Posts for September 30, 2015

These are the posts that are accumulated in our newsletter which goes out every 4-6 days during the school year. The posts are organized by the major units in our Con Law (5^th ed.) student textbook.

Teachers say critical thinking key to college and career readiness [EdSource, 9/29/15]: California teachers say critical thinking skills, not scores on standardized tests, are the best way to assess whether students are prepared for success in college and the workplace, according to an online survey by EdSource in partnership with the California Teachers Association. 

http://edsource.org/2015/teachers-say-critical-thinking-most-important-indicator-of-student-success/87810

I. Introduction to Law, the Constitution, and the Supreme Court [See TOPICS 1-10 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

US supreme court: conservatives set to retake reins after year of liberal wins [The Guardian (UK), 9/29/15]:After a spate liberal decisions on gay marriage and Obamacare, experts predict the court's conservative majority will reassert itself ahead of the 2016 election.

http://www.theguardian.com/law/2015/sep/29/us-supreme-court-conservative-majority

II. Defining the Political System: Federalism and Checks and Balances [See TOPICS 11-15 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

III. The Political System: Voting and Campaigns [See TOPICS 16-20 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

A New Way To Track California’s Biggest Political Cash [KQED, 9/29/15]: It’s a staggering number: California political spending funneled through independent campaign committees topped more than $80.6 million in the election cycle that ended in 2014, a total that’s grown almost eightfold since 2002.

http://ww2.kqed.org/news/2015/09/29/a-new-way-to-track-californias-biggest-political-cash

Legislation and the Legislative Process (TOPIC 20)

Divided House Republicans in soul-searching mode as McCarthy locks up support for top job [AP, 9/29/15]:  The five-term California Republican moved aggressively to lock up support to move into Congress' top job, second in line to the presidency. He faced little serious competition, though the same hardline conservatives who forced Boehner out command enough votes to complicate McCarthy's ascent, even without fielding a candidate of their own.

http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2015/09/29/scramble-to-fill-top-jobs-in-house-after-boehner-exit

IV. Criminal Law and Procedure (4^th, 5^th, 6^th, and 8^th amendments) [See TOPICS 21-28 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit

 

V. 1^st Amendment (Speech, Religion, Press and Assembly) [See TOPICS 29-33 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

Commission votes 7-1 to remove Ten Commandments from Oklahoma Capitol grounds [Tulsa World, 9/29/15]: The Capitol Preservation Commission on Tuesday authorized a state agency to remove the monument from the Capitol grounds to comply with a court order.

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/religion/commission-votes---to-remove-ten-commandments-from-oklahoma/article_1c5023a4-ca6e-5c5b-9dc9-420baa1fb889.html

VI. 14^th Amendment, Discrimination, Privacy, Working, Citizenship & Immigration [See TOPICS 34-41 in the 5^th edition of Constitutional Law] Here are some recent articles that are relevant to this unit:

California Settles English Language Learner Case, Promising to Implement Better Standards and Oversight [EdLawProfs Blog, 9/30/15]: Plaintiffs charged that the state Department of Education was failing to carry out its obligations to English Language Learners (ELLs) and the trial court agreed.  Under federal law, the Equal Educational Opportunities Act requires states and schools to take affirmative action to help ELLs overcome language barriers and make appropriate educational progress. 

http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/education_law/2015/09/california-settles-english-language-learner-case-promising-to-implement-better-standards-and-oversig.html

Read the settlement agreement in BJ v. California:

https://www.aclusocal.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/DJ-et-al-Settlement-Agreement.pdf