Describes legal standard of reasonable suspicion for school officials to conduct student searches in public schools and court cases interpreting that standard. Discusses probable-cause standard for student searches by law-enforcement officials, voluntary student searches, and individual versus random searches. Recommends two practices to reduce…

Describes the basic elements of the federal copyright law, four tests for fair use of copyrighted materials for educational purposes, the application of fair use to various media, and the development of a copyright management policy. (PKP)

Describes school-district compliance requirements for two recently enacted federal laws designed to protect children from obscene, pornographic, or harmful materials available on the Internet: Children's Internet Protection Act and Neighborhood Children's Internet Protection Act. District eligibility for federal funds, including the E-rate…

Discusses the need for schools to not only teach students about their rights and responsibilities as citizens, but to encourage them to practice these principles though active involvement in various school activities. Describes how some schools have accomplished the latter by implementing a concept called "youth infusion" involving…

Discusses results of international study to determine what 14-year-olds in the United States and several other countries know and understand about citizenship, government, and the law. Reveals gaps in U.S. students' civic knowledge and participation. Calls for greater emphasis on civic education in schools. (PKP)

Describes the Marshall-Brennan Fellowship constitutional literacy project wherein 30 pairs of law students at the Washington College of Law teach a constitutional rights and responsibilities course to high school students in Washington, D.C., and Maryland public high schools. Students are also taken to hear oral arguments at the Supreme Court.…

Describes the First Amendment Schools project aimed at teaching K-12 public and independent school students their constitutionally protected religious, speech, press, assembly, and petition rights and responsibilities. Includes examples describing the project in several schools. Includes annotated list of resources for educators. (PKP)

Describes the curriculum and learning objectives for law-related education in high school, middle school, and elementary school. Advocates the use of simulations to teach law-related education. Discusses law-related teacher training and where to find a law-related education resource person. (Contains 14 references.) (PKP)

Describes five strategies for schools to welcome children from gay families: Become informed about gay people, create a gay-friendly school climate, teach respect for all, provide quality counseling, and encourage activism and inquiry. Includes list of selected websites. (Contains 11 references.) (PKP)

Describes some of Norman Rockwell's best known works, along with questions teachers can use to stimulate class discussions. Includes descriptions and discussion questions related to Rockwell's paintings of American people depicting freedom, tolerance, and patriotism. (PKP)

Describes results of study of student attitudes toward high-stakes testing at one Indiana high school and how those results influence how teachers prepare students for the state mathematics and English proficiencies test. (PKP)

Describes how state standards caused one teacher to improve her teaching style. (PKP)

Describes four common anxiety disorders in children: Generalized anxiety disorder, separation anxiety disorder, social phobia, and panic disorder and the teacher's role in recognizing and seeking treatment for these disorders inside and outside of the classroom. (PKP)

Reviews research on the impact of zero-tolerance policies on student behavior and achievement. Concludes that policies are generally ineffective and often counterproductive. (Contains 14 references.) (PKP)

Provides reasons why class size and school size are important school improvement ideas; highlights findings of selected research on class size and school size; relates personal teaching experience supporting benefits of both small classes and small schools; describes results of a study of an eight-teacher school-within-a-school in Chicago.…