Syllabus for EDL-550
SCHOOL LAW
A large and growing body of case law relating to public schools continues to impact schools and educational practice. Educational leaders must know how the legal process deals with controversial issues, especially those related to schooling, that play a central role in our culture. Issues of equity, gender discrimination, providing for disabled students (IDEA), Title I and Title IX regulations, racial and ethnic discrimination, sexual harassment, First Amendment rights pertaining to freedom of expression and freedom of speech in student publications, objectionable instructional materials, religion in the schools, and Fourth Amendment rights pertaining to searches and seizures of student property will be addressed. Students focus on these and other problem areas that frequently result in litigation involving school districts, principals, and other educators as named parties. Students critically assess the impact of federal and state constitutions, statutes, and regulations on the operation of schools. They explore interactions among national, state, and local regulations and examine the impact of federal law and New Jersey state cases on the rights of students, parents, and public school employees. Of special importance, students learn about procedural due process considerations and the constitutional rights of personnel and students balanced against the duties of the school (ISLLC 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6; NJDOE 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
On successful completion of the course, you should be able to:
You will need the following materials to complete your coursework. Some course materials may be free, open source, or available from other providers. You can access free or open-source materials by clicking the links provided below or in the module details documents. To purchase course materials, please visit the University's textbook supplier.
ISBN-13: 978-0495910497
As a capstone experience in the Educational Leadership program, you will prepare an electronic portfolio that demonstrates your incremental achievement of the program standards. Each course in the program helps you to identify artifacts to place in your portfolio on completion of the course. To this end, you are required to purchase an electronic portfolio registration code upon your entry into the Master of Arts in Educational Leadership program. Basic directions for purchasing access to and using your electronic portfolio are posted within the Educational Leadership Students Organization (online community).
School Law is a three-credit online course, consisting of eleven modules. Modules include topics, learning objectives, a study assignment, an online discussion, and a writing assignment. You are also required to complete two court case reports and to submit a final paper or project. Module titles and topics are listed below.
1.1 | Public school law | |
1.2 | Power and function of courts | |
1.3 | American court system | |
1.4 | History of public schools and American democracy |
2.1 | U.S. Constitution and education | |
2.2 | Role of federal government | |
2.3 | Individual rights in education | |
2.4 | New Jersey Constitution | |
2.5 | Governmental functions in education | |
2.6 | Role of local boards of education |
3.1 | Wall of separation | |
3.2 | History of religious involvement in education | |
3.3 | Public schools and religion | |
3.4 | Church and state separation | |
3.5 | Vouchers | |
3.6 | Equal Access Act | |
3.7 | Attendance in public schools |
4.1 | "Marketplace of ideas" | |
4.2 | First Amendment issues | |
4.3 | Curriculum issues | |
4.4 | Student testing | |
4.5 | Grading and academic concerns | |
4.6 | No Child Left Behind |
5.1 | Freedom of speech and expression | |
5.2 | Student appearance | |
5.3 | Student publications | |
5.4 | Search and seizure | |
5.5 | Internet and free speech |
6.1 | Common law and the student | |
6.2 | Due process for students | |
6.3 | Disciplinary actions | |
6.4 | Sexual harassment | |
6.5 | Child abuse |
7.1 | Teacher certification | |
7.2 | Contracts for staff | |
7.3 | Teacher contracts | |
7.4 | Termination | |
7.5 | Rights of school staff | |
7.6 | Speech issues | |
7.7 | Right to privacy |
8.1 | Four aspects of due process | |
8.2 | Due process for staff | |
8.3 | Constitutional protection | |
8.4 | Civil rights legislation and agencies | |
8.5 | Discrimination | |
8.6 | Diversity |
9.1 | History of neglect | |
9.2 | EAHCA | |
9.3 | IDEA | |
9.4 | Rights to public education | |
9.5 | IEP | |
9.6 | Placement |
10.1 | Definition of tort | |
10.2 | Intentional interference | |
10.3 | Student liability | |
10.4 | Negligence | |
10.5 | Deficiencies | |
10.6 | Education malpractice |
11.1 | History of desegregation | |
11.2 | Separate but equal | |
11.3 | Brown v. Board of Education | |
11.4 | Quotes | |
11.5 | Unitariness | |
11.6 | Equity in schools | |
11.7 | Diversity in schools |
For your formal work in the course, you are required to participate in online discussion forums, complete writing assignments, and complete a final paper or project. See below for more details.
Consult the Course Calendar for assignment due dates.
One or more of your course activities may utilize a tool designed to promote original work and evaluate your submissions for plagiarism. More information about this tool is available in this document.
Each module in the course has an online class discussion forum.
Online discussions provide an opportunity for you to interact with your classmates. During this aspect of the course, you respond to prompts that assist you in developing your ideas, you share those ideas with your classmates, and you comment on their posts. Discussion forum interactions promote development of a community of learners, critical thinking, and exploratory learning.
Please participate in online discussions as you would in constructive face-to-face discussions. You are expected to post well-reasoned and thoughtful reflections for each item, making reference, as appropriate, to your readings. You are also expected to reply to your classmates' posts in a respectful, professional, and courteous manner. You may, of course, post questions asking for clarification or further elucidation on a topic.
Each module in the course concludes with a short writing assignment of about 500 words. The writing assignments require you to write well-reasoned and thoughtful papers on questions derived from the module objectives, making reference, as appropriate, to the readings and other sources of information. You are required to follow current APA style guidelines in formatting your work and for all references.
During the semester, you will write two analyses of important court cases. One report should be based on a case covered in Modules 1–5; the second report should be based on a case covered in Modules 6–11.
In these reports you are expected to cite the case correctly and completely, identify the topic and issue(s) addressed, present the facts of the case, summarize the findings (of both the trial court and appellate court, if any), explain the reasoning behind the court's decision, and assess the implication of the decision for administrators. In preparing your report, please use the template provided (click link for a rich-text version, then File > Download) and the course text as the source for the court cases. Included here as well is a list of cases and page locations in the text from which you can select the two cases.
The final paper or project constitutes another principal artifact for your portfolio and counts 25% toward your grade. Choose one of the following options:
Please note that by Module 7 you should have come to an agreement with your mentor about the topic of your paper or the subject of the project. You are required to follow current APA style guidelines in formatting and organizing your paper and for any citations.
The principal artifacts for this course are the two court case reports and your final paper or project. Accompanying the artifact is a reflective narrative that describes the process and how the artifact meets specific standards and prepares you for school leadership.
Upload your artifact to your electronic portfolio, and be certain to indicate its alignment to the applicable ISLLC standards.
Your grade in the course will be determined as follows:
All activities will receive a numerical grade of 0–100. You will receive a score of 0 for any work not submitted. Your final grade in the course will be a letter grade. Letter grade equivalents for numerical grades are as follows:
A | = | 93–100 | B | = | 83–87 | |
A– | = | 90–92 | C | = | 73–82 | |
B+ | = | 88–89 | F | = | Below 73 |
To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of C or higher on the weighted average of all assigned course work (e.g., assignments, discussion postings, projects, etc.). Graduate students must maintain a B average overall to remain in good academic standing.
To succeed in this course, take the following first steps:
Consider the following study tips for success:
To ensure success in all your academic endeavors and coursework at Thomas Edison State University, familiarize yourself with all administrative and academic policies including those related to academic integrity, course late submissions, course extensions, and grading policies.
For more, see:
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