Beginning as early as preschool, race and gender are intertwined with the way US schools mete out discipline. In particular, black students and male students are much more likely than others to be suspended or expelled--punishments that we know can hold them back academically. These disparities, and the damage they can cause, have driven recent…

Education is important for all children, but even more so for children with disabilities, whose social and economic opportunities may be limited. In this article, Laudan Aron and Pamela Loprest assess how well the nation's education system is serving students with disabilities. Aron and Loprest trace the evolution of the special education system…

All children, even the healthiest, have preventive and acute health care needs. Moreover, a growing number of children are chronically ill, with preventive, acute, and ongoing care needs that may be much more demanding than those for healthy children. Because children are unable to care for themselves, their parents are expected to provide a range…

The foundations of the major federal policies that govern today's workplace were put in place during the 1930s, when most families had a stay-at-home caregiver who could tend to the needs of children, the aged, and the sick. Seven decades later, many of the nation's workplace policies are in need of major updates to reflect the realities of the…

The children from immigrant families in the United States make up a historically diverse population, and they are demonstrating just as much diversity in their experiences in the K-12 educational system. Robert Crosnoe and Ruth Lopez Turley summarize these K-12 patterns, paying special attention to differences in academic functioning across…

Noting that many of the nation's high schools are beset with major problems, such as low student reading and math achievement, high dropout rates, and an inadequate supply of effective teachers, Steve Fleischman and Jessica Heppen survey a range of strategies that educators have used to improve low-performing high schools. The authors begin by…

In Mark Greenberg's view, a national child care strategy should pursue four goals. Every parent who needs child care to get or keep work should be able to afford care without having to leave children in unhealthy or dangerous environments; all families should be able to place their children in settings that foster education and healthy…

Richard Murnane observes that the American ideal of equality of educational opportunity has for years been more the rhetoric than the reality of the nation's political life. Children living in poverty, he notes, tend to be concentrated in low-performing schools staffed by ill-equipped teachers. They are likely to leave school without the skills…

Describes six legislative efforts to point out pros and cons of the legislative approach to promoting child safety. Three efforts are intended to prevent injury-producing events from occurring. Three others illustrate the value of laws designed to prevent injuries once an injury-producing event occurs. Offers recommendations for maximizing the…

Considers how the unique vulnerabilities of children challenge environmental policymaking, particularly as it concerns environmental contamination through manufactured chemicals. Contributions of educational and advocacy efforts are addressed as well as the interests of industry and the problems of environmental equity. A new approach to…

Discusses how a complex regulatory system, along with a lack of consensus about the functions served by adoption, produces uncertainty on many basic issues, including distinguishing lawful adoption versus illegal "baby-selling." The author recommends passage of more uniform state adoption laws, describes the 1994 Uniform Adoption Act,…

Addresses five questions concerning special education for students with disabilities: Why are so many students considered disabled? What are their educational needs? How should appropriate, individualized services be funded? Are Individuals with Disabilities Education Act's procedural protections necessary? and Can regular education meet needs of…

Presents a historical overview of state and federal legislation concerning special education, describes how court litigation has defined the constitutional rights of the disabled to access education, and outlines the provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The procedural safeguards of the IDEA also are outlined,…

Describes current special education identification, classification, and assessment practices, and evaluates them in light of emerging concerns about their reliability, usefulness, and fairness. Alternatives to conventional practices are discussed, and a revised funding system that can yield the dollar figure available to support the special…

Even though federal laws have had a major influence on foster care and child welfare policy for more than 40 years, additional reforms are needed to ensure safe and stable families for children in care. This article describes the complex array of policies that shape federal foster care and observes: A number of federal policies addressing issues…