Bias in Problem Solving and the Social Process of Student Study Teams

Abstract

Multidisciplinary teams (MDTs), such as student study teams, are mandated to (a) support students' educational functioning through systematic group problem solving and intervention and (b) offer protection against bias to students who may be referred for special education assessment. Given the proportional overrepresentation of African American students who receive special education services, however, there are concerns about the actual objectivity and fairness of the MDT process. This study is a microethnographic investigation of how the social process and context of MDTs in two rural, southern elementary schools inhibited the teams' thorough and unbiased discussion of some African American students' psychoeducational functioning. Although ethnic bias was not documented, four themes related to the social context of the team and bias in the problem-solving process were identified.

Evidence of Ethnic Disproportionality in Special Education in an English Population

“…For example, ethnic bias in identification and assessment for SEN (Knotec, 2003) and disproportionate referral to special education provision of students from socioeconomically disadvantaged or minority ethnic groups have been viewed as problematic and a concern by researchers and policy makers. However teachers and professionals such as psychologists assessing the student may view special education as a positive goal (Harry & Klinger, 2006;Skiba, Simmons, Ritter, Kohler, Henderson, & Wu, 2006).…”

Consultation Barriers Between Teachers and External Consultants: A Grounded Theory of Change Resistance in School Consultation

“…For example, teachers' mistrust and suspicion of "experts" who have little direct experience with teaching and classroom management have also been found in other studies (Rubinson, 2002;Spratt et al, 2006), and teachers' unwillingness to investigate how their own values, assumptions, and behavior might be part of the problem and their one-sided attribution of the causes to deficiencies within the child or his/her family have been reported in many studies (e.g., Farrell et al, 2009;Klingner & Harry, 2006;Knotek, 2003). Furthermore, team members' tendency of not taking teachers' perspectives seriously have also been found in Slonski-Fowler and Truscott's (2004) study.…”

“…Unfortunately, student-health teams rarely discuss school, classroom, and peer ecology or teacher practices as the causes or factors of the problem, and they mostly focus on the target students' biological and psychological deficiencies (Hjörne & Säljö, 2008). This limits the consultation possibilities with teachers and is the same problem that has been found in qualitative studies investigating American prereferral team processes (e.g., Klingner & Harry, 2006;Knotek, 2003). However, this is not always the case.…”

“…However, challenges related to the school culture and problems in multiprofessional communication between teachers and nonteachers may make effective consultation processes difficult to implement (e.g., Klingner & Harry, 2006;Knotek, 2003;Rubinson, 2002;Slonski-Fowler & Truscott, 2004;Spratt, Shucksmith, Philip, & Watson, 2006). One recurring problem is that professional boundaries, or the barriers and rivalries between professional groups, often accompany consultation between school teachers (consultees) and other professionals working as consultants (e.g., Rubinson, 2002;Spratt et al, 2006).…”

Reconceptualizing the Zone of Proximal Development: The Importance of the Third Voice

“…Furthermore, these utterances may not even be actual verbal interactions (e.g., readers responding to texts, writing influenced by established genres, etc.). Nonetheless, every utterance must be interpreted within the specific context in which it is connected with other utterances (Knotek 2003), both past and future as well as immediate and distant.…”