Education and the Legal System: A Guide to Understanding the Law
EDUCATIONAL leaders in the 21st century will continue to face a myriad of legal issues that affect their daily decisions.Education and the Legal System: A Guide to Understanding the Lawprovides a comprehensive yet easy to understand coverage of the laws that most often shape policies and procedures in educational institutions. In the past, public schools were typically immune from litigation. But the law has substantially changed over the past 30 years, especially with the new rules that now govern individuals with disabilities and sexual harassment in the workplace. Additionally, unprecedented violence in today's schools may change the current laws protecting students' rights to speech and privacy. Hence, it is critical that administrators understand the laws that both expand and restrict their rights and responsibilities.This book was designed to teach students and future educational leaders about education law through the use of legal principles, case analysis, and a discussion of legal principles and how administrators can practice preventive law. For many readers, this book will be their first exposure to the law; thus, it was written to be student-friendly. At the same time, it exposes students to landmark cases as well as up-to-date court decisions, reviews important legal issues that are of concern to most school officials, and ultimately assists administrators in making decisions. The book will not make the reader a lawyer, nor is it intended to replace legal counsel. Rather, readers will gain the skills they need to recognize legal issues when they occur and practice preventive law to the extent possible. Understanding the law can help educators and their institutions avoid being involved in litigation.Every attempt has been made to include the most prevalent and most up-to-date legal issues currently affecting public education. Every chapter includes pertinent cases, boxed sections called "Best Practices," and discussion questions and student activities—all with the goal of engaging students in active learning. Additionally, because most cases are extremely long and difficult to read, an explanation of how to "brief" a case is included. This prompts students to think about the legal principles they must follow and grasp the concept that the law is not black and white but gray.Below are brief descriptions of special sections that appear throughout this book:Best Practices.In each chapter of the book, after critical points of law are reviewed, are easy-to-reference boxes called "Best Practices" that are important to administrators. They apply real-life tips and give helpful hints to avoid being involved in litigation.Discussion Questions and Activities.Two additional features in this book are the end-of-chapter discussion questions and the chapter activities titled "Deepening Your Understanding." Many education law textbooks include no opportunity for class discussion or homework assignments. This book gives students an opportunity to both broaden their knowledge of the law by relating it various scenarios and engage in active learning activities.Resources for Administrators.At the end of the text is a comprehensive appendix titled "Resources for Administrators." This is a thorough list of federal statutes that commonly affects those involved in public education. It allows the student reader to reference some of the most important statutes affecting education quickly.Glossary of Legal Terms.Finally, the glossary helps readers learn legal terminology, so students do not have to invest in a law dictionary to understand professional legal jargon.It is my hope that this book will help students gain an understanding of the law and assist administrators in providing a safe learning environment where fairness is common, laws are followed, and educators can do what they love—teach with the intent of producing the leaders of our future.