A review of court decisions about teacher testing programs shows that tests must be equitable and fair, must not be used to discriminate by race or sex, and that adequate notice to teachers is required. (MLF)

In recent years a growing number of state boards of education have established mechanisms to ensure dialog between public school policymakers and their nonpublic school counterparts. Outlines the methods used in four states: Florida, Louisiana, New York, and Ohio. (MD)

Outlines the history of private education and the development of secular education in American public schools. Changes in growth in the private school sector seem to occur in response to public school treatment of religious values. (MD)

A recent Supreme Court decision on a First Amendment case involving a teacher in Texas illustrates how teachers' and other public employees' rights to freedom of speech face serious erosion. The problem is deciding whether grievances fall into the protected area of "public concern" or the unprotected area of a "purely private…

Reviews the status of Supreme Court deliberations in questions surrounding a New Jersey school's search of a student's purse. The state courts found the search unreasonable and reversed a lower court decision. (MD)

Decisions in recent court cases seem to show that comparable worth will not provide a remedy for allegedly sex-biased salary inequities. (MD)

Peter D. Roos comments in an interview on developments in the area of student rights in the 10 years since he successfully represented the plaintiff in "Goss vs. Lopez." (PGD)

Since school busing has not desegregated schools, a plan is presented allowing students to transfer with free transportation within a school district. If this plan is not adopted, the need is cited for federal legislation that prohibits compulsory busing from placing a burden on any race. (MD)

Reviews the July 1984 "Smith v. Robinson" United States Supreme Court decision that denied payment of attorney fees to parents of a handicapped child who successfully pursued a discrimination suit under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (PL 94-142). (MD)

Argues that standards-based education reform has shifted the focus of school finance from equity to adequacy. Requires an explicit connection between the funding provided to schools and the results produced in terms of student learning. (Contains 19 references.) (MLF)