Georgia State Conference of Branches of NAACP

v. State of GeorgiaBrittney Klauser

EDPSY68511/25/13

Review of Important Legislation (The Library of Congress)

13th Amendment

14th Amendment Section

• Education is a property right

504 of the Rehabilitation act of 1973

Relevant Cases Hobson v. Hansen

(Jacob, S. et al., 2011)

• First to challenge the disproportionate assignment of minorities to lower ability tracks

• Violation of the 14th Amendment Judge ruled in favor of

the plaintiff

Larry P. v. Riles (Reschley, D. J., et al., 1988)

• Claimed IQ tests were biased that using them for placement was discrimination

• Violated students’ civil rights and violated section 504 Judge ruled in favor of

the plaintiff

Marshall v. Georgia (LEAGEL)

Class action suit involving 45 African American Children

Two causes for the action:• Use of achievement grouping results in

intra-school racial segregation Violation of the 13th and 14th amendment

• African American children in Georgia are assigned to EMR programs in a discriminatory manner Violation of the 13th and 14th amendment and Section

504

Marshall v. Georgia continued (LEAGEL)

Court held that ability grouping that results in within-school segregation is permissible IF the district can demonstrate that the grouping remedies past segregation by providing better educational opportunities

Court ruled in favor of the defendants

Comparison of Black and White Mildly Retarded Students from Marshall v. Georgia (Reschely D. J. &

Kicklighter R. J., 1985)

Random sample of African American

and white students from Marshall v.

Georgia

• Found to be the same on most variables

• Slightly greater impairment in white

children

• One student was misclassified

• Problems with pre-placement evaluations

Cases after Marshall v. Georgia

Simmons v. Hooks (1994)• Plaintiff claimed discrimination and

segregation due to race through ability grouping in the school

• Marshall v. Georgia was cited in defense of the defendant

• The court upheld the previous ruling of Marshall v. Georgia

Differences between Hobson and Marshall (Reschley, et al., 1988)

IQ testing vs. skill acquisition

Rigid vs. flexible groups

Lowered vs. enhanced educational

opportunities

How should we group to achieve excellence with equity? (Grossen, B., 1996)

Achievement grouping is not he

primary variable in school

effectiveness

Mixed-age grouping based on

achievement is effective

When is equity achievement?

Relevance to School Psychologists

Is labeling African American children as having a learning disability advantageous? (Gold & Richards, 2012)

Is the overrepresentation of African American children in special education a persisting problem? (Patton, 1998)

How does this apply to us as school psychologists and clinical practitioners?

Reflection

Overrepresentation is a continuing

problem

Resources in relation to case law and

legislation

References Gold, M. E. & Richards, H. (2012). To label or not to label: The special education

question for African Americans. Educational Foundations, 26, 143-156. Grossen, B. (1996). How should we group to achieve excellence with equity? National

Center to Improve the Tools of Educators, 1-18. Jacob, S., Decker, D. M., & Hartshorne, T. S. (2011). Ethics and Law. Hoboken, New

Jersey: Wiley. LEAGEL. GA. STATE CONF. OF BR. OF NAACP V. STATE OF GA. Retrieved from:

http://www.leagle.com/decision/19852178775F2d1403_11977 Patton, J. M. (1998). The disproportionate representation of African Americans in

special education. The Journal of Special Education 32, 25-31. Reschley, D. J. & Kicklighter, R. J. (1985). Comparison of black and white mildly

retarded students from Marshall v. Georgia. Retrieved from: http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED270938

Reschly, D. J., Kicklighter, R., & McKee, P. (1988). Recent placement litigation: I. Regular education grouping: Comparison of Marshall (1984, 1985) and Hobson (1967,1969). School Psychology Review, 17(1), 9-21.

Reschly, D. J., Kicklighter, R., & McKee, P. (1988). Recent placement litigation: II. Minority EMR overrepresentation: Comparison of Larry P. (1979, 1984, 1986) with Marshall (1984, 1985) and S-1 (1986). School Psychology Review, 17(1), 2-38.

Simmon v. Hooks. 843 F. Supp. (1994). Retrieved from: http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=15366944577577798413&q=Simmons+v.+Hooks&hl=en&as_sdt=800006&as_vis=1

The Library of Congress. (2013, November 19th). Primary Document in American History. Retrieved from: http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs.html

U.S. Department of Justice. (2009, July). A Guide to Disability Rights Law. Retrieved from: http://www.ada.gov/cguide.htm#anchor65610