On the topic of legal issues in education I find myself worrying about the usual topics such as copyright infringement, appropriate responses to student behavior under the law, and the like.  However, the legal issue that I am most concerned with is the emphasis that the federal and state governments place on testing.  More often I am noticing that schools claim not to be teaching "to the test" and yet they do exactly that.  While I agree that many of the topics on state mandated tests are important, even crucial, they are not everything.  In my opinion a good teacher does not "teach to the test" so that a student can earn a high grade on the OGT or SAT or what have you.  A good teacher goes beyond that.  A good teacher kindles the flames of curiosity in their students, giving them a desire to learn not only the course material, but to actively seek out information and enjoy learning about it.  I do not see that kind of teaching as often as I would like, and I believe that as long as testing remains the end, and not a means to an end, that the education system will remain in its current state.  A state that is not terrible by any means, but could be so much more.