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Students with disabilities or who are at risk for disabilities, and from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds typically receive disproportionately more negative consequences in schools, including office disciplinary referrals and referrals for special education evaluation. In an effort to decrease the overrepresentation of culturally, ethnically, and racially diverse students receiving punitive disciplinary practices and inaccurate referrals for special education services, it is imperative that teachers utilize evidence-based practices and create lessons that are culturally responsive to increase the likelihood that students are engaged in instruction and not in problem behaviors. This article outlines how teachers can develop lessons that implicitly or explicitly focus on culture and incorporate key evidence-based practices for working with challenging behavior. A lesson planning tool is provided to assist teachers in their efforts to be systematic in their incorporation of discussed practices in their instruction.

This exploratory study occurred in Title 1 schools located within a large urban area. The sample included 23 general educators and 551 students in second through fifth grade, with 57 students identified as at risk for an emotional or behavioral disorder. The purpose of this study was to determine (a) to what extent general education teachers used evidence-based practices—specifically, opportunities to respond, positive specific feedback, and precorrections—during classroom instruction, and (b) if those practices occurred at different rates across demographic groups (i.e., race and disability risk). The results indicated that teachers used higher rates of opportunities to respond and positive specific feedback with students not at risk compared with at-risk students. We did not find main effects of race or race-by-disability risk interaction effects. These findings support the need to continue examining teachers’ differing uses of evidence-based practices.

Historically, schools across the nation have struggled to address significant racial or ethnic disproportionality, including overrepresentation in exclusionary discipline practices, special education identification, and restrictive educational placements. The federal government has mandated that local education agencies monitor and address disproportionality but has provided little guidance on how to begin. This current topics column discusses this moral and ethical issue and provides ways schools can begin to address or prevent disproportionality in disciplinary practices.

The use of exclusionary discipline practices in schools has been well documented since the 1970s with the passing of the Safe Schools Act and implementation of zero-tolerance policies. Despite research indicating the ineffectiveness of exclusionary practices, students continue to receive suspensions and expulsions at alarming rates.Additional research highlights that there may be misconceptions regarding the application of suspensions and their perceived functions and effectiveness on students and their families. The purpose of this article is to discuss common misconceptions regarding the effects of suspension and provide teachers, school psychologists, and administrators with proactive strategies for implementation in local systems to create positive school climates and optimize successful outcomes for all students and staff.Traditional approaches to school discipline such as applying exclusionary discipline practices (i.e., in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension [OSS], expulsion), are reactive and have a long history of exclusion and discrimination.

Although there is increasing awareness of policy decisions contributing to disproportionality in exclusionary practices, few studies have empirically examined common elements of discipline policies across the nation. We utilized a methodological review and the Checklist for Analyzing Discipline Policies and Procedures for Equity (CADPPE) to examine the extent to which current policies reflect recommendations from research regarding best practices for encouraging appropriate behaviors and preventing undesired behaviors, as well as correlations between those policies and exclusionary disciplinary outcomes for all students of color and students of color with disabilities. Data came from 147 district discipline policies and disciplinary outcomes (i.e., suspension and expulsion) from all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The analyses indicated the majority of policies do not include most of the research-based recommendations for preventing the overuse of exclusionary practices. Furthermore, there was no correlation found between CADPPE ratings and the risk ratios for exclusionary discipline for students of color and students of color with disabilities. Implications for policy development and implementation and limitations are provided.

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This exploratory study occurred in 10 title 1 schools located within a Midwestern state. The sample included 23 general educators and 551 students in second through fifth grade. Fifty-seven students identified as at risk for an emotional or behavioral disorder represented the targeted sample. The purpose of this study was to determine if teachers' implementation of evidence-based practices (EBP) occurred at different rates across demographic groups (i.e., race and disability risk). The results indicated that teachers used higher rates of opportunities to respond (OTR) with students not at risk compared to students at risk but used higher rates of positive specific feedback with students who were at risk compared to students not at risk. Students at risk who were Black also received statistically significantly more OTR than White at-risk students.Results of the study illuminate the need to continue examining teachers' differing use of EBP as contributors to and predictors of student outcomes and disproportionality.