EDLD 5344 School Law
Week 5: Reflection
Reflection
Throughout this course we have discussed a number of legal issues facing today’s public-
school educators. For your final assignment, you will select three legal issues that you feel will
be most relevant to you as a school administrator. One of these issues will focus on student
management; a second on personnel management. The third can relate to any topic we’ve
covered in the course. By giving your responses to the questions that follow, you will 1) record
what you have learned in this course, 2) reflect on its significance in your professional life, and
3) develop a plan to further increase your knowledge and skills.
Follow These Steps
1. Reflect upon what you have learned about law and public education.
2. Use the guiding questions in each section to stimulate your thinking as you write three
150-word essays. The questions are meant to guide you, but you may not necessarily
provide specific answers to all of them.
3. Write reflectively instead of in “question and answer” style, and feel free to add any
related thoughts that go beyond the scope of the writing guidelines.
4. Use formal writing style and cite Essential Readings and court decisions that support
your ideas.
5. Submit your three completed essays by the end of Week 5.
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EDLD 5344 School Law
Rubric
Use this rubric to guide your work.
Needs
Week 5: Reflection Accomplished Proficient Unacceptable
Improvement
Reflection Completes all 3 Completes 2 essays Completes 1 essay Did not submit
essays of the of the reflection of the reflection reflection
reflection assignment assignment assignment
assignment using (5 points) (3 points) (0 points)
the minimum 150-
words requirement
(8 points)
Mechanics No mechanical One to four More than five
writing errors mechanical writing mechanical writing
(2 points) errors errors
(1 point) (0 points)
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EDLD 5344 School Law
Ranada Smith
Essay 1: Student Management
Respond to the questions in the red box. Your essay should:
Use citations from the research when applicable.
Use professional writing protocols.
Use professional language.
Which of the student-management issues discussed in this course is most relevant to you
as a school administrator?
How have your views changed about the proper policies and procedures to employ
regarding student management?
How will the knowledge gained on this topic help you become an effective school leader?
How will it help your staff and your students?
Type your essay in the space below.
FERPA which stands for Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 sets specific
guidelines to what information schools and districts can use when it comes to the privacy of
students education records. My district takes it very seriously and prefers we do not use any
information regardless of whether the parents signed a form from our policy handbook giving us
permission to use the information. As a Kindergarten teacher we post a lot of pictures on line of
our classrooms and students. My principal requires us to get an extra form signed by parents
giving us permission to use their child’s picture specifically for our website. I believe our
management of student records is efficient at our school and we do everything within in the
guidelines if not more. I also believe that FERPA is great policy for the protection of students.
But at the same time we as teachers have to not only protect students from the outside world but
also from themselves. I find it ironic that FERPA is limiting the information that is to be given
out about students but students are so freely giving it out themselves. We must continue to
educate parents and students alike about the privacy of all records and how easily they are
accessed and attainable outside of the school.
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EDLD 5344 School Law
Ranada Smith
Essay 2: Personnel Management
Respond to the questions in the red box. Your essay should:
Use citations from the research when applicable.
Use professional writing protocols.
Use professional language.
What have you learned about teacher evaluation and remediation that you did not know
before taking this class?
How will the information presented in this course help you become a better manager of
your school employees?
What aspect of school personnel management do you feel you need to learn more about?
How do you plan to gain this knowledge?
Type your essay in the space below.
It was interesting to find out about the three types of teacher contracts and how different Chapter
21 of the Texas Code defines the teachers. I am familiar with the probationary and contract
teachers. I was a probationary teacher several years ago and now I am a contract teacher. I did
not know that after leaving a district for a two year absence or transferring to a new district you
were consider a probationary teacher. The probationary teacher has no property right. The
school district only has to give the teacher a 45 day notice before termination unlike the contract
teacher that is entitled to a hearing and a 45 day notice. There must be “good cause” to terminate
the contract teacher. Until the teacher retires or leaves the district the property rights of a
continuing teacher will continue to exist. But the continuing contracts are rare and few. The
evaluation of teachers and documentation is imperative when renewing the contracts. As a
leader knowing the existence or non-existence of the law is crucial. I feel that a school can
strive when the leader manages it efficiently and influences the school in positive ways. I think
that policy and the law will continue to be challenged but being knowledgeable about it is good
leadership. I will continue to take classes and workshops that keep me fully informed about the
law. I will always continue to ask questions about what is going on and if there are legally bases
for the students and the schools actions in every situation.
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EDLD 5344 School Law
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EDLD 5344 School Law
Ranada Smith
Essay 3: Improving Professional Practice
Respond to the questions in the red box. Your essay should:
Use citations from the research when applicable.
Use professional writing protocols.
Use professional language.
Select another legal topic covered in this course that you feel affects you as a school
leader.
What have you learned about this topic, and how will this new knowledge affect your
decision-making as an administrator?
What professional development opportunities can you spearhead in your school to
inform teachers about this issue?
Type your essay in the space below.
In recent news the media has shed not a new but brighter light on cyber bullying with
the death of Tyler Clementi, a college student at Rutgers, who committed suicide over
cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is a harmful act that is carried out by an individual or
group of people using technology devices such as emails, instant messaging, and social
networks to name a few. Cyber bullying is a senseless silent crime that spreads quickly.
In the past, as an elementary teacher I did not put much emphasis on cyber bullying
because I thought it was something older students encountered. But I realize that
starting early and providing information to students and parents to prevent and reduce
cyber bulling is imperative. Cyber bullying can happen to anyone who has access to
technology devices. I think that providing a staff development that informs teachers
about cyber bullying and giving teachers, age appropriate literature on how to talk to
their students would be advantageous to all involved. I know that we hold forums to talk
to our students about bullying and also invite parents to the forum. But I think that being
more specific about cyber bullying is something that we need to improve. We provide a
Bully Alert once a week on our morning announcements but I have yet to hear one
about cyber bullying. As a technology leader it is my responsibility to provide all the
information I can on cyber bullying to the teachers and staff. Also I feel providing
pertinent information on how to implement these policies into a curriculum for all grade
levels is my responsibility. I believe signing the Student handbook is not enough we
need to be pro active.
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