Finally, it summarizes both practices to avoid and practices that can benefit this group of students. Before 1982, a Texas law prevented state funds from being used for the education of undocumented children. The ruling was based on the equal protection provisions of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The Court believed that denying undocumented children access to education punished children for their parents' behavior. Because of the protections imposed by Plyler, however, the exact size of this group of students is difficult to estimate.
All students deal with stressful events as they mature.
The Court found that residency requirements are constitutional only if they are properly defined, uniformly applied, and designed to further a substantial state interest. In the case of undocumented children, the Court found that state residency requirements do not meet these tests. States can no longer use residency requirements to deny undocumented children access to a tuition-free public education. Under Plyler, undocumented immigrant students have the same right to attend public schools through grade 12 as do citizens and permanent residents. School staff need to be aware and sensitive as they deal with all immigrant students.