public schools to provide all students with disabilities with a  Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) . It also prohibits schools from expelling or suspending students with disabilities for longer than 10 days, when the student’s actions are caused by their disability.

Due Process Clause

Due process is another area of the 14th Amendment that has had a dramatic impact on individual rights in public education. The Due Process Clause says that states may not “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” The Supreme Court has interpreted this clause to have substantive and procedural protections. With substantive due process, the 14th Amendment protects a parent’s right to direct the educational upbringing of their child. Because of this right, the Supreme Court ruled that a state statute that prohibited the teaching of foreign language, and a state statute that required all students to attend public schools, as opposed to private schools, violated the 14th Amendment. See  Meyer v. Nebraska  and  Pierce v. Society of Sisters . The Court also ruled that a state statute that required Amish children to attend school past the eighth grade violated the substantive due process rights, and the religious freedom rights, of Amish parents to direct the educational and religious upbringing of their children. See  Wisconsin v. Yoder .

As a result of these substantive due process protections, all states currently have exceptions in their state compulsory attendance statutes that require students of certain ages to attend school. The exceptions allow for attendance at private schools, religious schools, and homeschool to meet the compulsory attendance requirements.

The procedural due process protections of the 14th Amendment have also played an important role in public education, particularly in the areas of student discipline and teacher employment. With student discipline, the Supreme Court has ruled that students have a “legitimate entitlement to a public education as a property right.” See  Goss v. Lopez . That right may not be taken away without first providing due process protections, which are generally notice of what the student is accused of doing, and the opportunity to be heard before the student is disciplined.

The required amount of notice and opportunity to be heard increases as the severity of the discipline increases. With minor disciplinary actions, an informal discussion with the principal may be sufficient to meet the requirements. For more severe discipline, such as expulsion, a more detailed hearing is generally required to give the student a chance to present evidence, and to cross-examine witnesses. As a result of these constitutional due process protections, all states have enacted statutes and regulations that provide due process protections for students during the discipline process.

A similar due process right applies to tenured teachers at public elementary and secondary schools. Once a teacher receives tenured status, they have a property interest in their continued employment, and must be provided with notice and a hearing before it may be taken away from them. See  Perry v. Sindermann .

Incorporation

The third area where the 14th Amendment has impacted public schools is in the application of other constitutional rights to the states through the 14th Amendment, via a concept known as  incorporation . Perhaps the biggest impact here has been the First Amendment’s right to free speech, although other protections like freedom of religion have also made their mark on public education.

In the area of free speech, the Supreme Court has said that students and teachers do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.” See  Tinker v. Des Moines . While courts do give some deference to school administrators in making decisions about whether to prohibit certain student speech, the First Amendment requires schools to justify their decisions when they infringe on free speech rights. The level of justification required depends on the nature of the speech, and the nature of the restriction.

For example, in  Tinker v. Des Moines , students were protesting the Vietnam War by wearing armbands, and the school disciplined the students for doing so. The Supreme Court ruled that the discipline violated the First Amendment, because the school could not show that the speech could reasonably be expected to cause a substantial disruption with school activities or the rights of others. By contrast, in  Morse v. Frederick , the Supreme Court deferred to a school administrator’s judgment that a sign that said “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” promoted drug use, and upheld the discipline of the students that displayed the sign at a school event.

These are just a few examples of the many ways that the 14th Amendment impacts individual rights in public education. Many of these issues arise on a daily basis in public schools, and the 14th Amendment provides some constitutional protections of individual rights that schools must take into account when addressing them.

Scott F. Johnson

Scott F. Johnson is a Professor of Law at Purdue Global Law School (formerly Concord Law School), where he teaches Education Law and Special Education Law, among other topics. He has written a number of books and articles in the education law area. Professor Johnson’s law practice included education and special education cases, and he currently serves as a special education hearing officer for a state agency.

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not represent the view of Purdue Global Law School.

Employment and Career Advancement:  Purdue Global Law School cannot guarantee employment or career advancement.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

© 2024, Purdue Global, a public, nonprofit institution.

• Cookie Preferences
• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use

10 Ethical and Legal Issues in Education

“A child born to a Black mother in a state like Mississippi… has exactly the same rights as a white baby born to the wealthiest person in the United States. It’s not true, but I challenge anyone to say it is not a goal worth working for.”

Thurgood Marshall

Learning Objectives

• Define a code of ethics in education
• Explore legal protections for students US schools
• Explore legal protections for educators in US schools
• Describe foundational legal cases that impact US schools

Pause and Ponder – Can the teacher use this book?

A high school English teacher is planning to have his students read The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. Set during the Great Depression, the main character searches for her identity and sense of self. In addition, there are themes of race, class, exploitation, and sex in the novel. Can the teacher include this book in his reading list for the year even though it was banned by the Parent Teacher Association (PTA)?

Actually, there is no clear answer for this teacher. The National Education Association (NEA) Code of Ethics suggests a standard of reasonableness. When making decisions as a teacher, ethics oftentimes presents a ‘gray area’ and does not always provide a definitive resolution.

In this chapter, we review the roles and responsibilities of teachers in today’s public schools as they relate to ethical and legal issues in education. We explore ethical teaching, along with legal parameters, established through case law and set up in the U.S. Constitution and its amendments. Rights for both teachers and students are examined, and current implications are discussed.

Ethics in Education

When you think of your favorite teacher, it is not often that you consider whether he or she was ethical. Yet professional ethics and dispositions, as well as the legal responsibilities of teachers, are central in defining how students view their favorite teacher. Ethics provides a foundation for what teachers should do in their roles and responsibilities as an educator. It is a framework that a teacher can use to help make decisions about what is right or wrong in a given situation.

Teachers are not only responsible for their students but also in the long term, for the growth and development of their community. Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders, workers, policy makers, thinkers, dreamers, and voters. It is not a stretch to say that teachers really do hold the future in their hands. To that end, developing an ethical and liberatory approach to teaching is crucially important.

Deeper Dive: Liberatory Education

Liberatory education has been discussed in a prior chapter. Here is a reminder – Liberatory Education

10.1 ​What is a Code of Ethics?

Most professions have a Code of Ethics that binds its members together through shared values and purpose. This professional Code of Ethics is a widely accepted standard of practice that outlines the accountability of its members to those they serve as well as to the profession itself (Benninga, 2013). Here are some examples of Ethics Codes :

Varying Codes of Ethics in Educational Organizations

Each of the statements on ethics from these teacher professional organizations complements the others, outlining expected behaviors and dispositions, identifying professional intent, and solidifying commitments that are expected from educators in their roles representing public schools throughout the state and nation.

Let’s see how a Code of Ethics could impact the scenario that opened this chapter. Recall that the high school English teacher wanted to include a controversial book on his reading list for the school year that has been banned from use. He believes this book will provide a rich experience for his students and provide stimulating class discussion and debate around identity and race. In determining whether or not to incorporate the text, the teacher must ask himself if he is truly presenting different points of view. In so doing, the teacher is adhering to the National Education Association (NEA) Code of Ethics, specifically Principle I, Item 2:

Principle I: Commitment to the Student:

The educator strives to help each student realize his or her potential as a worthy and effective member of society. The educator therefore works to stimulate the spirit of inquiry, the acquisition of knowledge and understanding, and the thoughtful formulation of worthy goals.

In fulfillment of the obligation to the student, the educator shall not unreasonably deny the student access to varying points of view (National Education Association, 2019, para. 8).

With this Code of Ethics in mind, this teacher could argue that reading this book stimulates the spirit of inquiry and knowledge acquisition, and not reading the book would unreasonably deny the students access to varying points of view.

Code of Ethics in Action

Consider the ethical dilemmas that are present every day in the classroom and the ethical decisions that a teacher must make. Consider how each decision that a teacher makes impacts the functioning of the school, the well-being of the students, and the personal goals of the teacher in pursuit of the profession of teaching and supporting student learning.

There is not always one right “answer” in any given situation. A Code of Ethics provides guidelines to help guide your decision making and teaching practice. It helps with what you should do. It does not provide specific directions on what to do or even how to do it.

Ethical decisions take place every day in our classrooms. Oftentimes, you may believe that treating students equally is an ethical approach. But if you go into a classroom, you may notice a teacher calling on a shy student and not calling on another student who usually dominates the discussion. Is this equal? Is this fair? These are two different things. The teacher is clearly treating the two students differently. The NEA Code of Ethics guides your teaching behaviors by placing your students at the center of your practice. Always consider that you must treat all students equitably, not necessarily the same or equally.

Critical Lens – What is Equity and what is the difference with Equality?

What is equity? – It is the continual process of looking for and removing things that create disparity. Equity requires providing people what they need to succeed in the proportion to which they need it. Equity can not be achieved with a neutral approach. Meeting students where they are at is an equitable approach.

Equity vs Equality

A professional Code of Ethics governs a teacher’s relationships, roles, conduct, interactions, and communication with students, as well as families, administrators and the larger community. It provides educators with a way to regulate personal conduct and ethical decision making. It does not tell a teacher why they should do something. Having an informed awareness of statutes, laws, and other legal influences will assist you in defining your role as an ethical teacher who is also fair and responsible. It is essential for an effective educator working under any code of ethics to understand diverse student needs and deliver equity in practice.

Pause and Ponder

What are your own personal ethical beliefs having to do with education? What might be some ways to practice no harm?  What situations could you envision in teaching that would require ethical decision-making?

One topic that’s not commonly covered in codes of ethics for teachers is a continuous commitment to examining and addressing one’s own biases. As  mentioned elsewhere in this text, as humans, our bias reflects the implicit values and beliefs of the community and society. Our biases influence how we interact with students, their experiences in school, and even their outcomes and opportunities. Here’s an example of how this works. Recently, researchers found that even in online classrooms, teachers’ racial and gender bias can influence whether students get referred to gifted programs or special education programs.

Activity – Personal Biases

Watch this film and consider your own biases

• What does my headscarf mean to you? with Yassmin Abdel-Magied
• Provide an example of a time personal bias impacted a decision in your work.
• What might you do as a teacher  to continually assess whether and how you are bringing your personal biases into the classroom?

10.2 Education and the Law

What does discrimination look like in the classroom.

Discrimination in the classroom can be overt or covert and can take many forms. The following list provides broad ways that discrimination could be identified in the classroom.

• Treating people inequitably based on social categories, e.g., race, nationality, language (see more below about Protected Classes)
• Treating people unequally and/or oppressively because they belong to a marginalized group
• Behavior that results in subordinating or continuing to subordinate a marginalized group

Protected Classes and Federal Laws Protecting Individuals’ Civil Liberties

Federal laws explicitly protect certain classes of people, called protected classes, from discrimination. This means that it is illegal for any federal or state organization or public entity to discriminate against someone based on their protected class(es) status.

Critical Lens – Protected Classes

• Race – The socially constructed categorization of people based on racialized characteristics
• Color – The amount of melanin in a person’s skin determining their coloring
• National Origin – The nation where a person was born or where their ancestors come from
• Religion – The US Constitution gives people the right to freedom of religion and schools must accommodate the religious needs of students
• Sex – Gender-based policies that favor a specific gender are prohibited in schools. It is important to note that the state of Oregon has further laws that extend the protected class status to individuals based on sexuality and gender identity
• Marital Status – A school cannot discriminate against an individual based on their marital status
• Disability – The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) defines disability as any mental or physical impairment that limits major life activity
• Age – Age discrimination particularly relates to personnel in schools in that age cannot be a discriminatory factor in hiring, retaining or compensating employees

10.3 The U.S. Constitution and the 1st and 14th Amendments

Significant, ground-breaking court cases have influenced the practice of public schools throughout history and many verdicts have come from the U.S. Supreme Court. The majority of these cases focus on the First and Fourteenth Amendments.

The First Amendment of the U.S Constitution

It addresses the freedom of speech, religion, press, and the right to petition the government, and assemble peaceably (U.S. Constitution, First Amendment).

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution ratified in 1791

Courts have been called to answer questions about the freedoms outlined in the First Amendment as they relate to teachers and students (American Library Association, 2006). Cases include the dismissal or suspension of personnel due to issues such as religious clothing, political symbols and speaking profanity at a school assembly .

Critical Lens – Tinker v. Des Moines

Tinker v. Des Moines

A school district in Des Moines passed a rule that students could not wear armbands to protest the Vietnam War.  In Tinker v. Des Moines, the students argued that the district was violating their right to freedom of speech and the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the students. The Court also ruled that the only time school or school personnel could impinge on a student’s right to freedom of speech was if they could show that the behavior significantly interfered with “the requirements of appropriate discipline in the operation of the school.”

The Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., has settled many cases in our country’s history about how the U.S. Constitution, especially the First and Fourteenth Amendments, relates to public schools.

In Bartels v. Iowa (1923) , the Supreme Court upheld a conviction of a teacher for teaching German to students. The English-only movement in schools that many attribute to contemporary times has its roots in some of the xenophobia that was used to justify World War 1. Later, In Griswold v Connecticut (1965) the court ruled that the right to teach foreign languages is protected by the First Amendment of the constitution.

The First Amendment rights provides teachers a degree of protection for in-class curricular speech. In Board of Education, Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26 v. Pico by Pico (1982) , the Supreme Court found that the school board could not restrict certain books in the school system’s libraries because school board members disagreed with the content. Doing so was found to be a violation of the First Amendment and our protection with regards to freedom of speech.

Critical Lens – First Amendment Protections

• Freedom of speech is the right for individuals to speak freely without fear of censorship or reprisal from the government. The right to freedom of speech applies to both school personnel and students. For example, a teacher might bring legal action against a school if they are fired for talking about issues of public interest like a school board election. Another example is that students have the right to exercise their freedom of speech through protests or messages on their clothing.
• Freedom of exercise limits government interference and actions on individuals’ religious beliefs and individuals’ practices in relation to their religious beliefs
• Freedom of press protects print and electronic media from censorship. This may apply in certain cases to school newspapers and media releases.
• Freedom of assembly ensures the right that people can gather together peacefully as long as they are not engaging in illegal or criminal activities. This may apply in certain cases to students’ right to form and participate in group protests in schools.

These rulings have come into conflict over the years due to school systems also having the right to set the curriculum. This school system precedent was upheld in Krizek v. Board of Education (1989) when a non-tenured English teacher showed an “R”-rated film to high school students and her contract was not renewed. The district court found that the teacher’s First Amendment rights were not violated, rather the school board acted reasonably in determining that the film was inappropriate. (We’ll discuss tenure in more depth later in this chapter.)

The Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

It guarantees equal opportunity for due process and equal protection to all who live within the jurisdiction of the United States. This amendment was ratified in 1868 and written specifically to protect the rights of recently freed enslaved people.

Ensuring that this opportunity applies to all persons, it reads:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution ratified in 1868, Section 1

The Fourteenth Amendment provides a guarantee that a state cannot take away constitutional rights or privileges as identified in the U.S. Constitution (National Constitution Center, 2020). It has three primary clauses:

• The Incorporation Doctrine extended the rights guaranteed in the Bill of Rights to state governments. This means that any state laws that violate the rights granted by the Constitution at the federal level would be overturned.
• The Due Process Clause affirms that states may not deny any person “life liberty, or property, without due process of law.”
• The Equal Protection Clause establishes that states may not “deny to any person (citizen or non-citizen) within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

Both the Due Process and the Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment significantly impact education. The Equal Protection Clause is examined throughout this chapter as it relates to foundational legal cases, racial issues, and LGBTQ+ rights and discrimination. Next, we will consider how the Due Process Clause affects educators and students.

Activity – Scenario

Which legal  protections might apply to this case?

Soledad Garcia was born with Cerebral Palsy in Texas in 1955. She had no access to schooling and her Mexican-American  parents could not afford to send her to a specialized facility and so she stayed at home. Which of the following protections might have helped Soledad’s family as they  advocated for her education?

10.4 What Federal Laws Protect Students and/or Educational Personnel’s’ Civil Rights?

The civil rights act of 1964.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin by constraining private, non-government parties from discriminatory behavior in any program or activity that receives federal funds, e.g., schools and school related programs. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act mandates that it is unlawful for employers to discriminate against an individual in hiring, retention, and compensation because of the individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA)

IDEA was enacted in 1975 to ensure that children with disabilities had access to a free appropriate public education beginning at age 3 through age 21. The law provides guidance to states and school districts about special education services. One important mandate from the 2004 reauthorization of IDEA provides guidance to states and school districts to analyze and remediate the overrepresentation of racially, ethnically, culturally, and/or linguistically marginalized students in special education services.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

FERPA was written to ensure the privacy of students’ educational records. It applies to any school or district that is receiving federal funds. FERPA is covered in more detail later in this chapter.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972

Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in programs and activities that receive federal funds, including schools. Some example provisions relate to discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, participation in athletic and/or STEM activities, hiring based on gender, and/or sexual harassment.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

Section 504 prohibits employment discrimination against an individual with a disability when they can perform the essential job functions with reasonable accommodations. This act focuses on employers in organizations receiving federal funding, including schools.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in employment, schools, transportation, public and private services, and accommodations. This law applies to all public entities whether or not they receive federal funding.

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Title III – Every Student Succeeds Act

NCLB’s Title III mandated the creation of funding and support for school districts so that they could better serve students learning English as an additional language, often called English Language Learners (ELLs). The act created the Office of English Language Acquisition with a mission and budget to “close the achievement gap” between students learning English as an additional language and native-English speaking students.

Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) was signed into law in 2015 (Every Student Succeeds Act, 2015). It replaces the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act that was enacted in 2002. ESSA requires states to be more accountable for the achievement of students within their public schools. Its purpose is to provide equitable opportunity for students with diverse backgrounds to include those living in poverty, minorities, special needs, and English language learners.

ESSA provides school districts more control in how they set education standards and determine consequences for low-achieving schools in their districts. States provide an accountability framework to the federal government that assures that all students receive a high-quality education. States are responsible for having an accountability plan and specifying the accountability measures that they and their school districts will follow (Lee, n.d.).

The state educational plan must include how each school within the state will:

• maintain academic standards;
• provide annual testing in grades 3-8 in reading and math;
• identify accountability measures that look at academic achievement, progress, English language proficiency, and high school graduation rates; and
• measure school success by kindergarten readiness, advanced placement coursework, college readiness, and chronic absenteeism or discipline rates (Every Student Succeeds Act, 2015).

Schools must provide to the federal government a plan that outlines how they will ensure that students learn and achieve in their schools. If underperforming in any of the above areas, schools must additionally present a plan for improvement.

For more information, you can visit the U.S Department of Education

Critical Lens – No Child Left Behind: Two perspectives

What supporters said:

• Acknowledgement of the inequities between US public schools and that some schools had been failing kids for decades
• Raise preparation requirements for teachers- make sure they are qualified

What critics said:

• Over-testing of students which causes students to disengage
• Teachers lost valuable teaching time
• Overreach of federal government
• Prioritized rote memorization and basic processes
• Publicly sanctioned schools, many of them minority serving, for not meeting established goals, thereby perpetuating negative stereotypes
• Ignored assessment frameworks that recognize multiple and

Food and Nutrition Services USDA Departmental Regulation 4330-2

This USDA regulation was established to ensure that programs, activities, and institutions that receive financial assistance from the USDA (including school cafeterias) comply with civil rights laws and do not discriminate against individuals based on their protected class status.

Activity – Reflection

In terms of Soledad, the student mentioned above, almost all of the legal protections mentioned here could have applied to her case but most notably IDEIA which provided significant access to students living with disabilities. Before 1975, if a student had a disability, they were excluded from the US educational system. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 advocated for racial justice and laid the foundation for other marginalized groups, including those who live with disabilities, to access education? Because of Soledad’s various marginalized identities, multiple laws bear on her situation.

Have More Questions about Federal Laws Related to Discrimination in Educational Environments? See the following resources:

• Race and National Origin Discrimination (Takes you to a US Department of Education page) 
• Sex Discrimination (Takes you to a US Department of Education page)
• Disability Discrimination (Takes you to a US Department of Education page)
• Age Discrimination (Takes you to a US Department of Education page)

Due Process

For educators and students, due process requires considering whether a constitutional right has been infringed upon by the state, and then affords the accused student, teacher, school district or state the right to a fair and impartial trial. Generally speaking, the due process clause of the 14th amendment entitles students and educators to an impartial trial or hearing when certain constitutional rights are infringed by the state.

All members of the school community have the right to due process with the purpose of providing a fair trial. The central premise of due process is fairness. A school district can be sued if others believe the district acted in an unfair or unreasonable way. This legal argument can be made on behalf of a teacher, student, parent, or community member. Anyone who believes that they were unfairly or unreasonably impacted by a policy or procedure of the school can institute a legal case against the school.

In the Supreme Court case Hortonville Independent School District No. 1 v. Hortonville Education Association (1976) , the Justices ruled that the school board was able to deliver due process in a reasonable manner when it fired teachers who went on strike after contract negotiations failed. The teachers were asked to return to work but refused. They were then terminated. The teachers argued that their dismissal violated their due process and should be reviewed by an impartial decision maker. The court did not agree, citing instead that the school board was viewed as the impartial decision maker, and they did not need to be independent from the issue.

Schools in the United States accept responsibility for children as they enter through their doors, and teachers have responsibilities that relate to educating students as well as providing physical, social, and emotional safety to all children, beyond teaching the required curriculum. Because of the diverse nature of schools, the U.S. court system helps to balance teachers’ and students’ responsibilities and rights.10.5 Foundational Legal Cases

Throughout U.S. history, there have been many notable court cases heard by the Supreme Court related to public education in the United States (National Constitution Center, 2015). Select foundational legal cases are highlighted below:

Examples of Foundational Legal Cases in Education

Activity – Scenario Legal Case

Which Legal cases might apply to this situation?

Rebecca welcomed Moise Francois to Beavercreek Elementary. His mother had none of the usual  documentation but she  did have an ID card and a local address on a utilities bill which helped to establish that this was their elementary school. Rebecca knew that legally the schools never asked for social security cards or any other kind of immigration or naturalization paperwork due to the landmark Plyer vs Doe case. She also knew that she could place Moise in an ESL classroom for his first day which would help to ease him into the US school system. The school had a plan for its English Language Learners, as required by law per the landmark Lau vs Nichols case (both cases explained below).

Lau v. Nichols (1974)

A group of Chinese American students who were learning English as an additional language sued their school system for violating their 14th Amendment rights by not providing them enough language support to be successful in school. The Lau v. Nichols case was grounded in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as it discriminated against the students based on their national origin. The Court ruled in favor of the students and codified the civil right to be instructed in a language or through a method (such as ESL) that is understandable. The Court ruling laid the needed groundwork for the argument that national origin discrimination extends to language-based discrimination because language and national origin are inherently interconnected.

Deeper Dive –  Federal Court Rulings Related to Discrimination in Educational Environments

Where Can I Find More Information about Federal Court Rulings Related to Discrimination in Educational Environments?

• Case Summaries Related to Protected Classes [Takes you to a United States Department of Justice page}
• The Stanford Equality of Opportunity and Education Project [ introduction page ] has curated this list of landmark US legal cases related to equality and opportunity in K-12 education

Throughout U.S. history, courts have become more involved in helping school districts make decisions that affect how localities and states conduct schooling (Thomas, 2019). As diversity increases throughout the United States, school policies and procedures continue to be challenged in our court systems. When pursuing legal action, the goal is to ensure that schools provide a fair and reasonable system of education for all students.

10.6 State Oversight

Each state must follow its respective State Constitution as well as the U.S. Constitution when defining the role and responsibilities of public schools within their state. Although education is a responsibility of the state, school districts have authority over their individual schools as it relates to curriculum and discipline. Rights are afforded to teachers in normal day-to-day functioning and when appealing grievances as it relates to such things as contracts, policies, denial of tenure, or suspension. Students must also adhere to this authority, unless it overrides a student’s constitutional rights.

States provide a wide range of oversight. They identify the minimum licensure requirements for educators. States also dictate what educators must do within that state to maintain their teaching licenses. State laws provide guidelines regarding how schools are organized based on funding. The legislature and Governor of each state allocate a certain amount of funding to school districts throughout their state. School districts then decide how those funds are spent. State legislatures and courts have intervened to help reduce funding disparities among poorer and wealthier school districts to better ensure that all students have equal access to education. States also create a state board of education, set-up school districts throughout the state, and establish school boards for each district. State laws also help to define student discipline and due process policies.

Examples of state involvement within public schools include:

• Creating school districts
• Allocating a budget to school districts
• Regulating schools throughout those districts
• Establishing the organizational structure for schools
• Defining policies and functions of the school
• Setting minimum curriculum requirements for schools
• Defining licensure requirements for educators, and
• Determining working conditions (National Conference of State Legislatures, 2020).

10.7 State of Oregon

If you are planning to get licensed in the state of Oregon, be sure to review the appendix on Civil Rights in Oregon.

In this section, you will learn about state laws that protect individual civil liberties and prohibit discrimination in educational settings. It is important that you are familiar with these laws and how they are applied in schools because teachers are considered “state actors” who act on behalf of the state.

Oregon Revised Statutes Relevant to Educational Settings

Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) are codified laws of the State of Oregon. These are released every two years so it is important to know current laws related to discrimination in educational settings, and also that you can access the ORSs in future through this website

Protected Classes and State Laws Protecting Individuals’ Civil Liberties

In the State of Oregon, sexual orientation is a protected class. This extends the federally recognized protected classes to include sexual orientation. Sexual orientation is an individual’s physical and/or emotional attraction to other individual(s) or not. Some terms used to describe a person’s sexual orientation may be heterosexual (straight), gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, or asexual.

What Protections are Individuals Afforded Under The Oregon Constitution?

Article I of the Oregon Constitution is a bill of rights of the privileges, immunities, and authorities that may be legally and morally claimed by the citizens of the state within the bounds of reason, truth, and the accepted standards of behaviors. These rights include:

• Natural rights inherent in people
• Freedom of worship
• Freedom of religion
• No religious qualification for office
• No money to be appropriated for religion
• No religious test for witnesses or jurors
• Freedom of speech and freedom of the press
• Equality of privileges and immunities of citizens
• Assemblages of people; instruction of representatives; application to legislature
• Taxes and duties; uniformity of taxation

Deeper Dive – Information about Oregon State Laws Related to Discrimination in Educational Environment

Where Can I Find More Information about Oregon State Laws Related to Discrimination in Educational Environments?

• The Oregon Secretary of State keeps an archive of all Oregon Administrative Rules (OARs) for the Oregon Department of Education
• The Oregon State Legislature maintains an archive of Oregon Revised Statutes (ORSs)

10.8 Rights of Teachers

Teaching License

As discussed previously, the first step in becoming a legally-recognized teacher is to earn a teaching license. Each state has different requirements for earning a teaching license, as they define the specific dispositions, knowledge, and skills needed to obtain and maintain employment within a school in that state. In Oregon, the process is overseen by The Teacher Standards and Practices Commission. If you choose to complete an undergraduate or graduate degree program in order to teach, you will be working toward fulfilling the requirements of a teaching license in the state where your institution is located. Many states have reciprocity with other states’ teaching licenses, meaning that you can earn a teaching license in one state and still go teach in another one, as long as you also complete the requirements for earning a teaching license in that new state.

Once a teacher applies for and receives a job at a school, they receive a teaching contract. A teaching contract is a written agreement between the school system and the teacher and serves as a legal document identifying the roles and responsibilities for the teaching position. If the school board negotiated with a teacher’s union, then the policies and regulations of the union will also be identified in the contract. The teaching contract must be signed by the teacher, school, and ratified by the school board to be binding. The teaching contract is binding unless it is breached, should either party fail to perform as agreed during the time frame specified in the teaching contract. Be aware that each state has a different definition of the types of teaching contracts that are presented to teachers within the state.

You may have heard of the word “tenure” in discussions about teaching contracts. Tenure protects teachers from arbitrary dismissal by school officials. Tenure derived from the Pendleton Civil Service Act of 1883, which was originally established as a merit system for government workers. Tenure rights for teachers in the United States date back to 1909, when the NEA lobbied for these rights. States define tenure laws for teachers in public schools, including elements like probationary periods and termination procedures. A school district can dismiss a tenured teacher for justifiable reasons such as noncompliance, immoral conduct, committing a crime, and insubordination. A teacher can also be dismissed for financial reasons, such as when a school district has a deficiency of funds.

Tenure does not guarantee a teacher a job for life, nor does it offer lifetime employment security (Hart, 2010). The focus of tenure is on supporting and protecting good teachers. It is an earned process that mandates due process. The benefits of a continuing contract or tenure are that a school must show cause in order to dismiss you because you, as the teacher, have due process rights. Advocates for tenure see its benefits for teachers in that it “significantly strengthens legal protections embodied in civil service, civil rights, and labor laws” and “protects a range of discriminatory firings not covered under race and gender anti- discrimination laws” (Kahlenberg, 2015, p. 7). In addition, teacher tenure has been shown to increase morale and overall teacher involvement within a school and collaboration among colleagues. Tenure affords teachers the ability to question and engage with school leadership as it relates to the functioning of a school and in building a strong school culture, which has been linked to increased academic achievement for students (Lee & Smith, 1996).

Presently, some states are changing their legislation as it relates to teacher tenure. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and Race to the Top grants through the U.S. Department of Education both require states to evaluate student achievement and teacher effectiveness. Certain state legislatures view teacher tenure as a barrier to these initiatives because it is more difficult for school districts to dismiss tenured teachers for poor performance, and as a result, relatively few tenured teachers are fired (Goldhaber & Hansen, 2010). Therefore, some states have begun to change tenure laws to adhere to the accountability requirements stipulated by the U.S. Department of Education as it relates to teacher evaluation and student achievement. As a result, some tenure systems have been removed or revamped with annual contracts requiring satisfactory performance. Florida, Indiana, North Carolina, and Kansas have eliminated tenure completely (Underwood, 2018). Additional states are also currently contemplating limiting or removing tenure for teachers.

Activity – Licensure Requirements

Look up licensure requirements for the state where you want to teach. What do you notice? What kinds of knowledge, training, and experience are you required to have? How is your understanding assessed before you are granted a license?

Unions and Participation in Professional Organizations

The National Education Association (NEA) and American Federation of Teachers (AFT) are two of the largest teacher labor unions and professional organizations in the United States at present. Both have been in existence for more than 100 years and support teachers, along with other school personnel. As unions, both organizations support their members with collective bargaining, whereby they work alongside teachers as they negotiate with their respective school districts to resolve disputes, as well as to lobby Congress for state and federal legislation that would impact educational related issues, including teacher rights and responsibilities. In some states, teacher unions will support your right to strike as a means of collective bargaining.

You can join the union that is present in your school or even start one, but since not all states recognize unions, the NEA or AFT may not be able to assist you with collective bargaining or school board negotiations, depending on your state of employment. Collective bargaining is legal in Oregon and Washington. Collective bargaining is illegal in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Texas, and Arizona. You may hear these referenced as  “ right to work states ,” which means that employees have a right to work without being forced to join a union. Even so, each professional organization provides support, a rich network of educators, and professional development around issues and opportunities that can be beneficial for your teaching practice.

It is not often that educators are permitted to strike because they are employed by the state and are considered vital to public service. Still, some teachers do strike regardless of state laws that may prevent them from striking, as we saw in 2018 in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Oklahoma. When teachers go on strike, the impacted school board can obtain a court injunction to order teachers back to the school and teachers can lose pay for each day on strike. In many states, they can also be dismissed from their teaching positions for striking.

Activity – Advocacy

You may have heard of the #RedforEd movement, which involves teachers striking or protesting in many different states as a way to advocate for students. Watch this video to learn more about this movement from the National Education Association (NEA)

Academic Freedom

Many teachers consider academic freedom to be a constitutional freedom outlined by the First Amendment. Because a teacher is a state employee and has signed a legally binding teaching contract, the teacher has a legal obligation to adhere to the rules and regulations identified by the school board and the laws of the state and federal government. A teacher represents the school and cannot do whatever they want in the classroom. Likewise, a teacher does not have complete freedom of speech to say whatever he or say wishes either. All teachers must follow guidelines represented in their teacher contract and the policies and procedures of the school board.

While the legal system has afforded teachers the right to select appropriate class materials, the educational purpose, the age and sophistication of students, and the context and length of time to complete assignments must all be considered. For example, if you wanted to teach the muscular system in human anatomy in your sixth grade science curriculum, but this content is not taught until tenth grade, you would not be able to change the curriculum framework set by the school district per your teaching contract.

If an activity aligns to your curriculum framework and you have followed the guidelines set forth by the school board, you could, for example, have a speaker come into your classroom to talk about an aspect of your curriculum or use an article published in the newspaper. Doing so would not be in breach of your contract. As you prepare for class instruction, consider your assigned curriculum, review school policies, and ask your school principal or other mentor teachers for guidance.

Academic freedom basically refers to the freedom of teachers to communicate information and share curricular material, without legal interference. In many cases, teachers were allowed a fair amount of academic freedom in creating and teaching their coursework. However, this has been notably changing in a highly politicized and divided nation.

Freedom of Speech and Expression

Pause and Ponder – Teacher Rights

Imagine a teacher published an opinion piece in the local newspaper. In the editorial, they were very critical of a policy that the school board had just passed. They also included many allegations that were not accurate. The community reacted very strongly on both sides of the issue. What rights does this teacher have for freedom of expression outside of their position as a teacher in this school district?

Outside of the classroom, freedom of expression for a teacher has been challenged in the court system if administration or general public determined that the speech or behavior was disruptive to the effectiveness of a school. Because a teacher has a professional responsibility to their school, educators must be careful about what they say, both at school and outside of school. It is also important for teachers to be mindful about what they post on social media, even if it is their personal account.

In the Pickering v. Board of Education (1968) case, the Supreme Court reversed a lower court ruling and found that the teacher’s First Amendment right to free speech had been violated after he was dismissed by the school board for writing and publishing a letter in the local newspaper criticizing the board. The court held that teachers were able to voice concerns, even if those concerns were unfavorable to the school, as long as the regular school operations were not disrupted. In the case, the court’s opinion was that the plaintiff’s First Amendment rights to free speech were not lost because a school district believes the speech is not in its “best interest.” After this ruling, the teacher in this case was reinstated to his position.

This influential case regarding First Amendment rights and freedom of speech for public school teachers established precedent that public employees have the ability to speak out on issues of public concern, even as state or government employees. Even so, the rights of public employees continue to be challenged in the U.S. court system.

In Connick v. Myers (1983) , the Supreme Court again reversed a lower court decision and ruled that speech of public employees is protected only when they speak on matters of public concern. The case results here showed that the rights of public service employees must be balanced between matters of public importance and an employer’s interest to maintain a disruptive free workplace.

Similar to freedom of speech, a teacher’s freedom of expression can also be called into question as it relates to personal presentation and dress. Court cases surrounding dress code requirements established by school boards and imposed on teachers in their local schools have established some legal precedent, but this also continues to be a hotly debated topic. As a public school teacher, can you exercise your own ‘personal liberty’ in how you dress?In East Hartford Education Association v. Board of Education (1977) , a public school teacher was reprimanded for failing to wear a necktie while teaching an English class. Joined by his teachers union, he sued the board of education on the basis that the admonishment for the dress code violated his rights to free speech and privacy. This case was heard in the U.S. Court of Appeals who found that the school board was justified in imposing the dress code. As a teacher and public servant in a position of trust, the court felt that this professional requirement and overall governance by the school board on the appearance of its teachers was warranted.

For many teachers and students alike, dress and personal appearance is considered a freedom of expression. Geographic diversity and individual school culture can also be a factor in what is allowed or not allowed as it relates to dress codes in schools across the United States (Sternberg, n.d.). What is acceptable in southern California may or may not be in West Virginia or Vermont. School principals often become the main authority for ensuring compliance (Waggoner, 2008). A standard of reasonableness is useful when crafting a successful dress code, along with clarity of language and flexibility dependent on the situation to determine appropriate dress and professional presentation. Review the dress code for your school and district to ensure that you are in compliance.

Critical Lens – In the News

In the fall of 2020, a teacher at a charter school in Texas says she was fired after wearing a mask with “Black Lives Matter” written on it ( Pygas, 2020 ).  The school told her the mask was a violation of the dress code and asked her to avoid wearing the mask due to the “current political climate.”  When she stated in an email that she would not stop wearing the mask, the school said she had “effectively resigned her position,” since she did not intend to follow the established policy.  Dress codes are one part of the professional behavior you may be expected to follow once you sign a teaching contract, so it is important to know exactly what your dress code policy says and what your rights are. Similar incidents have occurred in Oregon. Check out the  controversy in Newberg, Oregon and how they banned freedom of expression regarding Black Lives Matter  and LGBTQ rights: https://www.opb.org/article/2023/01/17/newberg-oregon-school-district-rescinds-policy-on-controversial-symbols-in-lawsuit-settlement/

Liability and Teachers

Now, imagine an elementary school teacher is outside with their students on the playground. Two children ask if they can climb on the climbing wall. The teacher agrees and begins to walk over so they can monitor their play. At that very moment, a child falls off the monkey bars she was playing on and begins to cry. The teacher quickly walks over to the fallen child and notices that she has a cut on her arm. Can this teacher be sued for negligence?

When at school, educators have a responsibility that is referred to by the courts as “in loco parentis” or “in place of parents.” This means that while in school it is the responsibility of educators to make similar judgments as it relates to the safety of children that a parent might make. Because an educator is legally responsible for the safety of children under their supervision, a teacher is considered negligent if they fail to protect a child from injury or harm.

Accidents happen, and there are multiple ways that a child could be injured, such as in the playground scenario described above, in the lab of a science classroom, or even running down the hallway. However, if it is determined that negligence did occur, or even if a parent believes that negligence took place, a liability suit can be brought against the teacher or the school. The person who was harmed can bring civil or criminal charges against the student or teacher who threatened harm. In addition, a teacher can be dismissed and lose his or her teaching license as well as be criminally or civilly charged.

Protections exist for teachers that limit liability. These include:

• A reasonable attempt was made to anticipate a dangerous condition;
• Proper precautions were instituted to include establishing rules and procedures to prevent injury;
• Students were warned of possible danger; and
• The teacher provided proper supervision (Legal Information Institute, n.d.).

The Supreme Court of Wyoming held in Fagen v. Summers (1972) that the teacher did everything possible to keep students safe following a playground accident, citing that “a teacher cannot anticipate the varied and unexpected acts which occur daily in and about the school premises.” Schools and/or teachers are generally not held responsible for accidents occurring on school property under these types of circumstances.

In another playground accident in Louisiana several years later, Partin v. Vernon Parish School Board (1977) , the judge reiterated the importance of a teacher demonstrating a “high degree of care” for students under his or her supervision, while confirming the earlier decision and citing that “the teacher is not the absolute insurer of the safety of the children she supervises.” In both of these cases, the teacher was not found guilty of any negligence based on the above criteria.

Teachers can have a lawsuit brought against them for civil liability or civil statutes if it is believed that:

• a student has been mistreated or abused either verbally, physically, emotionally, or sexually by the teacher.
• a teacher discriminated against a child due to his or her gender, race, or a special need(s).
• a teacher treated certain children unfairly, such as through grading practices.
• offensive material was assigned by the teacher (Legal Information Institute, n.d.).

Once you begin teaching, your school and state will have specific policies regarding liability protection for teachers.

Critical Lens:  Who Gets to Define “Offensive”?

What happens if what some families deem offensive is the lived experience of others? For example, a teacher in Texas was placed on administrative leave when some families complained about posters on the “walls” of her virtual Bitmoji classroom ( Fitzsimons, 2020 ). These virtual “posters” depicted affirmations of LGBTQ+ communities and the Black Lives Matter Movement.  But what about the students who see themselves in these LGBTQ+ and Black Lives Matter posters?  How do we create classroom communities that are inclusive of various cultures and perspectives, while also acknowledging that some groups deem certain cultures and perspectives as “offensive”?

Teacher Privacy

Privacy is considered to be a protection in the U.S. Constitution under the Fourth Amendment as it relates to unreasonable searches and seizures (U.S. Constitution, Fourth Amendment).

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution ratified in 1789, revised 1992

In the Supreme Court case, O’Connor v. Ortega (1987) , the court ruled that public employees retain their Fourth Amendment rights with regard to administrative searches in the workplace. The Court held that a standard of reasonableness was sufficient for work-related intrusions by public employers. It cited that an employee’s expectation of privacy may be unreasonable when the intrusion into the office is by a supervisor rather than a law enforcement official while conducting normal business functions. For teachers, the school is considered a public place and therefore there are minimal limitations placed on search and seizure. However,  your personal effects, such as a phone or bag, do not belong to the workplace and if searched, require a warrant. For your own protection as a teacher, use care when deciding what to bring into the school.

Critical Lens – Teachers and Copyright Laws

A Word about Teachers and Copyright Laws

Teachers are not exempt from copyright laws, and you must be careful about the materials you use in your classroom. In the Copyright Act of 1976, Congress established guidelines for the duplication of copyrighted works. According to the law, teachers may make a single copy of a chapter of a book, an article, a short story, short essay or poem, a diagram, chart or picture. Educators may make multiple copies of copyrighted work for the use in the classroom provided they meet specific guidelines of brevity, spontaneity, and cumulative effect.

Teachers also need to be mindful of copyright laws involving electronic media. Pay attention to copyright laws for using videos, DVDs, and software programs. Be aware that internet laws are still evolving, and it is best to check with their librarian or media specialist in your school building.

Religions and Schools

The First Amendment separates religion from the business of the state. Government is prohibited from imposing religious beliefs on any person. Public school serves as a state government service and therefore it must be neutral and not promote religious beliefs on anyone in the school. The practice of religion in schools has been challenged from prayer in schools, to religion in the curriculum, religious clubs and access to public school facilities, to artifacts and clothing.

Critical Lens – Supreme Court Cases on Religion in Schools

The Supreme Court has continuously upheld the separation of religion from the school environment (ACLU Legal Bulletin, 2020).

The courts have upheld that there is a separation between church and state even to the extent of one’s own personal beliefs. In 1980, a teacher refused to teach a city-designed curriculum that she said violated her own religious beliefs. In the Palmer v. Board of Education of the City of Chicago (1980) decision, the court recognized that a teacher can have personal views that might be different from the curriculum, but upheld that the mandate of the school district to provide an education requires that teachers “cannot be left to teach the way they please.”

10.9 Rights of Students

Students share many of the same constitutional rights to ensure protection as adults. Several sections outlined below parallel those shown above under Teacher Rights, but with additional emphasis on the students themselves.

Courts have mandated that for a school to operate safely it needs to have broad authority to establish rules and regulations as it relates to student conduct within the school. This means that parents agree to give some level of control to schools when they enroll their child in the public school system. The courts have also insisted that students do not lose all of their constitutional rights and a school’s influence is not absolute.

Schools have an obligation to provide a safe and orderly learning environment. Reasonable limits are put in place regarding language, such as banning offensive language, to assure appropriateness and respect. Forms of expression for students that are protected in schools include:

• the right to wear religious clothing and talk about religion,
• to be free from bullying and harassment, and
• to be free from racial or national origin discrimination (United States Courts, n.d.).

Protecting students’ rights to political speech was explored in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District (1969) , which served as a landmark Supreme Court case and the decision upheld that free speech was permitted in schools. This ruling was later challenged in 1986 when a student used what was considered ‘vulgar’ language by the school in a speech at an assembly. The student was reprimanded by the school and the student sued the school claiming that his constitutional right to freedom of speech had been violated. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court where the court decided in Bethel School District No. 403 v. Fraser (1986) that a school is not required to permit offensive or disruptive speech on school grounds at a school sanctioned event because offensive speech or language disrupts the educational mission of the school and is inappropriate for a school setting.

Freedom is also limited as it relates to a student newspaper. In Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier (1988) , the U.S. Supreme Court decided that a student newspaper can be regulated for “legitimate pedagogical concerns” allowing a school to remove articles that school officials deemed inappropriate for the school community. The decision went further, allowing a school to determine if the speech was written in a reasonable manner for members of the school community and ensuring that it did not contain language that was “ungrammatical, poorly written, inadequately researched, biased, prejudiced, vulgar or profane, or unsuitable for immature audiences.” The court found that because a school newspaper is not intended to have a public forum, a school can limit speech by imposing reasonable constraints if it is determined the speech would disrupt a classroom and the normal functioning of a school.

In the present day, free speech as it relates to the Internet is the same for teachers as it is for students. If it is found that the speech posted online ‘substantially disrupts’ the functioning and purpose of a school, disciplinary actions can be taken against either cohort.

Schools have the right to limit forms of expression–including speech, digital communication, and dress–when they interfere with the pedagogical mission and goals of a school.

In Doninger v. Niehoff (2008) , a student’s derogatory comments posted online were found to make a substantial disruption to the school. A blog post contained language that would be prohibited within the school and was disruptive to the work and discipline of the school. A Court of Appeals held that even though the online comments were made off campus, the speech could be restricted to promote school-related goals on campus. This case relates to disruptive speech and cyberbullying. It underscores school responsibility in maintaining a safe environment for students.

The speech of students and teachers is constitutionally protected, but the extent of the speech, as it relates to the mission and goals of a school, must always have a legitimate pedagogical focus and direction. This holds true whether it is in print in a school newspaper, in the local newspaper, or in electronic format. It is true if it is part of the curriculum or in a theater production on school grounds. Speech is influenced both on and off campus and can come under the school’s authority both in-person and online.

Dress codes have been challenged by students claiming that they impinge on freedoms of speech and expression. Courts have upheld that school boards can impose student dress codes to include symbols, clothing, and jewelry if it is believed to have the potential to disrupt a school’s functioning.

In addition to supporting free speech as discussed above, the Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) case also weighed in regarding dress code. During the Vietnam War, students planned to wear armbands to protest the War. Their principal tried to limit these protests by banning armbands. The court ruled against the school, holding that there was no evidence that students wearing armbands would disrupt school functioning.

In 2006, a student wore a shirt to school that other students found offensive and which depicted a particular political viewpoint. He was asked to cover the shirt based on the off-putting image and speech. He refused and was given a disciplinary referral. In Guiles v. Marineau (2006) , the student then sued the school administrators to have the disciplinary referral expunged from his record and to disallow the school from enforcing the dress code policy against him. The District court held that the school was entitled to enforce its dress code policy, but upon appeal, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the shirt was protected speech under the First and Fourteenth Amendments.

In another case, B.H. and K.M. v. Easton Area School District (2013) , students were suspended for wearing bracelets that showed support for breast cancer awareness. In this case, the judge ruled in favor of the students. The school district then elevated the case to the Supreme Court, but the court refused to hear the case, stating that the message on the bracelet did not use lewd language and was not disruptive to the purpose of education. The First Amendment requires schools to see all student views equally, as long as they are not obscene or disruptive, irrespective of the message expressed (Sherwin, 2017).

Pause and Ponder – Dress Code

Andrew Johnson, a high school wrestler in New Jersey who wore his hair in cheekbone-length dreadlocks. Moments before Johnson was about to go to the mat for a match, the referee told him he wouldn’t be allowed to compete because his hair was too long.

Do you think this was an ethical decision?

What are the equity implications ion this?

The purpose of a dress code is to provide an optimal learning environment. However, the learning environment can be restrictive if it includes  gender-biased language that results in stricter enforcement of rules for female minority students and groups belonging to a particular culture.  A gender-neutral dress code is recommended, and those who create the policy should attempt to gather student input when revising the school dress code.   (Barrett, 2018).

Pay attention to the news–you are likely to hear many examples of dress code violations that systematically oppress certain groups. For example, a school in Houston made the news in early 2020 [2] for their dress code policy. The policy required male students to keep their hair “ear-length or shorter,” thus banning dreadlocks. One male student, De’Andre Arnold was told he would have to cut his dreadlocks in order to walk at graduation. Despite complaints, the school district stood by its policy. In August, a federal court ruled this policy was discriminatory.

The American Civil Liberties Union also provides guidance on student rights as they relate to school dress codes, gender, and self-expression:

• Views are protected by the First Amendment and therefore schools cannot ban symbols or slogans or messages that they disagree with on student shirts, buttons, wristbands, or other garments or accessories.
• While public schools can establish dress codes, they cannot treat boys and girls differently, censor viewpoints, or force students to conform to gender stereotypes under federal law.
• Students are allowed to wear clothing that aligns with their gender identity and expression (ACLU Fact Sheet, 2016).

Schools and administrators must be aware of the constitutional rights of students and protect these freedoms. Schools can assert certain restrictions as they relate to freedom of speech and expression, but at the same time they also need to be cognizant of student diversity and cultural differences, as well as gender distinctions, and economic disparities.

Think about some of your experiences with dress codes. Which cultures were normalized, and which were marginalized? Here are a few ideas to get you started.

• Gender and sexuality: Were males and females held to different standards? (For example, were females expected to wear skirts or not to wear strappy shirts? See the #Iamnotadistraction movement [3] or the Let Her Learn report [4] advocating for female bodies not to be hyper-regulated and sexualized in dress codes.)
• Race: Were certain hairstyles or traditions allowed or not? (For example, Black hair styles [5] are frequently at risk of marginalization, along with Black and Brown bodies in general [6] .) Or, are certain racial groups punished more frequently [7] for dress code violations?
• Religion: Are head coverings and facial hair regulated? (For example, the Air Force updated their policy [8] in February 2020.)
• Socioeconomic: Were certain types of clothing allowed or not? (For example, some dress codes limit cheap plastic flip flops but allow more expensive leather ones.)

Search and Seizure

Imagine that a teacher suspects a student has illegal drugs in her backpack. They noticed the student at her locker placing a small bag in the front pocket. The teacher immediately reports their suspicions to the principal. What should be the next step? The school administrator must have a “reasonable suspicion” based on facts specific to the student or the situation. A “hunch” is not sufficient. Rather, the principal must believe that searching the student will turn up evidence of violating a school rule or law. “Reasonable” is based on what is being searched for and the age of the student.

The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution protects U.S. citizens from unlawful search and seizure of possessions. If there is probable cause for a search, a warrant is required from the court system before a person can be searched. Because of the nature and purpose of school, courts have allowed schools to both search and seize possessions if there is probable cause.

Personal materials, including lockers, are not supposed to be searched without reasonable suspicion that a student is in violation of the law or a school rule.

In New Jersey v. T.L.O. (1985) , the Supreme Court established a standard of reasonableness for student searches conducted at school and by public school personnel. While the Fourth Amendment disallowing unreasonable search and seizure still applies, if school administrators have a reasonable suspicion that a student has either broken the law or violated a school rule, the search is justified. In this case, the student was found smoking in the bathroom, a violation of school rules, and taken to the principal’s office where her purse was searched based on a reasonable assumption that the student had cigarettes in her purse.

Random drug tests have historically been permissible for both teachers and students. In the Supreme Court case Board of Education of Independent School District No. 92 of Pottawatomie County v. Earls (2002) , the court held that athletes can be randomly tested for drugs to protect the safety of the school and to ensure a drug-free school. The safety and well-being of the school outweighed the privacy rights of students who were voluntarily participating in the sporting events. The Court concluded that while the students participating in extracurricular activities have limited Fourth Amendment rights, within the school setting there is a lesser expectation of privacy, and the students’ rights must be balanced against the school’s interest in keeping illegal drug use to a minimum (Staros & Williams, 2007).

In 2005, a 13-year old student was called out of class and questioned by police officers with school officials present regarding neighborhood burglaries. His parents were not contacted, nor was he read his Miranda rights, such as the right to remain silent, leave the room, or have access to a lawyer. The child confessed to the crime but later sought to suppress his confession based on not receiving any indications of his rights while he was in police custody in the school conference room. This case, J.D.B. v. North Carolina (2011) , was later heard by the Supreme Court where they ruled that age should have been considered in deciding whether the student was in police custody within the school grounds. The justices went on to state that there are psychological differences between an adult and a child, and when police are involved in questioning students, they must use “common sense” due to the developmental differences of children. The Miranda warnings should have been applied in this case in a manner appropriate for the student prior to his questioning.

Search has also been controversial with the use of video surveillance and metal detectors in schools. Currently, courts have held that if school safety has been threatened, means of surveillance can be introduced into the school, but that extensive surveillance using video or metal detectors can hinder reasonableness of the surveillance and violate Fourth Amendment protections. The intent of school policies and procedures are consistently to provide and maintain “a safe, secure, healthy, and disruption-free learning environment” that is conducive and supportive to teaching and learning (Vacca, 2014, p. 5).

Privacy of Records

In 1974, Congress passed the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), also called the Buckley Amendment. This was an Amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) of 1965. FERPA is a federal law that protects the privacy of student educational records. FERPA requires schools to allow parents and students access to official school records. It also requires schools to provide procedures for parents to challenge the accuracy or completeness of information in their child’s record. Parents retain the rights of access to their child’s school record until the child reaches the age of eighteen or is enrolled in a postsecondary institution.

The intent of FERPA is to protect student privacy and improve parental access to their child’s information within the school. It does not guarantee access to all school records on a child, such as personal teacher notes, letters of reference, grade books, or correspondence with a principal. These items are exempted from view. There may also be files or information that are kept separate from a student’s file to protect the privacy rights of other students in the school.

FERPA guidelines require schools to:

• Inform parents annually of their rights regarding their child’s records.
• Provide parents access to their child’s records.
• Maintain procedures that allow parents to challenge and if needed, amend inaccurate information.
• Protect parents from disclosure of confidential information to third parties without their consent (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 1974).
• Allow students to opt out of testing

Deeper Dive – FERPA

What is FERPA?

This brief yet comprehensive video will outline what the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act is and how it impacts students both at the K-12 and higher education levels.

Video Link: What is FERPA? Student Privacy 101

Have more questions about the role of FERPA in educational settings?

• United States Department of Education: Protecting Student Privacy: Frequently Asked Questions
• United States Department of Education: Protecting Student Privacy: K-12 School Officials

10. 10 Current Implications

Throughout the history of schools in the United States, ethics and the function of laws have evolved as society has changed. To date, current issues continue to be addressed in our nation’s public schools and within our court systems. While others exist as well, below are three current issues within education and society as a whole.

Racial Issues

Today, racial concerns remain a key issue for schools and society at large. In T.B. et al. v. Independent School District 112  (2019) , African American students filed a complaint against white students in Minnesota. They claimed they had been harassed and the school did not intervene to remove racism, harassment, and discrimination nor did it protect their rights to safe and equal access to education within the school environment. This is required as part of the Equal Protection Clause under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. As of this writing, the case remains open in the court of appeals.

Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 states, “ No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance”  (Civil Rights Act, 1964).

Racial harassment continues to occur in schools to the present day. As a teacher, you are responsible for enforcing policies and procedures that are appropriate within the classroom to maintain a safe environment for all students. Immediate action is required to respond to bullying and intimidation, such as speaking up and talking with the offending students and reporting the action to your principal when you hear or see questionable behavior or actions within your school. Regular professional development and training can additionally help inform and support teachers. A culture of inclusion and acceptance is required by school leadership that permeates throughout the school and community.

LGBTQ+ Rights and Discrimination

Discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity are important issues in today’s schools. For LGBTQ+ teachers, Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating against individuals because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin (Civil Rights Act, 1964). For students, Title IX under the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education bans sex discrimination in schools and reads “ No person shall, on the basis of sex, be denied admission, or be subjected to discrimination in admission, by any recipient to which this subpart applies”  (U.S. Department of Education, 2015) .

Students or teachers who believe they have been discriminated against can bring litigation under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The Equal Protection Clause in Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment states:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws  (U.S. Constitution, Fourteenth Amendment) .

In addition, in 1984 Congress passed the Equal Access Act requiring federally-funded secondary schools to uphold students’ First Amendment rights to conduct meetings and hold an open forum with equal access to extracurricular student groups or clubs (Equal Access Act, 1984).

In  Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education  (1999) , the mother sued the school system on behalf of her fifth-grade daughter for failing to prevent sexual harassment by another student. The Supreme Court upheld that there is an implied right to education under Title IX and found that the school board acted with deliberate indifference, ignoring the mother’s complaints of harassment that were serious and systematic.

In  Nabozny  v.  Podlesny  (1996) , the Court of Appeals ruled that public schools and their officials could be held liable for failing to protect homosexual students from antigay harassment and harm. Since signed into law in 2009, schools must follow the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (2009). This law expanded the federal hate crime law, to include crimes motivated by the victim’s actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability.

On the basis of sexual orientation and/or gender identity, students receive protection from bullying by other students, teachers, and school staff and cannot be discriminated against in school by being unfairly denied access to facilities, sports teams, or clubs. Both anti-bullying and school nondiscrimination laws support and protect LGBTQ+ students. In addition, sexual harassment guidelines are provided through the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education (2020b). It is the responsibility of a school to take meaningful steps to support and protect all students.

10.11 Mandatory Reporting

Protection from emotional or physical abuse is considered a primary right of children. Mandatory Reporting requires educators to report any signs of child abuse. Children often can’t or won’t speak up if their parents, caregivers, or third-party individuals are abusing them. They rely on you and others in the community to recognize when something isn’t right and to act upon your suspicions in order to​ help protect them.

Warning signs include:

• Physical signs present on the child
• Behavioral signs or statements made by the child, or
• Behavioral signs or statements made by the parent or ​caregiver.

Any single concern may or may not mean that abuse is occurring. But observing any of these indicators — especially when more than one is present —​ should prompt you to think about what might be happening and report your suspicions.​ Oregon’s children are relying on you and others in the community to observe, recognize and report concerns of child abuse.

Read this guidance document [Links to external site] from the Oregon Department of Human Services: Child Welfare detailing what you can do about child abuse.

Who is required to report? Find out about mandatory reporting requirements by State at RAINN.org Any “public or private official,” which includes: School employee, including an employee of a higher education institution, healthcare professionals, social workers, etc

Deeper Dive – Reports

When must reports be made?  Reports must be made immediately. Reports should be oral and can be made by telephone or other modes of communication.

Have more questions about your role as a mandatory reporter?

• Visit the Oregon Department of Human Services’ website Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse [Links to external site] for more resources and tools

Activity – Legal Cases

• What cases have you heard in the news recently related to legal and ethical issues in schools?
• Did the decisions align with the ones you read about in this chapter or differ?
• Why do you think the outcomes were what they were?

During this chapter, you have learned about how ethical and legal issues impact education. A professional Code of Ethics influences a teacher’s practice by outlining standards that ensure that all teachers demonstrate integrity, impartiality, and ethical behavior to assure that students receive a fair and equitable education. Teachers and students do not give up their constitutional rights when entering into public schools in the United States; however, the courts have declared that there is a difference between teacher and student rights outside of a school and those inside the school. Rights and responsibilities must align to state and federal law, as well as the safety of students, and the mission of the public school. Case law has provided guidance for schools on procedures and regulations as well as the roles and responsibilities of teachers and students. The legal cases highlighted in this chapter are significant to the purpose and goals of public schooling throughout the United States. There continue to be challenges over time, especially as society changes and the United States becomes more diverse and local communities attempt to influence local schooling. A robust legal system is needed to maintain a fair and responsible system of education that supports all students. Understanding ethical and legal issues related to education will help you make informed decisions as an educator in the US public school system.

AFT: Academic Freedom. Retrieved from https://www.aft.org/position/academic-freedom Carter, Stephen L., (1996)

Butler, G. T., & Marsh, J. (2008). Foreword: Celebr d: Celebrating the Lif ating the Life and Legacy of Thur e and Legacy of Thurgood Marshall good Marshall. Mississippi College Law Review, 27(2). https://dc.law.mc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1590&context=lawreview

Dreon,Oliver. (2017). Education Ethics and Conduct Toolkit. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Retrieved from https://www.pspc.education.pa.gov/Promoting-Ethical-Practices-Resources/Ethics-Toolkit/Pages /

Education Legislation | Bill tracking. (2023, August 9). https://www.ncsl.org/research/education/education-bill-tracking-database.aspx

Foundations of American Education: A Critical Lens by Melissa Wells and Courtney Clayton is licensed under a Creative Commons 

History: Brown v. BOE. (2009). Retrieved from https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/brown-v-board-of-education-of – Topeka

Justin, R. (2020, August 19). Texas school district’s dreadlocks ban “discriminatory,” court rules. The Texas Tribune. https://www.texastribune.org/2020/08/18/texas-school-dreadlocks-ban/

Lattimore, K. (2017, July 17). When Black Hair Violates The Dress Code. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/07/17/534448313/when-black-hair-violates-the-dress-code

Military Daily News. (2020, February 11). Military.com. https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/02/11/air-force-issues-new-guidelines-beards-turbans-and-hijabs.html

Meyers, Seth. (2019). Psychology Today. Sussex Publishing. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/insight – is-2020/201504/7-signs-people-integrity

NEA: National Education Association (2017). Code of Ethics. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/30442.htm

New York State Education Department. (2017) Ofce of Ofce Initiatives. Retrieved from http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/ resteachers/codeofethics.html

Premium Source Publishing. (2007). The Guidelines to Classroom Copying. Retrieved from https://www.custompublisher.com/ blog/2007/10/11/the-guidelines-to-classroom-copying-what-are-brevity-spontaneity-and-cumulative-efect/

PSPC. (n.d.). Educator Ethics and Conduct Toolkit. Professional Standards and Practices Commission. https://www.pspc.education.pa.gov/Promoting-Ethical-Practices-Resources/Ethics-Toolkit/Pages/default.aspx

Samuels, C. A. (2021, April 30). Why Do Schools Hang On to Discriminatory Dress Codes? Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/leadership/why-do-schools-hang-on-to-discriminatory-dress-codes/2020/03

SUNY Oneonta Ofce of Education Advisement and Field Experience. (2017) Student Teaching Handbook. Retrieved from:http://www . oneonta.edu/academics/ed/oeafe/documents/SUN Y -Oneonta-Student- T eaching-Handbook.pdf

U.S Department of Education. (March,1, 2018).Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Retrieved from: https://www2.ed.gov / policy/gen/guid/fpco/ferpa/index.html

USA Today. (April 5, 2019). 63 years after landmark Brown v. Board case, segregated classrooms persist. Retrieved from: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2019/04/05/segregated-classrooms-mississippi/3347927002 /

Wells, M. (n.d.-b).  Chapter 5: Ethical & Legal Issues in Education . Pressbooks. https://viva.pressbooks.pub/foundationsofamericaneducation/chapter/chapter-5/

Yasemin Copur-Gencturk, Ian Thacker, Joseph R. Cimpian, Teacher bias in the virtual classroom, Computers & Education, Volume 191, 2022, 104627, ISSN 0360-1315, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104627 .

14th Amendment: Simplified Summary, Text & impact. (2009, November 9). HISTORY. https://www.history.com/topics/black-%20history/fourteenth-amendment

10.1 “Quote” by commons.wikimedia.org is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.2 “Lincoln memorial at night” by commons.wikimedia.org is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.3 “Enfranchise freedom unchain” by johnhain , Creazilla is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.4 “6 Big Changes Coming To Public Schools And Politics Thanks To The Supreme Court’s Union Smashdown” by The Federalist , is license under CC BY 4.0

10.5 “Speech Bubble” by Public Domain Pictures is in the Public Domain, CC0

10.6 “Free Speech Sign” by Free SVG is in the Public Domain, CC0

10.7 “Search and Seizure” by Maxpixel is in the Public Domain, CC0

10.1 – “Imagining Liberatory Education Futures” by Knowledgeworks , YouTube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.2 – “Equity Vs Equality” by Beyer High YouTube, YouTube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.3 – “What does my headscarf mean to you?” by Yassmin Abdel-Magied, Youtube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.4 – “Student Privacy 101: FERPA for Parents and Students” by U.S. Department of Education, Youtube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.5 – “President Obama signs the Every Student Succeeds Act” by Washington Post, Youtube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.6 – “What Red for Ed Means” by National Education Association, YouTube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.7 – “Outrage After High School Wrestler Forced To Cut Dreadlocks Or Forfeit Match | NBC Nightly News” by NBC News, YouTube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.8 – “UN Free & Equal: #YouthLead us toward a fearless future” by UN Human Rights, YouTube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

10.9 – “Mandatory Reporting of Childabuse” by Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS), Youtube is licensed under CC BY 4.0

Foundations of Education Copyright © 2023 by Lisa AbuAssaly George; Dr. Kanoe Bunney; Ceci De Valdenebro; and Tanya Mead is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

Share This Book

America's Education News Source

Copyright 2024 The 74 Media, Inc

• Cyberattack
• absenteeism
• Future of High School
• Artificial Intelligence
• science of reading

Mehlhorn: Student Rights, Judicial Precedent and Why 2016 Could See a Profound Shift in Education Law

Untangle Your Mind!

Sign up for our free newsletter and start your day with clear-headed reporting on the latest topics in education.

74 Million Reasons to Give

Support The 74’s year-end campaign with a tax-exempt donation and invest in our future.

Most Popular

A cautionary ai tale: why ibm’s dazzling watson supercomputer made a lousy tutor, improving america’s schools: why it’s long past time to rethink curriculum, there’s already a solution to the stem crisis: it’s in high schools, school success stories: here’s what happened when charters teamed up with hbcus, room scans & eye detectors: robocops are watching your kids take online exams.

Some students and teachers seem to think so. In Massachusetts, five student plaintiffs who were unable to secure seats in charter school lotteries  intend to file a lawsuit challenging the state’s cap on charter schools. In California, veteran teacher Rebecca Friedrichs  objected to her annual union dues being used to protect ineffective colleagues; the Supreme Court is hearing arguments in Ms. Friedrichs’ case this week. If Ms. Friedrichs prevails, teachers’ unions  will be compelled to better represent the many teachers who  want significant changes to the profession .

Help fund stories like this. Donate now!

Dmitri Mehlhorn is a Democratic businessman, attorney, and senior fellow with both the Progressive Policy Institute and the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy. He also co-founded and served on the Boards of Hope Street Group and StudentsFirst (now part of 50CAN)

We want our stories to be shared as widely as possible — for free.

Please view The 74's republishing terms.

By Dmitri Mehlhorn

This story first appeared at The 74 , a nonprofit news site covering education. Sign up for free newsletters from The 74 to get more like this in your inbox.

On The 74 Today

The 8 Most Consequential Developments in Education Law in 2022

• Share article

This past year saw some major education decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court—as well important rulings from lower federal courts in areas such as Title IX, transgender rights, and the idea of a fundamental right to education.

Here are some of the most consequential cases and other developments in 2022.

The praying coach case

This has the potential to be the most impactful education decision of the Supreme Court this year, though the scope of that impact is still playing out. The court ruled 6-3 in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District that high school football coach Joseph A. Kennedy’s post-game prayers at midfield were protected by the First Amendment’s free speech and free exercise of religion clauses.

The court said the U.S. Constitution neither requires nor permits school districts to suppress such religious expression by employees. Kennedy did not immediately return to his part-time coaching job with the Bremerton, Wash., district this past fall, though he has announced his intention to return beginning this spring. There were no widespread reports of other public school coaches leading prayers this past fall, but many legal experts expect that districts will face issues as employees assert their right of religious expression.

Opening up state aid to religious schools

The justices decided 6-3 in Carson v. Makin that Maine’s exclusion of religious schools from a state tuition program for towns without public high schools violated the First Amendment’s guarantee of free exercise of religion. The dissenters expressed fears that the ruling could lead to state aid for religious-themed charter schools. And recently, the attorney general of Oklahoma issued an advisory opinion that a provision of the state’s charter school law requiring such schools to be nonsectarian and not sponsored by religious organizations would likely violate the First Amendment under Carson and other recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions.

The decision to overturn ‘Roe v. Wade’

The Supreme Court’s decision to overrule 50 years of precedent upholding abortion rights is not an overwhelmingly obvious matter of interest to schools. But abortion rights have practical effects on school districts as large employers and on female teachers and students as people who may have to deal with an unwanted or life-threatening pregnancy.

And the court’s 5-4 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization to overrule Roe v. Wade , the 1973 ruling that established a federal right to abortion, was so momentous that it prompted a debate about what other longstanding precedents might face reconsideration by the conservative-dominated high court. That discussion includes education decisions on the rights of undocumented immigrants to a free public education and the ability of schools and colleges to consider race in college admissions. .

From Stephen G. Breyer to Ketanji Brown Jackson

Though not a case, this development will affect education law for years to come. In January, Justice Stephen G. Breyer, who in 28 years on the court supported racial and gender equality in schools but who sometimes sympathized with school administrators, announced his intention to retire at the end of the term in June. President Biden’s choice to succeed him was Ketanji Brown Jackson, whose parents were educators and who had clerked for Breyer. Jackson has already made an early mark at the court with sharp and poignant questions from the bench on the use of race in education .

The case of the charter school that required girls to wear skirts

A federal appeals court ruled in June that a North Carolina charter school organized around traditional values and “chivalry” violated the 14th Amendment’s equal-protection clause with its requirement that girls wear skirts.

The 101-page decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, in Richmond, Va., included discussions of chivalry and other values of the Middle Ages, gender stereotypes in education, the lawfulness of student dress codes, and the legal status of charter schools.

In fact, Charter Day School in Leland, N.C., has appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court, with a focus on the question of whether the policies of a private entity that contracts to operate a charter school are “state action” subject to the Constitution. The high court will likely decide sometime in the new year whether to take up the case.

End of the line for a groundbreaking lawsuit over civics education

In January 2022, a federal appeals court hailed a group of Rhode Island students who challenged civics education in the state as inadequate, even as the court ruled the students could not prevail.

“The students have called attention to critical issues of declining civic engagement and inadequate preparation for participation in civic life at a time when many are concerned about the future of American democracy,” the unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, in Boston, wrote in A.C. v. McKee . But there was no fundamental right to an adequate civics education under the U.S. Constitution, the court held.

The 14 student plaintiffs, in a proposed class action that would have represented all public school students in the state, later took steps toward an appeal to the Supreme Court. But they dropped the effort when the Rhode Island state education department last June agreed to establish a civics education task force and take other steps to improve teaching of the subject.

Schools seek clarity under Title IX

There was considerable attention this year focused on Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which bars sex discrimination in federally funded schools and colleges.

In May, a federal appeals court revived two Title IX sexual harassment cases alleging that the Nashville school district failed to respond adequately to incidents involving students and sexually explicit videos circulated on social media. A divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, in Cincinnati, said the school district might be responsible for failing to respond in the two cases and that there had been a pattern of sexual harassment cases in the district.

In November, meanwhile, the Supreme Court declined to take up cases raising questions about the scope of responsibility for schools and colleges in cases of alleged sex harassment. That came as the Biden administration weighs comments submitted on its proposed Title IX regulations dealing sexual assaults and harassment.

The bottom line for now is that schools are seeking more guidance in this area of the law.

Transgender participation in girls’ athletics

On another Title IX issue, a federal appeals court this month effectively upheld a policy of Connecticut’s high school sports governing body that allows transgender girls to participate in sports consistent with their gender identity.

A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, in New York City, held in Soule v. Connecticut Association of Schools that several cisgender female track athletes could not erase state championship results in which they were defeated by two transgender runners.

The cisgender girls argue that their rights were violated under Title IX, but the appeals court held that the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletics Association could not have been on notice that its transgender-inclusive policy violated Title IX and that, more likely based on other courts’ rulings, such a policy is consistent with or perhaps even required by the federal statute. This decision seems likely to be appealed to the Supreme Court.

Sign Up for EdWeek Update

Edweek top school jobs.

Sign Up & Sign In

Complaint Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Chica Project v. President & Fellows of Harvard College

Community Groups Argue Harvard's Legacy and Donor Admissions Policy Is Illegal Race Discrimination.

Speech First, Inc. v. Sands

Fourth Circuit Upholds University Bias Response Team Policies.

Roberts’s Revisions: A Narratological Reading of the Affirmative Action Cases

• Angela Onwuachi-Willig

Three Hail Marys: Carson , Kennedy , and the Fractured Détente over Religion and Education

Comment on Carson v. Makin and Kennedy v. Bremerton School District

• Justin Driver

T.O. v. Fort Bend Independent School District

Fifth Circuit Declines to Extend Fourth Amendment to Bar Corporal Punishment in Public Schools

Mahanoy Area School District v. B. L.

Monopolizing whiteness.

• Erika K. Wilson

Doe v. University of the Sciences

Third Circuit Holds Pennsylvania Law Guarantees a “Real, Live, and Adversarial Hearing.

Kollaritsch v. Michigan State University Board of Trustees

Sixth Circuit Requires Further Harassment in Deliberate Indifference Claims.

Collins v. Thurmond

Upholding the principle of the rule of law through education

Behaviour change through education is possible, according to experts from all regions of the world gathered at UNESCO to attend a two-day consultation meeting on the role of education in the promotion of the rule of law and culture of lawfulness on 15 and 16 March 2018 at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris.

Promoting ethical and responsible behaviour, in particular, is possible, if learners are equipped with the right skills and values, are motivated to take action, and given the opportunity to do so. The challenge, however, is to identify which skills and values are specifically needed to achieve this goal and figure out how best to teach them.

This was the purpose of the meeting that brought together teachers, educators, teacher trainers, curriculum developers, youth activists, researchers, and policy-makers in the field of education and crime prevention.

Soo-Hyang Choi, Director of the UNESCO Division of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development, opened the meeting by underlining the powerful, yet discreet, role of education in addressing today’s most pressing global challenges: While certain threats to global stability and peace, such as corruption and organized crime, can be very visible, the positive effects of education are not always observable immediately, she noted. Through this project, she indicated that UNESCO hopes to help countries enable learners to acquire the skills they need to build more inclusive, just and peaceful societies.

Her words were followed by remarks of H.E. Ambassador Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al-Thani, Permanent Representative of the State of Qatar to the United Nations and International Organizations in Vienna. He underlined that “in order for this initiative to reach its noble goals, it needs to be universal in nature and applicable to all societies”, yet respectful of regional and cultural diversity.

Since schools are a microcosm of society, modelling lawful behaviour in schools is essential. This implies allowing learners to “learn by doing”, by providing students with concrete exercises - such as role playing, dialogues and community service activities – that foster a culture of lawfulness. 

Education is one of the most effective means of developing the skills within learners to make informed and responsible decisions, eventually equipping them to address and transform conflict on their own, notably as concerns the prevention of crime.

Throughout the two day meeting, participants identified policies that enable education systems to ensure that learners acquire the skills they need to act and engage ethically in society. They also elaborated concrete recommendations for the development of guidance materials for teachers and policy-makers. The discussions were informed by lessons learned from existing initiatives at both governmental and non-governmental levels.

The meeting was organized in the context of a newly established UNESCO/UNODC partnership that aims to strengthen the capacities of education systems – and in particular of policy-makers, educators and teachers - to plan and undertake education activities that promote the rule of law.

The UNESCO/UNODC partnership builds on UNESCO’s efforts to promote Global Citizenship Education – this educational approach seeks to empower learners to become proactive contributors to a more peaceful, tolerant, inclusive and secure world. The partnership also contributes to UNODC’s Education for Justice (E4J) initiative, which is a key component of the Global Programme for the Implementation of the Doha Declaration that was launched in 2016, following the endorsement of the Doha Declaration by the General Assembly in its resolution 70/174.

Related items

• Country page: France

More on this subject

Other recent news

Current Issues in Legal Education

Exploring how changes to the first-year law school curriculum could benefit students.

Law School Curriculum: Reform, Assessment, and Research Design  

David A. Hyman( Georgetown Law), Jing Liu (East China University Law), and Joshua C. Teitelbaum (Georgetown Law) discuss how changes to the first-year law school curriculum could positively impact law students. The authors evaluate Georgetown Law’s curriculum B as an alternative to the traditional first-year course load.

Reviewing Diverse Approaches To Student Success

Investing in Academic Success: Diverse Approaches – a Blog Post by Prof. Charles Calleros (ASU)  

Professor Calleros (Arizona State University Law) discusses several different approaches in the design of academic success programs in law schools across the United States and abroad. The author provides analysis on what makes each program successful in improving outcomes for students.  

Addressing the Access To Justice Crisis Through Legal Education  

What The Access To Justice Crisis Means For Legal Education  

Kathryne M. Young (George Washington Law) describes the access to justice crisis in the United States as a deficit of just resolutions to civil justice problems for everyday people. The author argues that this crisis compels an examination of the scope and purpose of legal education and provides a framework for how law schools can address access to justice issues effectively.  

P ublished in UC Irvine Law Review (Vol. 11, No. 3) in 2021.

Law Profession as an Antiracist teaching institution

What’s (Race In) The Law Got To Do With It: Incorporating Race In Legal Curriculum  

Sonia Gipson Rankin (University of New Mexico Law) explains how to incorporate conversations about race within legal education. The essay describes cognitive dissonance theory, color blindness ideology, and its relationship to racial inequality, while providing classroom techniques that encourage dialogue related to conversations on equity and race. The author also includes classroom strategies to help professors’ awareness of equity in the legal profession and in the justice system.  

Published in Connecticut Law Review (Vol. 54, No. 4) in July 2022.   

Pushing Back on Attempts to Ban Critical Race Theory

This Is Not A Drill: The War Against Antiracist Teaching in America  

Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw (UCLA Law and Columbia Law), in her modified acceptance speech for the 2021 AALS Triennial Award for Lifetime Service to Legal Education and the Legal Profession, reflects on her career and the recent challenges to teaching antiracist and social justice education that is now unfolding. The speech argues that the legal academy bears a collective responsibility to fight back against the silencing of antiracist frameworks, and calls on law schools to confront their historical agnosticism toward racial subordination and to defend the freedom to teach and learn Critical Race Theory against concerted efforts to undo its legacy.

Published in the UCLA Law Review (Vol. 68) in 2022.  

Reimagining Legal Education with focus on student wellness  

Wellness And Law: Reforming Legal Education To Support Student Wellness  

Janet Thompson Jackson (Washburn Law) details how law schools can shape curricula to benefit student wellness. The article argues that many students do not have to feel that their mental health and overall well-being will be significantly compromised during law school. The article provides a blueprint to reimagine legal education with a focus on wellness.  

Originally published in Howard Law Journal (Vol. 65, No. 1) in 2021  

History of Law School Clinics  

California Legal History Journal on Legal Clinics and Experiential Learning  

Professor Baker (Pepperdine Law) shares an excerpt from the most recent Journal of the California Supreme Court Historical Society which has been dedicated to experiential and clinical legal education.    

Published in California Legal History (Vol. 17) in 2022  

Preparing law students to be civic leaders  

Building the Next Generation of Rule of Law Leaders   William Hubbard (Dean, University of South Carolina Law) describes the challenges that the United States faces regarding adherence to the rule of law despite seeing modest improvement in its score in the 2022 Rule of Law Index published annually by the World Justice Project (WJP). This opinion piece describes some specific issue that law schools should address as the country navigates challenges to the rule of law.  

Teaching students to look for the absence of diverse perspectives in law  

Meditations On Teaching What Isn’t Kris Franklin (New York Law School) explores the teaching students to look for what is absent as a form of logical thinking. The article surveys a wide array of examples in various core legal subjects that point to the omission of diverse perspectives. The article provides law faculty and students with examples of ways to make more visible that which is currently not seen.  

Published in New York Law School Law Review (Vol. 66, No. 387) in June 2022 .

Best Practices for Teaching and Learning in Legal Education

Fifty Ways to Promote Teaching and Learning Gerald Hess, Professor Emeritus of Law at Gonzaga University School of Law, Michael Hunter Schwartz, Dean and Professor of Law at University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law, and Nancy Levit, Curators’ and Edward D. Ellison Professor of Law at University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, focus on the efforts law schools and professors can make to improve instruction and student learning in the classroom. This article builds upon James Lindgren’s seminal article, “Fifty Ways to Promote Scholarship” (1999), which detailed numerous ideas for improving scholarship and the intellectual life of a law school.

Originally published in the Journal of Legal Education (Vol. 67, Issue 3) in December 2018.

Empirical Research in Clinical Legal Education

Measuring Law School Clinics The four authors—Colleen Shanahan (Columbia Law), Jeffrey Selbin (UC Berkeley Law), Alyx Mark (Wesleyan University/American Bar Foundation), and Anna Carpenter (University of Utah Law)—report findings from a large dataset of legal cases that shed some light on the teaching-service promise of law school clinics. After analyzing thousands of unemployment insurance cases involving different types of representation, their findings revealed that clinical law students behave very similarly to practicing attorneys in their use of legal procedures and that clients also experience very similar case outcomes to clients of practicing attorneys. These findings are consistent with claims that law school clinics help prepare students to be practicing lawyers and to serve low-income clients as well as lawyers do.

The Evolving Role of the Associate Dean of Experiential Education

Exploring the Meaning of Experiential Deaning This article explores the role associate deans of experiential education play in the changing landscape of legal education. Five authors—Margaret Martin Barry (Vermont Law) Robert Dinerstein (American University Washington College of Law), Phyllis Goldfarb (George Washington Law), Peggy Maisel (Boston University Law), and Linda Morton (California Western Law)—convened in Vermont to discuss the nature of their positions as associate deans of experiential education at their law schools. Survey findings indicate that the structure, content, and authority of this role is under-developed. The authors make recommendations on how law schools can carve out the role intentionally and provide institutional support to increase the efficacy of the position.

Originally published in the Journal of Legal Education (Vol. 67, Issue 3) in October 2018.

The Value of Local Legal Scholarship

Days of Future Past: A Plea for More Useful and More Local Legal Scholarship Frank Bowman III, Floyd R. Gibson Missouri Endowed Professor of Law at University of Missouri School of Law, describes how the population explosion in American law schools during the 1990s and the simultaneous rise of the influence of U.S. News rankings created a bubble in legal scholarship. Bowman makes several recommendations for dealing with a ‘post-bubble’ landscape, including changing law school hiring practices to favor professors with more legal experience, assessing scholarship more by effect and less by placement, and devoting more scholarly attention to questions of state law and practice.

The Future of Legal Education

An Invitation Regarding Law and Legal Education, and Imagining the Future Michael J. Madison, Director of the Institute for Cyber Law, Policy, and Security and Faculty Director of the Innovation Practice Institute at University of Pittsburgh School of Law, explores conversations about the future of legal education in ways that integrate several threads of concern and revision that have emerged over the last decade. Madison argues these conversations should include participants beyond elite American law schools and private law firms.

Leadership Development in Legal Education

Law School Leadership and Leadership Development for Developing Lawyers Louis D. Bilionis, Dean Emeritus and Droege Professor of Law at the University of Cincinnati College of Law, argues the conditions for successful leadership are present in law schools. The necessary leaders are in place and include faculty and staff who are adopting innovations to help advance students’ development as professionals. The authors refer to these select few as a “coalition of the willing” – opinion leaders with the greatest potential sway on those colleagues who have yet to adopt.

Originally published in the Santa Clara Law Review (Vol 58, Issue 3) in 2019.

Measuring the Impact of Legal Scholarship

Measuring Scholarly Impact: A Guide for Law School Administrators and Legal Scholars Gary Lucas, Jr., Professor of Law and Senior Associate Dean at Texas A&M University School of Law, provides guidance for law deans and legal scholars interested in measuring the impact of legal scholarship. Lucas recommends that each law school create a Google Scholar profile for its faculty. By acting on this recommendation, administrators would dramatically improve their ability to assess the impact of legal scholarship.

Originally published in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review (165) in 2017.

Taking Externship Scholarship to the Next Level

The Past and Future of Externship Scholarship Harriet Katz, Clinical Professor Emerita of Law at Rutgers University School of Law, Camden, offers an overview of scholarship about legal externship produced over the past three decades, along with suggestions for the direction of future work.

Matching Law Practice and Legal Education

The Contextual Problem of Law Schools Eli Ward, Charles W. Delaney Jr. Professor of Law at University of Denver Sturm College of Law, argues there is a mismatch between law practice and legal education. Ward provides recommendations in which law schools can systematically implement contextual insights into their curriculum and culture.

Enhancing Student Learning

Cracking Student Silos: Linking Legal Writing and Clinical Learning Through Transference Mary Bowman, Director of the Legal Writing Program and Associate Professor of Law at Seattle University School of Law, and Lisa Brodoff, Director of the Ronald Peterson Law Clinic and Associate Professor of Law at Seattle University School of Law, studied the educational literature on transference to understand how they could help their students apply what is taught in their programs to future client work. Both authors describe what they learned from their endeavors and the typical barriers to transference, most significantly the effects of course-dependent siloing of student learning.

Legal Education Reconsidered

James P. White Lecture on Legal Education During the James P. White Lecture on Legal Education at Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law, AALS Executive Director Judith Areen discussed how legal education has been “reconsidered” by prospective students as the result of a challenging job market and negative media coverage. The lecture was published in the Indiana Law Review.

“Working together, deans and faculty, schools and organizations, we need not fear what will happen as others reconsider legal education,” Areen said. “Together we should be able to regain the confidence of qualified college students and graduates that law school is a good choice for someone who wants to make a difference during their professional career both in service to others, and in addressing some of the most intractable problems that face our communities, nation, and the world.”

The Market for Law Schools and their Graduates

The Demand for Legal Education: The Long View Deborah M. Hussey Freeland, Research Fellow at the Stanford Center on the Legal Profession, examines available data on the total number of law school applicants, including long-term economic and demographic trends in the demand for legal education.

Originally published in the Journal of Legal Education (Vol. 65, Issue 1) in August 2015.

Practice-Based Learning

Practice in the Academy: Creating “Practice Aware” Law Graduates Jay Gary Finkelstein, corporate transactional Partner at DLA Piper LLP (U.S.), presents two practical solutions that will enhance traditional doctrinal courses, such as hiring practitioners to work with full-time faculty to develop practice-based curriculum offerings and providing interactive pedagogy that replicates the practice of law. Finkelstein serves on the adjunct law school faculties of at Stanford, Berkeley, Georgetown and Penn.

Originally published in the Journal of Legal Education (Vol. 64, Issue 4) in May 2015.

Learning Technologies in Legal Education

Law Schools and Technology: Where We Are and Where We Are Heading Michele Pistone, Professor of Law at Villanova University School of Law, analyzes the conditions and trends that encourage greater use of learning technologies in legal education.

Originally published in the Journal of Legal Education (Vol. 64, Issue 4) in May 2015 .

Support of Legal Services Corporation

AALS Letter in Support of Funding the Legal Services Corporation Access to justice is at the core of our constitutional society. As Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell once wrote, “Equal justice under law is not merely a caption on the facade of the Supreme Court building; it is perhaps the most inspiring ideal of our society.”

Today’s Justice System and The Supreme Court

The Open Mind: Equal and Unequal Justice Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow provides insight into the American justice system and legal education on PBS’ The Open Mind . During the discussion, she discusses race relations in the U.S., the need to support access to justice initiatives, and the role technology can play toward the pursuit of equal justice.

Supreme Court of the United States Decision on Fisher v. The University of Texas at Austin

Supreme Court of the United States Decision on Fisher v. The University of Texas at Austin The Supreme Court of the United States ruled (4-3) in Fisher v. The University of Texas at Austin (Fisher II) that the University of Texas’ use of race as a consideration in the admissions process does not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

From Law Review to Common Sense

In Praise of Law Reviews (and Jargon-Filled, Academic Writing) Cass R. Sunstein, Harvard Law School professor and former administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, outlines the value of law review articles, not just to academia or the legal profession, but to society as a whole. Though law review articles are often criticized as “jargon-filled” or “too-specialized,” he argues that many ideas constructed by legal scholars have made a significant impact, leading to what is now accepted as common sense by the public.

Statement from AALS Section on Clinical Legal Education on Proposed California Bar Admission Changes

Statement on the California Task Force on Admissions Regulation Recommendations (TFARR) The Association of American Law Schools’ Section on Clinical Legal Education has issued a statement on the proposal by the Task Force on Admissions Regulation Recommendations (TFARR) of the State Bar of California to change the requirements for taking the California Bar Examination.

Statement from AALS Deans Steering Committee on Proposed California Bar Admission Changes

Statement on the California Task Force on Admissions Regulation Recommendations (TFARR) The Steering Committee of the Association of American Law Schools’ Deans Forum has issued a statement on the proposal by the Task Force on Admissions Regulation Recommendations (TFARR) of the State Bar of California to change the requirements for taking the California Bar Examination.

Modern Legal Education and Law School Leadership

Law Schools and the Changing Environment of the Legal Profession In a conversation with University of California Television, Daniel B. Rodriguez, 2014 AALS President and Dean, Northwestern University School of Law, discusses changes and innovations happening with American legal education and in the legal profession. He discusses the challenges that law schools face today and working with various constituency groups including alumni, state bar associations, and law firm leadership. In addition, Dean Rodriguez discusses refining the law school curriculum, cross-campus initiatives and engaging alumni throughout their careers.

Linking Law Schools and U.S. Domestic Policy Needs

How can law schools help address society’s greatest needs? Peter B. Edelman, Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law and Public Policy at Georgetown University Law Center, talks about the public policy choices that have been made regarding poverty, unemployment, race, immigration and gender issues in the United States and discusses the role law school clinics can play in addressing some of the country’s most pressing matters.

Professor Edelman’s talk served as the Keynote Address for the AALS Conference on Clinical Legal Education – Leading the New Normal: Clinical Education at the Forefront of Change for the sessions on May 5, 2015 in Rancho Mirage, California.

Black Lawyers Matter

Why the U.S. needs black lawyers even more than it needs black police In this opinion article for The Guardian , Yolanda Young, lawyer and founder of the website “On Being a Black Lawyer,” examines the importance of African Americans in the bar and the impact the lack of Black lawyers is having on the U.S. justice system.

Studies Point to an Improving Legal Industry in Key Areas

Law Schools and Industry Show Signs of Life, Despite Forecasts of Doom In this New York Times piece, Steven Davidoff Solomon, professor of law at University of California, Berkeley, looks at the structural changes in legal education and the legal industry. He notes that recent studies have pointed to signs of optimism in the profession and the overall need for skilled lawyers is unlikely to change over time.

The Value of a Legal Education

Statement on the Value of a Legal Education This statement was developed by the Deans Steering Committee of the Association of American Law Schools and concerns the critical role legal education plays in civil society and its progress. It is offered as a resource and, where appropriate, as a point of discussion to those interested in legal education.

Investing in a Legal Education

Financing a Legal Education

It pays for students who borrow to finance their legal education to familiarize themselves with all the tools available to manage debt, including a wide variety of repayment plans and loan forgiveness programs. The standard repayment period is 10 years but that may be extended. Some payments are tied to borrowers’ income and may be reduced for hardship cases, but not all types of loans are eligible for forgiveness and extensions.

History and Experiences of Women in Legal Education

Looking back at the challenges that women faced in joining the legal academy and profession in the mid-20th century Professor Marina Angel, Temple Temple University Beasley School of Law interviews U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg for the AALS Section on Women in Legal Education’s Oral History Project.

Review of After the JD III , A Law Professor’s Take

After the JD III Reviewed D. Benjamin Barros, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law at Widener University Law School-Harrisburg, provides his thoughts on the findings in After the JD III: Third Results from a National Study of Legal Careers by The American Bar Foundation and the NALP Foundation for Law Career Research and Education.

From Theory to Practice

Theory Makes Successful Lawyering Possible In this New York  Law Journal column, Jeremy Paul, Dean of Northeastern University School of Law, highlights how the legal theory learned in law school, is crucial to success in practicing law.

Originally published in the New York Law Journal on April 21, 2014.

On Legal Scholarship

Why law professors’ scholarly research matters Critics from the bench to the bar have complained that much legal scholarship serves little or no practical purpose and wastes law school resources. But Robin West and Danielle Citron show how it is often the work of scholars that breaks important ground on how laws are interpreted and enforced, from invoking the Civil Rights Act to stop sexual harassment in the workplace to embedding cost-benefit analysis into regulation and rule-making.

Who Benefits from a Cap on Federal Student Loans?

Bootleggers and Baptists in the Student Loan Debate University of Maryland Law Professor Frank Pasquale describes the push to cap federal student loans as a move to benefit private lenders rather than reduce tuition costs for students. He likens advocates of the proposal to the bootlegger/baptist coalition of the Prohibition Era.

Originally published in the blog Balkinization (October 2015)

In Defense of Tenure

The risks of eviscerating tenure at ABA-accredited law schools Former law school deans Robert A. Gorman and Elliott S. Milstein robustly defend tenure in a letter to the ABA Section on Legal Education and the Bar, which had proposed weakening or eliminating the tenure requirement for law school accreditation. The tenure system ensures that law professors can challenge powerful interests and propose changes in the justice system without fear of reprisals, they argue. Diluting tenure protection would likely “be an excuse for underpaying faculty (or) for running a school principally with part-time faculty.” Later in 2014, the Section decided not to change the tenure requirements in its standards.

See the Signatories

The Short Term Significance of the Brown Vs. the Board of Education Ruling of 1954?

This essay about the 1954 Supreme Court ruling in Brown vs. Board of Education discusses its immediate effects on American society. It highlights how the decision to deem segregated public schools unconstitutional challenged previous legal norms and sparked a broader national conversation on race and equality. The ruling energized the civil rights movement, providing legal leverage for activists and influencing public opinion against racial segregation. Resistance in southern states demonstrated the societal entrenchment of segregation, illustrating the complexities of enforcing such a transformative legal decision. The essay also explores the role of the judiciary in societal reform, portraying the Supreme Court’s decision as a catalyst for change that gradually reshaped educational policies and practices towards inclusivity. Through these discussions, the essay underscores the multifaceted impact of the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling, setting the stage for subsequent legal and social developments.

How it works

In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court delivered a verdict in Brown vs. Board of Education that reshaped the American landscape. By ruling that state laws establishing segregated public schools for black and white students were unconstitutional, the decision not only challenged the legality of racial segregation but also altered the course of American history in immediate and significant ways.

Initially, the impact of this decision was most visible within the realm of public education. It directly challenged the “separate but equal” doctrine established by Plessy v.

Ferguson in 1896, underlining that segregated schools were inherently unequal. Despite this clear judicial stance, the ruling’s implementation was met with fierce resistance in several southern states, where segregation was deeply embedded in the social fabric. This resistance manifested in various forms, from legal maneuvers aimed at delaying desegregation to outright defiance, such as the refusal to integrate schools.

The Brown decision also acted as a catalyst outside the classroom. It energized the civil rights movement, giving activists a significant legal precedent to demand further reforms. The ruling galvanized figures like Martin Luther King Jr. and organizations such as the NAACP, who saw it as a crucial victory that could be leveraged to challenge other forms of racial injustice. This period saw an increase in civil rights activism, with more direct and widespread efforts to address inequalities across American society.

Culturally, the Brown ruling sparked nationwide introspection on issues of race and equality. It forced Americans to confront the moral contradictions of a segregated society, stirring debates that extended beyond educational institutions into everyday life. This discourse gradually influenced public opinion, fostering a growing awareness and rejection of racial segregation.

Furthermore, the ruling had implications for the perception of the judiciary and its role in societal reform. It underscored the power of the Supreme Court to enact social change, highlighting the court’s potential to correct systemic injustices. This contributed to a broader understanding of the law not just as a system of rules, but as a dynamic tool for social equity.

In education, beyond the immediate challenge of integrating schools, the Brown verdict prompted a slow but steady transformation in how schools addressed racial issues. Educational policies began to evolve, with new approaches aimed at fostering inclusivity and diversity. These changes, while gradual and uneven, marked the beginning of a long-term shift towards greater equality in education.

In summary, the immediate aftermath of the Brown vs. Board of Education ruling was a complex interplay of legal, social, and cultural shifts. While not all changes occurred overnight, the decision set in motion a series of reactions that would eventually lead to profound transformations in American society. Its legacy is a testament to the power of judicial decisions to not only reflect but also inspire societal change.

Cite this page

The Short Term Significance of the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling of 1954?. (2024, Apr 22). Retrieved from https://papersowl.com/examples/the-short-term-significance-of-the-brown-vs-the-board-of-education-ruling-of-1954/

"The Short Term Significance of the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling of 1954?." PapersOwl.com , 22 Apr 2024, https://papersowl.com/examples/the-short-term-significance-of-the-brown-vs-the-board-of-education-ruling-of-1954/

PapersOwl.com. (2024). The Short Term Significance of the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling of 1954? . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-short-term-significance-of-the-brown-vs-the-board-of-education-ruling-of-1954/ [Accessed: 23 Apr. 2024]

"The Short Term Significance of the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling of 1954?." PapersOwl.com, Apr 22, 2024. Accessed April 23, 2024. https://papersowl.com/examples/the-short-term-significance-of-the-brown-vs-the-board-of-education-ruling-of-1954/

"The Short Term Significance of the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling of 1954?," PapersOwl.com , 22-Apr-2024. [Online]. Available: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-short-term-significance-of-the-brown-vs-the-board-of-education-ruling-of-1954/. [Accessed: 23-Apr-2024]

PapersOwl.com. (2024). The Short Term Significance of the Brown vs. The Board of Education ruling of 1954? . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-short-term-significance-of-the-brown-vs-the-board-of-education-ruling-of-1954/ [Accessed: 23-Apr-2024]

Don't let plagiarism ruin your grade

Hire a writer to get a unique paper crafted to your needs.

Our writers will help you fix any mistakes and get an A+!

Please check your inbox.

You can order an original essay written according to your instructions.

Trusted by over 1 million students worldwide

1. Tell Us Your Requirements

2. Pick your perfect writer

3. Get Your Paper and Pay

Hi! I'm Amy, your personal assistant!

Don't know where to start? Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert.

short deadlines

100% Plagiarism-Free

Certified writers

Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education Case Study

The United States of America has designed laws to assist students with disabilities that date back to the birth of the American nation (Salend, 2011). Indeed, the first of such laws was passed by Congress in 1798. It took into consideration the care of students with disabilities in the educational set up. Maine Hospital Service was compelled to provide specialized care to disabled child. However, with time, little regard was placed on the need to legislate laws to take care of children with disabilities. Before the Second World War, there were not many laws to take care of students with disabilities (Dybwad, 1980).

Salend (2011) writes, “Least restrictive environment is identified in the U.S Individuals with Disabilities Education Act as one of the six principles that govern the education of students with disabilities and other special needs” (p. 103). The Federal laws require schools to provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment that is appropriate to the individual students’ needs ( Advocacy Handbook: A Parentís Guide for Special Education 2003, p. 7). One of the cases that set this requirement in motion was the Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education (1989).

Daniel was refused fulltime admission because of his disability. Although the parents sought redress from the courts, their appeal was rejected because the schools and the court found that the child was not gaining anything in school.

Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education (1989) is a case that is significant in many ways. It is indeed a landmark law that created a platform for including children with disabilities in normal classes as well as in extracurricular activities. Leal (2002) writes, “Congress, created a strong preference in favoring mainstreaming; that is, educating the student in regular education with supports” (p. 141).

However, the court was quick to point out that it was improper to have such a child in school fulltime. This was a bit contradictory. The interpretation of the court concerning environments was deemed restrictive and laid a foundation that was to be followed by other courts. The court deemed it appropriate that schools should have developed content that would be tailor-made for students with disabilities (Leal, 2002).

The court, in this case, observed that students with disabilities could not be expected to understand the content as well as those who have no disabilities. As observed above, the supplementary services that should have been provided for those students with disabilities included the modification of normal school programs where required. This would be appropriate so that the needs of the disabled students would be met without breaking the provision of the relevant Federal Laws (Salend, 2011).

In this case, the court observed that it was proper for schools to adjust their programs “beyond recognition” (Salend, 2011). The schools were duty bound to evaluate whether a child could be admitted on a regular educational set up. In doing so, schools had to determine whether a student was capable of benefitting from regular placement. As a result, the court expected schools to consider the broader or long-term benefit from contact with the disabled child or student so that they could modify their behavior and succeed in socializing with the normal students.

Personally, I agree with the court’s decision in this case. If there enough aids to assist the disabled child, then the ruling would have been otherwise. The case is significant since it provides a platform on how schools can provide support for the disabled. Schools need to provide an environment that favors all the students. Since private schools are able to take care of such students, public schools can do even better.

Advocacy Handbook: A Parentís Guide for Special Education. (2003). Web.

Daniel R.R. v. State Board of Education, 874F.2d 1036. 88-1279. (1989).

Dybwad, G. (1980). Avoiding the misconceptions of mainstreaming, the least restrictive environment, and normalization. Exceptional Children , 47, 85-90.

Leal, D. (2002). Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Today’s Schools (3rd ed.) Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education, Inc.

Salend, S.J. (2011). Creating Inclusive Classrooms, Effective and Reflective Practices . Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall-Merrill.

• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2023, November 2). Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education. https://ivypanda.com/essays/law-daniel-r-r-v-state-board-of-education/

"Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education." IvyPanda , 2 Nov. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/law-daniel-r-r-v-state-board-of-education/.

IvyPanda . (2023) 'Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education'. 2 November.

IvyPanda . 2023. "Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education." November 2, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/law-daniel-r-r-v-state-board-of-education/.

1. IvyPanda . "Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education." November 2, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/law-daniel-r-r-v-state-board-of-education/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Law: Daniel R. R. v. State Board of Education." November 2, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/law-daniel-r-r-v-state-board-of-education/.

• The genre of Daniel as apocalypse
• The Actor Daniel Wyllie
• The Bible: Old Testament - The Book of Daniel
• Daniel Valerio Child Abuse
• Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
• The Problem with Calorie Restrictive Diets
• Law Reform on Easements and Restrictive Covenants Suggestions
• The Book of Daniel and Its Structure
• The Shortage of Full-Time Nurses: Causes and Solutions
• John Holt and Daniel Pink
• Dyslexia and Intervention in American Schools
• Videotape Modeling for Saudi Autistic Children
• Students With Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Effective Teaching of Students with Disabilities
• Validity and Reliability in Education

AZ Writing | Sample Essays, Example Research Papers and Tips

Free essay samples, research paper examples and academic writing tips for students

Education Law Essay

In an undeniably belligerent society wherein guardians and their kids document a wide range of cases against school frameworks, it is fundamental that instruction pioneers have at the very least an essential comprehension of school law. Graduate schools are the gatekeepers, cultivators, and transmitters of a collection of information and encounter that is basic to the prosperity and structure of American culture. They are the setting for a transformative involvement in which understudies connect with a testing scholarly convention that instructs them to scrutinize their presumptions and figure out how to be imaginative issue solvers. Graduate school enables understudies to wind up specialists of progress since it shows understudies about the legitimate arrangement of the United States, a framework that has the seeds of progress incorporated with its structure. Common society and its encouraging start with the governor of law. The administer of law is the establishment of our general public, our political framework, and our financial framework. It is additionally a rule that has a history also, implying that must be seen, constantly created, and passed on to the following age. Graduate schools have dependably been where understudies find out about the administer of law by finding out about the historical backdrop of the law and about the United States Constitution and the collection of law it has made. This collection of law keeps on creating the basic standards on which all other law in the United States is based. It additionally creates the structure of our lawful framework and the conditions under which this framework prospers. Each imperative issue that our general public, and all social orders, are looking right now in history has vital legitimate perspectives to it, regardless of whether it is worldwide clash, nourishment wellbeing and security, common distress, human rights, general wellbeing, the job of innovation and the web, ecological issues, corporate administration, government responsibility, or the relocation of populaces.

Despite the foundation of the issues or the assortment of conceivable arrangements, the law, and legal advisors, will have a pivotal task to carry out. Once in a while legal advisors need to utilize the law with a specific end goal to guarantee insurance of a something else weak individual or gathering; some of the time they try to change the law to enhance our general public and increment thriving. Consistently legal advisors utilize their critical thinking abilities to encourage people and associations settle clashes, plan their undertakings, and achieve their objectives. The essential job of law educators is to instruct the up and coming age of legal advisors to think basically about issues, to comprehend the structure and intensity of law in our general public, and to be insightful and connected with as for arrangements.

This is refined through conventional classroom and clinical educating; commitment with the network, the seat, and the bar; expert bono work; and research and grant, in which personnel investigate, question, and test the limits of the law. This wide based learning of the law, its job in our general public, and these basic reasoning furthermore, critical thinking abilities give the holders of this information both a comprehension of open furthermore, private lawful structures and the abilities to address singular issues in an expository and balanced way. Lawful instruction likewise prepares understudies in an assortment of critical thinking aptitudes that can be used in circumstances inside and outside of the act of law. No other expert preparing grants this mix of learning and aptitudes and engages its holders to utilize them in heap courses, from guarding the privileges of the minimized and discouraged, to running a multinational partnership; from working for law change and approach, to constantly endeavoring to comprehend the importance and use of the Constitution.

Youth courts, likewise called youngster courts or understudy courts, were set up in the 1970s as an option in contrast to conventional court for young people in a bad position with the police for minor offenses, for example, burglary, vandalism, liquor, and muddled lead, however it was not until the point that the 1990s that they started to multiply. Numerous adolescent courts work as a redirection from the equity framework. For instance, Reich (2013) found that the Staten Island Youth Court has filled in as a redirection program for 16-and 17-year-olds accused of shoplifting where more cases were arranged with an Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissals (ACDs) after the making of the young court and there was less utilization of fixed Youthful Offender discoveries what’s more, fixed non-criminal feelings. (YO discoveries, despite the fact that they don’t yield a criminal record in themselves, increment presentation to a perpetual criminal conviction on any future case).

Schools are progressively receiving youth courts to use instead of confinement and suspension with the objectives of redirecting understudies who submit school disciplinary infractions, helping the young improve choices going ahead, and showing understudies about the equity procedure. Around 36 percent of youth courts are presently situated in schools (National Youth Court Center 2013). Youth courts are normally peer-driven: youngsters fill in as the judge, jury, bailiff, and backers, however a few models incorporate a grown-up as the judge. Adolescents sent to network based youth courts are regularly first-time offense guilty parties. In both network and school settings, it is normal for those blamed for trouble making to acknowledge obligation preceding being sent to the young court so that the hearing procedure does not include a finding of blame or guiltlessness by their companions. The job of the young court at that point progresses toward becoming deciding a suitable reaction or authorize. Respondents are here and there chosen to be jury individuals once their endorse is finished.

References Bell, L. A., & Adams, M. (2016). Theoretical foundations for social justice education. In Teaching for diversity and social justice (pp. 21-44). Routledge. Bowe, R., Ball, S. J., & Gold, A. (2017). Reforming education and changing schools: Case studies in policy sociology. Routledge. Kaufman, M. J., & Kaufman, S. R. (2017). Education law, policy, and practice: Cases and materials. Wolters Kluwer Law & Business.

This free essay sample about education law is plagiarized and cannot be used as your own paper. If you need a high-quality 100% original essay written by experts, visit the following website: https://smartwritingservice.com .

Essay on Education

Here we have shared the Essay on Education in detail so you can use it in your exam or assignment of 150, 250, 400, 500, or 1000 words.

You can use this Essay on Education in any assignment or project whether you are in school (class 10th or 12th), college, or preparing for answer writing in competitive exams. 

Topics covered in this article.

Essay on Education in 150 words

Essay on education in 250-300 words, essay on education in 500-1000 words.

Education is the key to personal growth, social development, and societal progress. It encompasses formal education provided through schools and institutions, as well as informal and lifelong learning. Education equips individuals with the essential knowledge, skills, and tools necessary to navigate the complexities of life and contribute meaningfully to society.

Education empowers individuals, fostering critical thinking, creativity, and innovation. It promotes social mobility, reduces poverty, and fosters social cohesion. Through education, individuals develop the ability to make informed decisions, overcome challenges, and fulfill their potential.

Furthermore, education is a catalyst for positive change. It encourages individuals to question the status quo, explore new ideas, and contribute to the betterment of society. By investing in education, we invest in the future, equipping individuals with the necessary skills to address global challenges, drive innovation, and build a more inclusive and sustainable world.

Education is a fundamental right that should be accessible to all, regardless of gender, socioeconomic background, or geographical location. It is through education that we can create a more equitable, prosperous, and harmonious society.

Education is the cornerstone of personal and societal development. It equips individuals with the knowledge, skills, and tools necessary to navigate the complexities of life and contribute meaningfully to society. In its broadest sense, education encompasses formal schooling, informal learning, and lifelong learning.

Formal education, provided through schools and institutions, lays the foundation for intellectual, social, and emotional growth. It imparts essential knowledge, promotes critical thinking, and develops skills that are essential for success in various fields.

However, education goes beyond the classroom. Informal learning occurs through everyday experiences, interactions, and self-directed exploration. It allows individuals to acquire practical skills, adaptability, and a broader understanding of the world.

Lifelong learning is a continuous process that extends beyond formal education. It involves the pursuit of knowledge and personal growth throughout one’s life, enabling individuals to adapt to changing circumstances, embrace new opportunities, and contribute to a dynamic society.

Education empowers individuals, enabling them to overcome challenges, make informed decisions, and fulfill their potential. It plays a vital role in promoting social mobility, reducing poverty, and fostering social cohesion.

Moreover, education fosters critical thinking, creativity, and innovation, which are essential for progress and development. It encourages individuals to question the status quo, explore new ideas, and contribute to positive change.

In conclusion, education is an indispensable tool for personal growth and societal progress. It encompasses formal, informal, and lifelong learning, providing individuals with the knowledge, skills, and mindset necessary to navigate the complexities of life. By investing in education, we invest in the future, empowering individuals and communities to create a better world.

Title: Education – Empowering Minds, Shaping Futures

Introduction :

Education is a powerful tool that empowers individuals, shapes futures, and drives societal progress. It encompasses the acquisition of knowledge, development of skills, and cultivation of values that prepare individuals for personal and professional success. This essay delves into the importance of education, its key elements, and its transformative impact on individuals and societies.

The Power of Education

Education is a transformative force that empowers individuals to reach their full potential. It equips them with the necessary knowledge and skills to navigate life’s challenges, make informed decisions, and contribute meaningfully to society. Education cultivates critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving abilities, nurturing well-rounded individuals capable of adapting to a rapidly changing world.

Formal Education

Formal education, provided through schools, colleges, and universities, forms the foundation of a person’s educational journey. It involves structured learning environments, standardized curricula, and certified qualifications. Formal education imparts core subjects such as mathematics, science, languages, and humanities, along with important life skills such as communication, collaboration, and critical analysis.

Informal and Lifelong Learning

Education goes beyond formal settings. Informal learning occurs through daily experiences, interactions, and observations. It includes practical skills acquired through apprenticeships, mentorships, and on-the-job training. Lifelong learning, on the other hand, is a continuous process that extends beyond formal education. It involves self-directed learning, personal development, and the pursuit of knowledge throughout one’s life.

The Role of Education in Society

Education plays a crucial role in social development and progress. It promotes social mobility, empowering individuals to transcend socioeconomic barriers and improve their quality of life. Education fosters social cohesion by nurturing understanding, empathy, and tolerance among diverse groups of individuals. It also contributes to economic growth by producing a skilled workforce, fostering innovation, and driving entrepreneurship.

Education for Personal Development

Education is not merely the acquisition of knowledge; it is also a journey of personal growth and self-discovery. It helps individuals develop their unique talents, interests, and passions. Education cultivates values such as integrity, responsibility, and empathy, shaping individuals into ethical and compassionate members of society. Furthermore, it nurtures self-confidence, self-awareness, and resilience, equipping individuals with the tools to overcome challenges and thrive in a competitive world.

Challenges and Opportunities in Education

Despite the transformative power of education, there are numerous challenges that need to be addressed. Access to quality education remains unequal, particularly for marginalized communities and disadvantaged regions. Gender disparities in education persist, limiting opportunities for girls and women. Furthermore, the rapid advancement of technology necessitates adapting educational systems to prepare individuals for the demands of the digital age.

However, there are also exciting opportunities in education. Technology has the potential to revolutionize learning, making education accessible, interactive, and personalized. Blended learning models, online platforms, and open educational resources offer new avenues for education. Emphasizing holistic education, including social and emotional development, promotes well-rounded individuals capable of addressing complex global challenges.

Conclusion :

Education is a transformative force that empowers individuals, shapes futures, and drives societal progress. It goes beyond formal schooling, encompassing informal and lifelong learning. Education fosters critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving abilities, equipping individuals with the skills to navigate an ever-changing world. It promotes social mobility, social cohesion, and economic growth. Moreover, education is a journey of personal development, nurturing values, skills, and self-awareness. While challenges such as unequal access and gender disparities persist, advancements in technology offer exciting opportunities for innovation and inclusive learning. By investing in education and ensuring equal opportunities for all, societies can unlock the full potential of individuals, leading to a more prosperous, equitable, and sustainable future.

Related Posts

Essential Elements of Valid Contract (Explained With Examples)

What is World Population? Main Causes, Effects, Top 20 Countries