This book employs a narrative policy portraiture approach to recenter the stories of the Chinese community involved in the Lau v. Nichols court case of 1974. This seminal Supreme Court case ruled that the failure to provide adequate and accessible instruction to approximately 1800 students of Chinese ancestry denied them the opportunity to participate in public education and constituted a discrimination on the basis of national origin. While much has been written on language education policy changes for emergent bilinguals in the US, the perspectives of the key actors involved in the case are rarely heard. This book brings Chinese and Chinese American voices to the forefront, placing the participants within the retrospective social context as they reach their own conclusions about the process and outcomes of the case. It draws upon research in language policy and Asian American studies and invites readers to imagine the social futures and possibilities for what Lau v. Nichols means for the 21st century and beyond. The volume fills a significant gap in narration, representation and retrospective research and will be of interest to graduate students and researchers in Asian American studies, bilingual education, educational policy and leadership, as well as teachers, school administrators and policymakers.

There have been four major court decisions affecting bilingual education: Lau V. Nichols, Serna V. Portales, Aspira V. the New York Board of Education and Keyes V. Denver School District No. 1. Lau V. Nichols was an action brought by non-English-speaking Chinese-origin students claiming to be denied an education because they could not comprehend the language in which they were being taught. After two appeals, the Supreme Court found in favor of the students under the 1964 Civil Rights Act, without prescribing a specific remedy. However, in Serna V. Portales the Circuit Court required bilingual education as a solution when a "substantial group" is involved. The decision in Aspira V. the N.Y. Board of Education required testing of students in English and their native language to determine who should receive bilingual education. The Keyes decision specified that students should receive both instruction in English and native-language instruction in other subjects until they are competent in English. It seems clear that school systems must provide non-English-speaking students with special English instruction and that they must give these students an opportunity to learn the other school subjects as well. HEW's Office of Civil Rights has issued guidelines for eliminating illegal educational practices; these involve pupil evaluation and placement in the proper type of language program.

Latinos in the United States have fought hard to attain equality, especially in the field of education. The Praeger Handbook of Latino Education in the U.S. focuses on this fight for equal educational access and represents a significant addition to American educational literature. The contributors to this volume reveal that many Latino children still face challenges that were present many decades ago. In addition to such obstacles as cultural conflicts and racism, they also face teachers, curricula, and assessments that are not always respectful to their backgrounds. Educators, parents, policy makers, and communities across the country will find this work a goldmine of detailed historical and current information.