Deck 3: Students, the Law and Public Schools

Question 1

School officials have powers to:

A) Establish rules and regulations governing student conduct in public school settings
B) Establish rules that are necessary to ensure proper order and decorum
C) Establish rules that the courts view as reasonable and necessary to maintain an orderly and peaceful school environment
D) All of the above

Answer 1

All of the above

Question 2

Rules should:

A) Not be so broad and nebulous to allow for inconsistent interpretation
B) Not be sufficiently definite
C) Not be stated in a manner where only students of average intelligence can understand their meaning
D) Not be assessed in the context of their application

Answer 2

Not be so broad and nebulous to allow for inconsistent interpretation

Question 3

The Tinker case was:

A) The only time in the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on students' freedom of expression
B) Pivotal in providing freedom for school officials to limit students' freedom of expression
C) Pivotal in altering the relationship between school officials and students in public schools
D) Pivotal in holding students accountable for their behavior

Answer 3

Pivotal in altering the relationship between school officials and students in public schools

Question 4

Students may not protest in public schools when:

A) They are unhappy with school practices
B) They do not create disruption
C) They violate school rules
D) They wish to silently protest during the school day

Question 5

School publications should:

A) Be censored by school officials
B) Provide a forum for students to express themselves
C) Allow students to freely report news in any fashion they wish
D) Allow the faculty advisor to remove objectionable material

Question 6

Non-school sponsored newspapers must:

A) Be prohibited from distribution on school grounds
B) Allow school officials to censure content since they are accountable for content
C) Not create material and substantial disruption
D) Allow school officials to develop broad rules governing the production of non-school sponsored newspapers

Question 7

Issues involving student dress should be left to the:

A) U.S. Supreme Court
B) State courts
C) Parents to decide
D) Students based on their culture and background

Question 8

School officials may restrict student dress when:

A) Health and safety of student may be in jeopardy
B) Dress that calls undue attention to students' anatomy
C) Dress that creates materials and substantial disruption
D) All of the above

Question 9

Controversial slogans may be permitted if:

A) Students secure permission prior to displaying them
B) They contain vulgarity
C) There is a forecast of disruption
D) None of the above

Question 10

Students may be searched in school when school officials:

A) Establish reasonable suspicion that students may be violating school rules
B) Suspect that students are violating school rules
C) Feel that lockers contain items in violation of school rules
D) Believe money is missing and it needs to be recovered

Question 11

Personal searches should be conducted when:

A) School officials believe that there is evidence to justify the search
B) Students of the opposite sex are involved
C) School officials have reasonable suspicion and strong justification to conduct the search
D) School officials believe it is absolutely necessary

Question 12

Law enforcement officials may be involved in school searches if:

A) They have reasonable suspicion that a student has illegal items in his/her possession
B) There are facts and circumstances based on trustworthy information that are sufficient to warrant reasonable suspicion
C) Parents give consent to search
D) School officials give consent to search

Question 13

Corporal punishment should:

A) Be based on school district policy
B) Never be administered with malice or in an excessive manner
C) Be administered in consideration of the age, size, gender, and physical condition of a student.
D) All of the above

Question 14

School Suspension requires:

A) Substantive and procedural provision of due process
B) Automatic removal from school
C) Parents to attend a mandatory conference
D) Parents to choose in-school suspension or out-of-school suspension

Question 15

Expulsion requires that:

A) Serious infractions or offenses be committed before students are removed from school
B) The board of education makes the expulsion decision
C) Full due process provisions be applied to each case
D) All of the above

Question 16

In loco parentis (in place of parents) gives teachers total control over students during the school day.

Question 17

Students have constitutional rights that they may exercise without interference by school personnel.

Question 18

School officials may formulate and enforce any rule they deem necessary to control students.

Question 19

Students may not express their views in public school when they are contrary to those held by school officials.

Question 20

School officials may exercise editorial control over content in a school sponsored newspaper.

Question 21

A school newspaper that is part of a journalism class does not qualify as a public forum.

Question 22

Certified school personnel employed by a school district can search students without meeting probable cause standards.

Question 23

Suspicion is all that school personnel need to initiate a search.

Question 24

In loco parentis (in place of parents) can stand alone in the absence of reasonable suspicion regarding school searches.

Question 25

As intrusiveness intensifies, the Fourth Amendment standard approaches probable cause in public schools.

Question 26

Students who are required to attend public schools have a property interest that must be recognized and respected by school personnel.

Question 27

School officials will normally be supported by the courts if they have a valid reason for depriving a student of his/her rights (must also meet all procedural requirements).

Question 28

Substantive due process addresses students' individual or personal rights.

Question 29

Procedural due process requires that certain legal requirements be met to ensure fairness.

Question 30

Procedural and substantive requirements must be met to avoid infringement on students' constitutional rights.

Question 31

The Eighth Amendment does not apply to corporal punishment.

Question 32

Damages from documented cases of sexual harassment may be assessed against a school district, its supervisors, and the accused teacher.

Question 33

In the absence of rules, school officials cannot be held liable for student to student sexual harassment.

Question 34

School officials must be aware of sexual harassment behavior in public schools and fail to act to be charged with liability.

Question 35

Courts are fairly consistent in ruling that harassment suits are valid when harassing student behavior is severe, pervasive, and objectionably offensive.

Question 36

Married students can be summarily denied participation in extra curricular activities in public schools.

Question 37

Unwed, pregnant students can be denied attendance in public schools because they set poor examples for other students.

Question 38

The burden of proof rests with pregnant students when they are denied participation in extra curricular activities.

Question 39

Teachers are only required to report actual cases of child abuse.

Question 40

Failure to report child abuse is a misdemeanor in most states.

Question 41

School districts may ban cell phone without violating free expression rights of students.

Question 42

What limitations, if any, are placed on in loco parentis for school personnel?

Question 43

How do in loco parentis restrictions placed on school personnel compare to parental discretion regarding their children?

Question 44

What is the significance of the court's ruling in the Tinker case?

Question 45

Contrast the Tinker ruling with the ruling in Blackwell v. Issaquena and indicate why a different decision was reached in each case.

Question 46

Explain the significance of the following cases:
a. Hazelwood v. Kuhlemeier.
b. New Jersey v. T.L.O
c. Cornfield by Lewis v. School District No. 230
d. Safford Unified School District #1 et. al. v. April Redding
e. Ingraham v. Wright
f. Davis v. Monroe County Board of Education

Question 47

Outline the basic steps that are required to meet due process standards.

Question 48

Contrast and compare procedural and substantive due process regarding suspension and expulsion.
a. How do they differ in application?
b. How are they similar in application?

Question 49

Develop a policy on the use of cell phones and other social media in public schools. Include a set of procedures that govern the use of these devices as well as consequences for policy violations.

Question 50

You, as the administrator, are approached by a group of students who believe that their constitutional rights are not respected by school personnel. They want to know from you specifically what their constitutional rights are.
a. What would you tell them?
b. Discuss all of their rights with them and tell them what prerogatives they may exercise under each right? (Be specific)
c. Inform them of their options if these rights are violated.

Question 51

Your school/institution has developed a reputation for not respecting the due process rights of students. You are holding your first faculty retreat as the new administrator. You want your faculty to be extremely cognizant of due process and all of its ramifications.
a. Write your presentation on due process as you will present it to your faculty.
b. Discuss all aspects of this concept.
c. Discuss the legal implications involved when due process rights are violated. (Be specific in your total response.)

Question 52

What is the significance of meeting all aspects of due process?

Question 53

What are the risks involved when school officials fail to meet the basic requirements of due process?

Question 54

Discuss substantive and procedural due process and provide an example of how the misapplication of both may violate a student's constitutional rights.

Question 55

Discuss the application of procedural and substantive due process to school expulsion. List the essential steps needed to meet procedural requirements.

Question 56

Discuss the Goss v. Lopez case and its implications for educational leaders.