Ms. Brady

John F. Kennedy High School

 

WebQuest:

DOES “SEPARATE BUT EQUAL” STILL APPLY?

 

 


                       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


INTRODUCTION

 

          You are a lawyer representing a student who was denied admission into one of New York City’s new small schools, which is scheduled to open in September 2004.  No reason was given for denying your client’s application for admission, but you suspect it was because she is currently labeled a “Special Education” student.  Two of her friends, who live in the same neighborhood but who are not Special Education students, were granted admission to the same small school.

          In preparing a case against the New York City Department of Education (formerly the NYC Board of Education), you have been searching the law books for previous Supreme Court cases that would support your position and apply to the case you are building.  You choose Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas because of certain striking similarities.

 

TASK

 

1.    Using at least one website provided in the RESOURCES section, you will (a) describe the social conditions in the American South in the first half of the 20th century and (b) the Supreme Court case of Plessy v. Ferguson, both of which led to the need for Brown v. Board of Education.

 

2.    Using Compulegal, you will locate Brown v. Board of Education.  This can be found under Equal Protection Cases: Race. 

 

·       Discuss the facts of the case

·       Explain the arguments for both sides and choose (justify) one side

·       Explain the Supreme Court’s decision in the case.

 

3.    Develop an argument to support your client’s contention that the New York City Department of Education’s new small schools, in their selective admissions process, are violating the decision of Brown v. Board of Education.

 

 

PROCESS

 

1.    Visit the websites about the American South and Plessy v. Ferguson and write a 1-2 page essay on segregation in the United States in the first half of the 20th century.

2.    Using CompuLegal:

a.     read the facts of Brown v. Board of Education

b.     examine a visual of the case

c.     visit the CompuLegal Reasoning page.  On this page you can read the arguments of the case, study precedents that applied to Brown (including Plessy), and read about how the Constitution and Bill of Rights apply to this case.  Then, in the boxes provided on the Reasoning page, summarize the arguments for both sides.

d.     in one paragraph, summarize the decision of the Supreme Court in Brown.

3.  Prepare a 2-page legal brief in which you will use the knowledge gained from your study of Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education, as well as Jim Crow laws and segregation in the American South, to support your client’s position in her case against the New York City Board of Education.

 

RESOURCES

 

for conditions in the American South (1890’s-1950’s):

     http://www.africana.com/research/encarta/segregation.asp

 

for Plessy v. Ferguson:

     http://www.watson.org/~lisa/blackhistory/post-civilwar/plessy.html

 

     http://www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/conlaw/sepbutequal.htm

 

for Brown v. Board of Education:

Compulegal

 

 

EVALUATION

Grade  A

·        Showed a complete and detailed understanding of the topic and task

·        Successfully discussed similarities and differences in detail

·        Richly supported the task using relevant facts and examples

·        The paper was typed and checked for spelling and grammatical errors

 

Grade  B 

 

·        Showed a good understanding of the topic and task

·        Successfully discussed similarities and differences

·        Included relevant facts and examples to support opinions and perspectives

·        The paper was typed and checked for spelling and grammatical errors

 

Grade C

·        Showed a satisfactory understanding of the topic and task

·        Completed most aspects of the task

·        Included some facts and examples to support opinions and perspectives but not in depth

·        The paper was typed and checked for spelling and grammatical errors

 

Grade D

·        Showed little understanding of the topic or task

·        Attempted to address task but provided little relevant information

·        Included little facts and examples

·        The paper was typed and had minor spelling and grammatical errors

 

Grade F

·        Did not address the topic or task

·        Included no relevant facts and examples

·        Paper not typed and many spelling and grammatical errors

 

 

 

STANDARDS

 

Social Studies:

§        Analyze how the values of the nation affect the guarantee of human rights and make provision for human needs

§        Analyze the sources of a nation’s values as embodied by its constitution, statutes and important court cases.

§        Understand how the United States constitution supports majority rule but also protects the right of the majority.       

§        Both the written document and the oral report will be assessed against the following rubrics.

 

English Language Arts

§        E1c Read and comprehend informational materials.

§        E1d Demonstrate familiarity with a variety of public documents.

§        E2b Produce a report of information.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

Having successfully completed this assignment, you are now able to:

 

1.     Analyze a case forming an opinion based on the facts of the case

2.     Research a topic using the Internet as a source

3.     Compare and contrast different legal cases

4.     Apply a legal precedent to a current legal problem.