Issues in K-12 Education

Annotated Contents Preface Contributors ISSUES IN JUSTICE, EQUITY, AND EQUALITY 1. Racial Diversity in Public Schools: Has the Supreme Court Dealt a Blow to Integration? 2. No Child Left Behind: Is the Law Improving Student Performance? 3. Special Education: Do Students With Disabilities Get the Help They Need? 4. Fixing Urban Schools: Has No Child Left Behind Helped Minority Students? 5. Charter Schools: Will They Improve or Hurt Public Education? 6. Home Schooling Debate: Is the Movement Undermining Public Education? 7. Single-Sex Education: Do All-Boy and All-Girl Schools Enhance Learning? 8. Religion in Schools: Should the Courts Allow More Spiritual Expression? ISSUES IN TEACHING AND LEARNING 9. Students Under Stress: Do Schools Assign Too Much Homework? 10. Gender and Learning: Are There Innate Differences Between the Sexes? 11. AP and IB Programs: Can They Raise U.S. High-School Achievement? 12. Teaching Math and Science: Are Students Being Prepared for the Technological Age? 13. Reading Crisis? Do Today's Youth Read Less Than Past Generations? 14. Video Games: Do They Have Educational Value? ISSUES IN SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT 15. Teacher Shortages: Should States Ease Certification Standards? 16. Discipline in Schools: Are Zero-Tolerance Policies Fair? 17. Zero Tolerance for School Violence: Is Mandatory Punishment in Schools Unfair? 18. Bullying: Are Schools Doing Enough to Stop the Problem? 19. Cheating in Schools: Are High-Stakes Tests to Blame?