The "establishment clause" of the First Amendment prohibits legislation "respecting an establishment of religion." In practice, this clause restricts federal funding of schools operated by religious organizations. The Supreme Court has interpreted this to prohibit or restrict overtly religious displays. Also restricted are the public funding of textbooks at religious schools and the funding of extracurricular programs with religious purposes.
The "equal protection clause" of the 14th Amendment requires states to treat all citizens equally. The Equal Education Opportunities Act further defines these protections. States are not allowed to prevent, prohibit or deny individuals opportunities for education because of race, color, sex or national origin. These laws have resulted in desegregation of schools, oversight of school policy changes to ensure enforcement of the act and oversight of school policies and practices to ensure language barriers are not erected to prevent education of minorities.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is another piece of legislation enacted in light of the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. It is designed to address the deficiencies in educational practices for students with both diagnosed and undiagnosed disabilities, by providing oversight and funding. Specific educational deficiencies addressed include: exclusion of children with disabilities from education, lack of appropriate educational services, resource support, and improvement of educational results for disabled individuals.
Legislation such as "No Child Left Behind" requires state and local educational authorities to comply with non-discriminatory policies enshrined in the Constitution in order to receive federal funding. By denying funds to non-compliant school systems, the federal government influences the educational practices in each state even though this practice is not specifically mentioned in the Constitution.