ABSTRACT
The last chapter showed that the Equal Protection Clause prohibits most race-and gender-based classifications by public schools and that classification based on other characteristics may be justified if it is rationally related to legitimate government goals. Chapter 7 considers some criteria that do justify differential educational treatment: various types of disabilities, limited English proficiency, age, and educational ability. Unlike race and gender, these characteristics may be related to an individual’s need for and ability to benefit from education, and, to the extent that they are, they may be the basis for determining the educational program that an individual receives.
