Chapter 14: Additional Issues
Test Questions
True or False
1. Teachers and schools can release themselves from damages by having parents sign waivers
or releases.
2. The school may deny a parent’s request to amend records that are believed to be misleading
or incorrect.
3. A court could order a public school to reimburse parents for a student’s private school
placement if the public school fails to provide an appropriate education.
4. Public schools are not obligated to include parent-enrolled private school students in the
child find process.
5. The U.S. Supreme Court has used the Lemon Test to strike down direct monetary
reimbursement to parochial schools for state-mandated educational expenditures.
6. School districts have the same obligations to parentally placed private school students with
disabilities as they do to public school students with disabilities.
7. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that there is a Constitutional prohibition against providing
certain related services to special education students in parochial or religious-affiliated
schools.
8. The most common category of tort violations brought against teachers involves negligence.
9. Negligence claims brought against teachers often involve inappropriate and excessive
disciplining of students.
10. When parents of students in special education request destruction of their child’s educational
records, they should be informed that the records may be useful at a later date.
Multiple Choice
1. Under FERPA, school districts must obtain parental consent to release student records to all
of the following third parties except:
a. Officials representing schools to which a student has applied.
b. School personnel with a legitimate educational interest.
c. Persons responsible for determining eligibility for financial aid.
d. Administrators in charge of underwriting a student’s insurance policy.
2. If parents place their disabled child in a private school, public schools are responsible for:
a. identification and evaluation of the student.
b. writing the student’s IEP and offering special education services.
c. both a & b.
d. none of the above.
3. When determining if a teacher’s discipline constitutes excessive and unreasonable
punishment, courts will often examine all of the following, except:
a. the student’s age.
b. the gravity of the student’s offence.
c. posted classroom disciplinary procedures.
d. the teacher’s temper.
4. Contributory negligence is difficult to prove if students are between the ages of ___ and ___,
unless they are quite intelligent and mature.
a. 7 and 14
b. 15 and 18
c. 19 and 24.
d. All of the above.
5. Which of the following is not an educational record under the Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act (FERPA)? (May be more than one answer)
a. A student’s disciplinary records.
b. A student’s IEP.
c. A teacher’s personal notes placed in a separate file (e.g. teacher’s file).
d. Records of a law enforcement officer working in a school.
6. Courts have been most inclined to hold educators liable for damages when
a. schools identify but do not properly program for SPED children.
b. schools use inappropriate disciplinary procedures.
c. school personnel’s actions have led indirectly to emotional trauma.
d. their failure to properly supervise students has led directly to personal injury.
7.
Which of the following is not a core characteristic of a response to intervention (RTI)
system?
a. A schoolwide discipline plan
b. A screening system for identifying academic and behavior problems
c. A continuous progress monitoring system
d. Multiple tiers of increasing intensity of support
8. Two defenses often used against liability claims are
a. Assumption of risk.
b. Contributory negligence.
c. Waiver of rights.
d. All of the above
9. When parents request destruction of their child’s educational record, schools may retain
which of the following pieces of personally identifiable information? (May be more than one
answer)
a. Name, address, and phone number.
b. Grades, attendance records, grade level completed.
c. Disciplinary records, office referral, and number of days suspended.
d. All of the above.
10. IDEA 2004 requires that public school offer the following services to parentally placed
private school special education students. (May be more than one answer)
a. Locating students through the child find process.
b. Identification and evaluation.
c. Providing on-site special education services.
d. Consult with private school officials.
Short Answer
1. Explain the two reasons that Senator Buckley introduced the Family Educational Rights and
Privacy Act (FERPA).
2. When conducting searches of students or their property, school district officials should
adhere to three rules. Discuss these three rules.
3. What is the exclusionary rule? Does it apply in school settings?
4. What obligations do school districts have to students parentally placed in private schools?
5. What is response to intervention (RTI)? Where did it originate in the IDEA and how has it
changed?
6. What are tort laws? Explain the two major types of tort violations.
7. Briefly discuss information that IDEA requires be supplied to parents of students with
disabilities regarding student records.
8. Discuss principles that should be followed when school districts develop policies involving
locker searches.
9. What actions can a school district take to avoid liability for student injury?
10. Explain the concept of a reasonable standard of care and how it is important in cases
regarding negligence.
Essay
1. Schools must adhere to three primary requirements contained in FERPA. Explain these
requirements.
2. Explain the four elements that must be proven in a negligence case.
3. Identify and explain responsibilities that school districts should meet with respect to school
districts’ student care and supervision.
4. Discuss 4 recommendations that school district officials should follow when developing RTI
systems.
Chapter 14: Additional Issues
True or False
Multiple Choice