What legal and ethical issues arise when students choose to perform popular music with explicitly religious content? The purpose of this article is to construct a policy framework for discussing the use of popular religious music within the classroom, with a specific focus on the concept of proselytization as legal criteria for setting appropriate…

This article examines an education policy matter that involves homophobic speech in public schools. Using legal research methods, two federal circuit court opinions that have examined the tension surrounding anti-LGBTQ student expression are analyzed. This legal analysis provides non-lawyers some insight into the current realities of student…

Purpose: A significant and growing body of LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) research examines the experiences of students, employees, and the substance of leadership training. This project aims to complement this work by taking a macro-level look at the broader legal and policy issues that may constrain or enhance a school…

In order to effectively teach evolution to all students, even those resistant to learning evolution, science teachers may question the extent to which religion can legally be discussed in the public high school science classroom. Evolution is taught from a variety of approaches, each of which has legal implications. Four approaches to teaching…

Group decision-making can result in important benefits for organizational effectiveness. However, collaborative environments do not emerge organically. Effective leadership is critical for group success. Educational leaders must understand group processes and the importance of creating a culture that supports collaboration. Student discipline for…

Principals have acknowledged the challenges with remaining current on issues in the law. A unique challenge for principals is the intersection of students' First Amendment rights in the school context and the legal issues surrounding student-created webpages. Using a randomly selected sample of Ohio high school secondary principals, I investigated…

Cyberbullying involves repeated and unwanted aggressive behavior using the Internet, cell phones or other digital devices and is used to hurt or embarrass another person. The National Crime Prevention Council found that 43% of teens had experienced some form of cyberbullying in the past year and that cyberbullying is most common among 15-16 year…

The use of Internet filters in public classrooms in the USA has been intensely debated, both in terms of its effectiveness and legality. The debate pits concerns to protect students from indecent material against issues of unconstitutional censorship. This paper examines the legal issues addressed in various rulings by the US Supreme Court…

Discusses the progress of anti-Hazelwood legislation, and lists the five states with student free expression laws: California, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, and Massachusetts. Notes that 16 states have made no attempts to counteract the ruling of Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier. Describes the limits of the laws existing in the five states with…

The U.S. Supreme Court is applying a new legal standard in court actions involving students' constitutional rights. Instead of basing decisions on the "substantial interference" argument, the Court is giving school officials broad latitude to structure an environment in which students can both learn and develop "socially appropriate…

Discusses the legacy of the Hazelwood vs. Kuhlmeier case and its implications for school publications advisers. Discusses whether censorship is wrong-headed pedagogy for journalism educators teaching the importance and use of free expression in a democracy. Discusses the problem of pedagogy, academic freedom, and expression vs. authority. (SR)

Summarizes a case involving a Denver high school teacher's naming, in a government class, of a student observed in a public sexual rendezvous. The teacher lost on all fronts, because his speech was considered school-sponsored and did not meet the school district's pedagogical interests, based on the 1988 "Hazelwood" decision limiting…

Discusses results of a survey sent to former legislators (representing 18 states) concerning their opinion as to why bills intended to reverse the effects of Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier have met with resistance. Identifies characteristics of legislators that sponsored anti-Hazelwood legislation. Concludes that more planning was needed…

Even though the high school publications adviser in the Hazelwood East High School Supreme Court case of 1983 was named as a petitioner with school officials, some litigation and much research indicates that advisers have often encountered administrators in an adversarial role. Because "Hazelwood" ruled that the school newspaper is part…

Argues that students are being trained to believe that censorship of the press is a good idea. Shows, using two examples dealing with teenage pregnancies and gangs, how students can bring about real change in their school climate through their school newspaper--but only if it is a free press controlled by students, not the administration. (SR)