Vulnerable Decision Points for Disproportionate Office Discipline Referrals: Comparisons of Discipline for African American and White Elementary School Students

Smolkowski, Keith; Girvan, Erik J.; McIntosh, Kent; Nese, Rhonda N. T.; Horner, Robert H.

doi:10.17988/bedi-41-04-178-195.1

Cited by 148 publications

(64 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Racial disparities in the disciplinary process have been well documented in the literature (Losen et al, 2015;Losen & Gillespie, 2012;Welsh & Little, 2018). African American students are more likely to receive an ODR than their White peers (Skiba et al, 2011), and evidence suggests that African American students are more likely to receive an ODR for subjective infractions-those that require teacher judgment, such as disruption or defiance-as opposed to objective infractions (e.g., tardiness or truancy) compared with White peers (Skiba et al, 2002;Smolkowski, Girvan, et al, 2016). Following an infraction, African American students are also more likely to receive harsher consequences than White peers, even when the behavior violation is similar (Okonofua & Eberhardt, 2015;Skiba et al, 2002).…”

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confidence: 93%

Disproportionality Reduction in Exclusionary School Discipline: A Best-Evidence Synthesis

Cruz

Firestone

Rodl

2021

Review of Educational Research

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A full canon of empirical literature shows that students who are African American, Latinx, or American Indian/Alaskan Native, and students who are male, diagnosed with disabilities, or from low socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to experience exclusionary discipline practices in U.S. schools. Though there is a growing commitment to mitigating discipline disparities through alternative programming, it is clear that disproportionality in the application of harmful discipline practices persists. The purpose of this literature synthesis was to examine the effectiveness of empirically studied school-based interventions in reducing disproportionality in discipline practices. We analyzed articles that assessed both prevention and intervention program effects using at least one outcome variable representing exclusionary discipline, either in the form of office discipline referrals or suspension/expulsion rates. Included studies used experimental, quasi-experimental, or observational research designs that disaggregated student outcomes by race, ethnicity, gender, disability, or other sociodemographic categories. We identified 20 articles meeting inclusion criteria, four of which provided direct evidence of disproportionality reduction using interaction terms. Results indicate limited evidence that available programs reduce discipline disparities and that common programs may function as a protective factor for White and female students while failing to do so for marginalized students. Findings identify promising areas for future research.

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confidence: 93%

Disproportionality Reduction in Exclusionary School Discipline: A Best-Evidence Synthesis

Cruz

Firestone

Rodl

2021

Review of Educational Research

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“…One goal of the policy changes impacting programs receiving state or federal funds for the care of children was to make it less likely teachers or directors would make a quick, high stakes decision in a vulnerable moment in which they are perhaps more likely to act on implicit bias. The term "vulnerable decision points" has been used to describe contextual events that increase the likelihood of implicit bias affecting discipline decision-making (McIntosh, Girvan, Horner, & Smolkowski, 2014;Smolkowski, Girvan, Mcintosh, Nese, & Horner, 2016). Examples could include when teachers are tired, when there is a strong fear of being perceived as having lost control of the classroom, or when there is external pressure (e.g., an angry parent).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of a statewide initiative to reduce expulsion of young children

Edge

Kyzer

Abney³

et al. 2020

Infant Mental Health Journal

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This program evaluation study describes 3 years of implementation of Arkansas's BehaviorHelp (BH) system, a statewide expulsion prevention support system for early care and education (ECE). BH coordinates three tiers of supports to ECE professionals, including phone support, on‐site technical assistance (TA), and infant and early childhood mental health consultation (IECMHC). We examine differences in characteristics of those served across BH service tiers, describe short‐term case outcomes, and explore factors associated with expulsions. BH accepted referrals for 1,195 children in 488 ECE programs. The majority of referrals involved male children over the age of three, and most cases were assigned to the TA tier (68.5%). Cases assigned to receive IECMHC (28.4%) were more likely to involve children in foster care, receiving developmental therapies, and with higher rates of exposure to potentially traumatic events. The expulsion rate among referred children was 2.9%, and reported teacher engagement with the support process was high. Teachers receiving IECMHC services reported significant improvements in children's symptoms of emotional and behavioral problems. Exploratory analyses revealed that risk factors for expulsion included being a male, in foster care, in a lower quality ECE environment, and having a teacher with less training in social–emotional development.

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“…For instance, prospective teachers are more likely to misperceive Black children as more angry than White children (Halberstadt et al, 2020). Additionally, Smolkowski et al (2016) find that more subjective forms of behavior such as defiance allow for implicit bias to be involved in teachers' decisionmaking; which can negatively impact disciplinary outcomes for Black children. Consequently, the implicit biases toward Black children highlight the need for additional research on targeting behavioral interventions with a specific focus on teacher perceptions of Black students and implicit bias as they relate to Black students are particularly warranted.…”

Section: Reasons For the Disproportionate Disciplining Of Black Childrenmentioning

confidence: 98%

A systematic review of the What Works Clearinghouse's behavioral intervention evidence: Does it relate to Black children

Graves

Phillips

Jones

et al. 2021

Psychology in the Schools

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The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) is a source that is used to report the empirical evidence for interventions. The purpose of this review was to understand the presence of Black children in research that has been classified as Meeting the Standards With and Without Reservations by the WWC. Results indicated that 16 interventions met the WWC standards with specific outcomes focusing on positive behavioral skills, social outcomes, change in values and attitudes, and school engagement. These interventions resulted in 22 peer-reviewed articles that were based on a group design, with 26 publications utilizing single-case methodology. From a methodological standpoint, none of the articles in this review analyzed results separately by race. Relatedly none of the reviewed interventions that meet standards or meet standards without reservations were culturally modified which has proven to be more beneficial than standard practice. Furthermore, the articles based on the interventions did not address specific causes of disparate behavioral outcomes in schools (e.g., perceived disrespect, defiance, insubordination, and disobedience) identified in the research base. Implications are discussed in terms of the validity of WWC studies as they relate to Black children.

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Vulnerable Decision Points for Disproportionate Office Discipline Referrals: Comparisons of Discipline for African American and White Elementary School Students

Cited by 148 publications

References 42 publications

Disproportionality Reduction in Exclusionary School Discipline: A Best-Evidence Synthesis

Disproportionality Reduction in Exclusionary School Discipline: A Best-Evidence Synthesis

Evaluation of a statewide initiative to reduce expulsion of young children

A systematic review of the What Works Clearinghouse's behavioral intervention evidence: Does it relate to Black children

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