This paper examines the impact of the court decision in Larry P. versus Riles, which declared that intelligence tests are biased and banned the overrepresentation of African-American children in educable mentally retarded programs. The paper discusses the educational situation of these children, now served in regular programs, and examines…

Presents a history and analysis of the Larry P. v Wilson Riles litigation in California which prohibited the use of intelligence tests for determining eligibility of Black children for placement in educable mentally retarded programs. Argues against the court decision, and claims tests are not biased. (APM)

Commentary and advice in four legal areas are offered in this newsletter on educational law. First, the document outlines preventive legal review for public educators in four basic steps, including anticipation of legal challenges, evaluation of the challenges' legal merits, consideration of the policy issues raised by potential challenges, and…

To help public schools minimize litigation, this newsletter recommends constitutional and legal training for public school officials and examines relevant court cases involving school official liability, intelligence tests, and religion in the schools. According to the authors, the Maine v. Thiboutot and Owen v. City of Independence cases…

Relationship between ability tests and race and issues of famous lawsuits concerning possible bias in intelligence tests are summarized. Reasons for the origins of ethnic and racial differences in general intellectual ability are considered. Prospects for the reduction of group differences and conflicts are discussed. (SLD)

Several major issues were raised against intelligence testing by the plaintiffs in Larry P. versus Wilson Riles. It was argued that since California used intelligence tests to ascertain who should be placed in programs for the educable mentally retarded (EMR), and since blacks performed less well on the tests than whites, it was the tests which…

This article questions the appropriateness of having self appointed specialists (the plaintiffs dictate to others (the school system) how to conduct their responsibilities, particularly with respect to providing children with the option of choosing to enroll in special educable mentally retarded programs. (CTM)

The future of school psychology is predicted to depend on two major issues: (1) how well professional societies resolve their conflicting problems, and (2) how well school psychologists learn to provide useful solutions to the present and future problems of schools, teachers, and pupils. (CTM)

Remarks made at the conference are summarized in seven sections of this narrative report: (1) update: recent events concerning testing,--representing the viewpoints of school districts, professional associations, government agencies, and research organizations; (2) National Institute of Education (NIE) study of school districts' use of test and…

This article presents the background, the history, and the implications of the Larry P. v Riles decisions in 1972 and in 1979 in which a federal district court enjoined California from using any standardized intelligence tests to assess Black children for eligibility for classes of educable mentally retarded. (Author/CTM)

The report summarizes findings and recommendations of a California Task Force which arose out of a California court decision (Larry P. versus Riles) which prohibits the use of intelligence tests for assessing black pupils to determine their placement in special education programs and requires alternative means of assessment. Seven major…

The analysis in this article is directed to the basic issues: Are IQ tests biased against Black children? And are IQ tests valid for the placement of Black children in special programs? The research evidence on these major issues is ambiguous and contradictory. (Author/CTM)

The Larry P. decision is criticized with reference to: (1) predictive tests and the standard curriculum; (2) the court's portrayal of special classes; (3) the effects of the 1972 decision on special class enrollment; (4) semantic confusion; and (5) the impact on Black children who experience academic difficulty. (Author/CTM)

This article addresses the question of why intelligence tests were put on trial. The courts had to weigh the validity of intelligence tests once California chose to rely upon intelligence tests to justify the large numbers of Black children in classes for the educable mentally retarded. (Author/CTM)