Foundations of American Education, 6th Edition Webb, Metha, & Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. CHAPTER 3 Teachers, Students, and the Law

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 2 Overview of Chapter 3 Teacher Rights and Responsibilities Terms and Conditions of Employment Teacher Dismissal Constitutional Rights of Teachers Legal Responsibilities of Teachers Student Rights and Responsibilities Student discipline Search and seizure Freedom of expression Student Publications Student Appearance Sexual harassment of students Student records and privacy

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 3 Terms and Conditions of Employment Certification Most positions in teaching require a certificate or license Certificate or license only makes person eligible All states have established certification requirements Citizenship and Residency Requirements Courts have upheld citizenship and residency requirements as a condition of employment Health and Physical Requirements Most states and school boards have adopted health and physical requirements for teachers Schools, however, cannot discriminate against teachers with disabilities as long as it does not interfere with ability to teach

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 4 Terms and Conditions of Employment Employment Contract Must contain basic elements of Offer and acceptance Legally competent parties Consideration (compensation) Legal subject matter Agreement in the form required by law Tenure Designed to maintain permanent and qualified teachers Usually granted after a probationary period of three years Teacher may still be dismissed for disciplinary reasons, declining enrollment, financial reasons

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 5 Teacher Dismissal Grounds for dismissal The provisions for dismissing a teacher “for cause” varies among states Most frequently cited are immorality, incompetency, and insubordination School board must provide evidence and give teacher due process Factors for determining immoral conduct as cause for dismissal Age and maturity of the students Likelihood that conduct of teacher will have an adverse effect on other students or teachers Degree of anticipated adversity Proximity of the conduct Extenuating circumstances of event Likehood that conduct would be repeated Underlying motives Chilling effect on rights of teachers

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 6 Teacher Dismissal Grounds for dismissal Six categories for determining incompetency as cause for dismissal Inadequate teaching Lack of knowledge of subject Unreasonable discipline Failure to work effectively with colleagues, supervisors, or parents Physical or mental incapacity Neglect of duty Insubordination Persistent, willful, deliberate violation of rule or direct order Must be careful not to infringe on teachers’ constitutional rights

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 7 Constitutional Rights of Teachers The rights of teachers have recently expanded to include: Procedural due process Freedom of expression Right to associate Academic freedom Consider the purpose and educational relevance of the activity, film, literature, etc. Age appropriateness Ask yourself: “Am I willing to fight to keep this activity in, film or publication in the curriculum? Does its impact on learning outweigh the controversy it may generate?

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 8 Constitutional Rights of Teachers Rights of Privacy: Employee searches Freedom from employment discrimination and sexual harassment Equal opportunity and affirmative action

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 9 Legal Responsibilities of Teachers Reporting child abuse and neglect All states have enacted statutes requiring teachers to report actual or suspected child abuse and neglect immediately (physical, mental, sexual, neglect, etc.) Observing copyrights Fair use doctrine allows for nonprofit reproduction and use of materials for classroom use without permission under certain conditions 1. Single copy may be made for scholarly research or use in teaching: book chapter, article, short story, poem, graphic representation or picture. 2. Multiple copies (one per student) may be made with credit given to copyright holder if 3 tests are passed: brevity test, spontaneity test, time restrictions test. 3. Teachers cannot copy individual works and put them together as an anthology. 4. Students cannot be charged for the photocopying of copyrighted works.

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 10 Legal Responsibilities of Teachers Tort liability of school district employees Tort= civil wrong that leads to injury to another and for which a court will provide a remedy in the form of an action for damages Liability insurance is purchased in many school districts to protect employees against negligence defined by Standard of care and duty Proximate cause – injury would not have occurred had it not been for the teacher’s conduct Educational and professional malpractice (diplomas given, improper educational placement)

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 11 Student Rights and Responsibilities Student discipline Search and seizure Freedom of expression Student Publications Student Appearance Sexual harassment of students Student records and privacy

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 12 Student Discipline School officials have the authority and duty to establish reasonable rules of conduct including the ability to discipline students for violations Due process is provided to students: to ensure that students are disciplined fairly and equitably Suspension- exclusion from school for periods of 10 days or less Expulsions- more than 10 days Corporal punishment- more than ½ of states prohibit

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 13 Search and Seizure Fourth Amendment protection requiring “probable cause” before search is lessened in school situations A search may take place if it passes a “reasonableness test” Cause or suspicion that a search will reveal evidence of violation of law or school rules Scope of the search is reasonably related to the objective of the search and not excessively intrusive School property vs. personal property Many schools have turned to drug sniffing dogs Blanket drug testing of students not supported in courts Mixed results for drug testing of students involved in extra curricular activities

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 14 Freedom of Expression Free speech is a highly valued liberty, but this right must be balanced within public schools to ensure student safety and learning Tinker v. DesMoines, landmark case in student expression (allowed for students to wear black armbands to protest the Vietnam War) because it did not cause “material and substantive disruption” Does not include the right to vulgar and offensive speech Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier awarded discretion to school authorities in censoring school-sponsored publications Courts are split as to considering dress as a form of expression Many schools have enacted dress codes that restrict options A growing number of schools have adopted school uniforms Students have the right to wear prescribed religious garb

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 15 Sexual Harassment of Students Students are most often victims of hostile environment sexual harassment A hostile environment limits a student’s ability to benefit from, or participate in educational programs or activities Overwhelming majority is student-to-student cases Schools may be liable for sexual harassment even in student-to- student cases if school responds with deliberate indifference

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 16 Student Records and Privacy Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974 provides protection to parents and students against unauthorized access to students records Also guarantees rights to access to own records Personally identifiable information from records is not to be released without permission of parent or eligible student Under certain conditions, records can be obtained by school officials, accrediting bodies, state or federal agencies, etc. Parents or students can request that inaccurate information be amended

Foundations of American Education, 6 th Edition Webb/Metha/Jordan © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 17 Review of Chapter 3 Teacher Rights and Responsibilities Terms and Conditions of Employment Teacher Dismissal Constitutional Rights of Teachers Legal Responsibilities of Teachers Student Rights and Responsibilities Student discipline Search and seizure Freedom of expression Student Publications Student Appearance Sexual harassment of students Student records and privacy