Courts and Standards Based Reform Book

Acknowledgments     ix
Introduction     1
The Courts' Involvement with Education     7
Overview of the Book     15
The Intended Audience     19
Standards-Based Reform and Accountability Policies     21
A Brief History of Standards-Based Reform and Accountability Policies     22
Theories of Standards-Based Reform     27
The Growth of Standards-Based Reform and Accountability Policies     31
No Child Left Behind     47
High School Exit Exams     55
Discussion and Conclusion     56
High-Stakes Testing Litigation     61
Intentional Discrimination     63
Preserving or Furthering the Effects of Prior Segregation     64
Disparate Impact     65
Due Process     69
Case Studies in High-Stakes Testing     71
Discussion and Conclusion     82
No Child Left Behind Litigation     87
The Implementation of Accountability Sanctions     89
The Justifiability of Student and School Performance Determinations     94
Capacities to Respond to Federal Requirements     108
Other Litigation Involving No Child Left Behind     116
Discussion andConclusion     117
School Finance Reform Litigation     123
A Brief Overview of School Finance Reform Litigation     125
The Emergence of Standards-Based Reforms in School Finance Reform Litigation     131
Discussion and Conclusion     162
Conclusion     173
Overview and Analytical Summary     174
Public Law Litigation Outside of Education     181
Recommendations for Court-Based Approaches to Standards-Based Reform     188
A Final Word     200
Frequently Used Abbreviations     203
Notes     205
Index     249