Abstract
Disciplinary consequences assigned to all Texas middle school Black and White students (n = 172,551 Grade 6 students; 173,671 Grade 7 students; 175,730 Grade 8 students) for the 2008-2009 school year were analyzed to determine the extent to which statistically significant differences were present between the proportion of Black students and the proportion of White students assigned discipline consequences. Black students received in-school suspension at more than twice the percentage of their representation in the overall student sample population. Similar results were present for out-of-school suspension, with proportionately more Black students being assigned to out-of-school suspension than White students. Although the number of students assigned to disciplinary alternative education program placement was small, Black students were still assigned to this disciplinary consequence at a much higher percentage than were White students. A lack of equity was clearly demonstrated in the overrepresentation of Black middle school students assigned to disciplinary consequences.
Keywords
Between the ages of 12 and 14, most students begin developing the ability to comprehend symbolic concepts and conceptual ideas (Pennington, 2009). This span of time in a child’s life is typically referred to in school as the middle school years. The time between elementary school, marked by the end of fifth grade, and the beginning of high school, or ninth grade, is a time period when most students begin to experience conflicting values, in part because of their changing role in their family structure and the increasing influence of their peers (Pennington, 2009). Students at this time are often times behaviorally challenging. Middle school students are curious and willing to learn but only if the material to be learned seems useful to them. These students enjoy solving real-life problems but only if the activities presented are activities in which they can interact with their peers. Students in middle school often resist adult authority but at the same time need adult support, assistance, and composed direction. Though not specific to just Black students, peers become very important during this time period, and most students are highly influenced by their peer group and work to conform to the guidelines established by that group (Irvin et al., 2006).
Sprague et al. (2001) documented that middle school is also the time period during which students receive the most discipline consequences in school. Referral patterns in elementary and middle school have been analyzed by researchers, and they reveal that 6% to 9% of the children in the school are responsible for more than one half of the referrals and virtually all of the serious behaviors such as fighting and weapons (Sprague et al., 2001). Skiba, Peterson, and Williams (1997) discovered that behaviors that led to office referrals in middle school were primarily not behaviors that threatened school safety but actions that evidenced disobedience and disrespect. However, researchers (e.g., Fielding, 2004) have documented that school referral rate leads to time off task for students that may be linked to a decrease in test scores (in this study, specifically the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills assessments) and to students being referred for special education services.
After reviewing recent federal data on schools, Witt (2008) concluded that Black students were disciplined at a higher rate than any other ethnic group in school. Finding no evidence that Black students are more likely to misbehave when compared with other students from the same social and economic environments, Witt concluded that the reason Black students across the nation are suspended and expelled more frequently than students of other races continues to baffle sociologists and educators.
Researchers (e.g., Gordon, Piana, & Keleher, 2000; Skiba & Peterson, 2000; Texas Appleseed, 2008) have supported the premise that Black students and White students receive inequitable consequences for discipline offenses that are committed. Texas Appleseed documented that Black students were sent to a disciplinary alternative education placement (DAEP) for noncriminal, discretionary offenses at more than twice the rate of their representation in school enrollment. Skiba and Peterson (2000) determined that Black students were not only being assigned discipline in greater numbers than White students and in larger proportion than their representation in the student population, but additionally, Black students received discipline consequences for subjective reasons such as disrespect, whereas White students were referred less often and for more objective reasons such as smoking and vandalism. Additionally, Gordon et al. (2000) determined that the subjective beliefs of teachers and administrators may influence Black student referral and consequences. The findings of their study on racial discrimination in United States schools indicated that educators were more willing to consider extenuating consequences in assigning discipline when they perceived that the student involved had the possibility of a future that could be destroyed by suspension or expulsion. That is, educators seem to view Black students as having different future possibilities from those of White students.
Ladson-Billings (2006) supported the conviction that a historical basis exists for the discipline and achievement gap as well as other inequities that exist between predominantly Black schools and predominantly White schools. Ladson-Billings contended that Black students did not receive a quality education until 1968. Furthermore, she reported funding disparities that existed between schools that served predominantly Black students and schools that served predominantly White students. The quality of the teaching staff in predominantly Black schools became suspect when Ferguson (1998) revealed that lowest income, low-performing schools, populated by mostly Black youth, had a difficult time recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers.
Multiple researchers (e.g., Ladson-Billings, 2006; Morris, 2005; O’Brien, 1998) have studied the idea that Black students are caught in a vicious cycle that causes them to not be as prepared to receive a quality education as White students. To support the idea that most Black students do not focus on education at home, O’Brien determined that the achievement gap between Black and White students did not increase during the school year but did increase during the summer months. Thus, when educators were present to focus Black students’ attention on learning, O’Brien demonstrated that learning occurred. In the absence of these teachers, Black students’ achievement lessened over the summer months. Morris (2005) contended that students who receive increasing amounts of discipline in school become disillusioned with the educational process and develop low self-esteem. This low self-esteem leads to students developing the feeling that school is unfair and that educators have no vested interest in helping them be successful (Whitfield & Bulach, 1996). Therefore, this lowered self-esteem adds to the lack of focus on education in the summer, when teachers are not present.
Many of those students drop out of school and/or become incarcerated (Coalition for Juvenile Justice, 2001). Even if Black students do successfully graduate and establish families, the researchers at the Urban Institute (1998) reported a discrepancy in postsecondary success for Black males. These discrepancies between Black and White students remain today, as noted by Strayhorn (2008). Even with a college degree, 1 in 9 Black males was unemployed as compared with 1 in 29 White males, and Black men between the ages of 25 and 64 worked 7 fewer hours per week than their White peers. This progression leads to instability in Black families that may cause young Black students to enter school less prepared than young White students (Ladson-Billings, 2006). This instability in working fewer hours may also be linked with discipline issues of Black students at school.
Furthermore, middle school researchers have cited general inequities in discipline as a reason why students of all ethnic backgrounds may receive unwarranted discipline consequences. For instance, Gottfredson (1989) reported that inconsistent and unclear school rules and rule enforcement led to an increase in suspension and expulsion in middle schools. Additionally, McNeely, Nonnemaker, and Blum (2002) determined that students in schools with harsh discipline reported feeling less safe at school and exhibited less school connectedness than students in schools where discipline was not as harsh. This uncaring and disinterested attitude led to more students acting out and being referred to the office. Skiba et al. (1997) analyzed data in middle schools and documented that a 40% referral rate was common in middle schools over the course of a year. This finding led them to conclude that school disciplinary consequences may represent a response to developmentally appropriate behaviors of 11- to 13-year-olds with which middle school personnel are poorly equipped to deal.
Statement of the Problem
When Barack Obama was elected to the most influential position in the world, many people believed that America’s racial history was becoming a thing of the past. Prior to his election, Black parents would prepare their offspring for the insensitive realities of racism by telling them they had to work twice as hard as everyone else, just to have an opportunity to have a successful and productive life. Despite Obama’s election, current statistics still support the belief that inequities exist in fair treatment of persons of different ethnic backgrounds (Shuford, 2009).
Researchers continue to support the fact that White students are not as likely as Black students to receive discipline consequences in school (Wallace, Goodkind, Wallace, & Bachman, 2008). Because of the disproportionate amount of discipline received by Black students in schools, they are excluded from learning opportunities that other races receive while staying in the classroom. Educators believe these school absences might have decreased Black students’ ability to be successful in school, thereby increasing the achievement gap between Black and White students.
Theoretical Framework
Multiple theories support and help explain the belief that excessive or unfair application of discipline consequences in schools can lead to student and parent disillusionment with the educational process. Discussed in equity theory is the fairness of social relationships and the belief that punishments should be allocated in proportion to a student’s input or contribution (Leventhal, 1976). This theory, developed in 1962 by a workplace and behavior psychologist named John Stacy Adams, posits that employees think it is important for equality to be maintained between the contribution that they make at the job site and the result that they receive from their input. If this equity theory is applied to schools, and to this research, then students in schools should believe that consequences and rewards should be distributed to students based on their contributions to the classroom environment.
In 1965, James Coleman developed another theory that is relevant to this research: the equality of educational opportunity. Coleman believed that equality of educational opportunity existed when children were provided a free education at a level that allowed them to enter the labor force successfully. He also stated that equality existed when a common curriculum was provided to all children regardless of their background. Additionally, students must attend the same school. And finally, equality was provided within a specified locality because local taxes provided support for the schools (Coleman, 1967).
Even though the typical child traditionally spends an average of about 15,000 hours (from the age of 5 until leaving school) in the schoolhouse, Coleman’s (1967) research and that of others during that time period, such as Jencks and Plowden, led to a general acceptance among intellectuals that schools, particularly teachers, made little difference in a child’s behavior and that home influences outweighed the influence of the school (Rutter, Maughan, Mortimore, & Ouston, 1979). Since that time, researchers have determined that multiple factors in schools do affect students’ school success. Evidence is provided in this study that the kind and amount of discipline students receive in school is related to the academic achievement of Black and White students.
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study was to analyze data in order to determine the extent to which discipline referrals assigned to Black and White students enrolled in Texas middle schools were disproportional in nature. That is, to what extent were Black students and White students assigned to in-school suspension (ISS), out-of-school suspension (OSS), and DAEP placements in a manner that was disproportionate to their percentage in the school enrollment?
Research Questions
The following research questions were addressed in this study: (a) What is the difference in the proportion of Black students and White students assigned to ISS by grade (i.e., Grades 6, 7, and 8)? (b) What is the difference in the proportion of Black and White students assigned to OSS by grade (i.e., Grades 6, 7, and 8)? (c) What is the difference in the proportion of Black students and White students assigned to disciplinary alternative education program placement by grade (i.e., Grades 6, 7, and 8)?
Method
Participants
Student data for this study included information on all the 172,551 Black and White Grade 6 students, all the 173,671 Black and White Grade 7 students, and all the 175,730 Black and White Grade 8 students enrolled in public school in the state of Texas in the 2008-2009 school year. Students were identified through data received from the Texas Education Agency and the State of Texas Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS; 2010) report.
Collection of PEIMS data is required by all school districts according to the Texas Education Code 42.006 (Texas Education Agency Public Education Information Management System, 2010). The major categories of data collected by PEIMS include (a) organizational data, (b) budget data, (c) actual financial data, (d) staff data, (e) student demographic data, (f) program participation and school leaver data, (g) student attendance data, (h) course completion data, and (i) discipline data. For purposes of this study, the discipline data contained within the PEIMS were obtained. A request was made to the Texas Education Agency for the discipline data by ethnic category for all middle school students in the 2008-2009 school year. Data were received in SPSS format.
Definitions
In-school suspension
For purposes of this study, ISS was defined as “instances in which a child is temporarily removed from his/her regular classroom(s) for disciplinary purposes but remains under the direct supervision of school personnel” (U.S. Department of Education, 2010, p. 80).
Out-of-school suspension
In this study, OSS was defined as “instances in which a child is temporarily removed from his/her regular school for disciplinary purposes to another setting (e.g., home, behavior center)” (U.S. Department of Education, 2010, p. 108).
Disciplinary alternative education program
The DAEP is “an alternative school setting for students temporarily removed from the regular school setting for disciplinary reasons” (Division of Accountability Research, 2007, p. 1).
Results
In-School Suspension
To determine whether a difference was present in the proportion of Black students assigned discipline consequences and the proportion of White students assigned discipline consequences, a Pearson chi-square was conducted for each grade level, ethnic category, and discipline consequence. This statistical procedure was viewed as the optimal statistical procedure to use because frequency data were present for consequences assigned by ethnicity. As such, chi-square procedures are the statistical procedure of choice when one variable is categorical such as ethnicity and the other involves a frequency count. In addition, with the large sample size per grade, the available sample size was more than five. Therefore, the assumptions for using a chi-square were met (Field, 2009).
The Pearson chi-square, conducted to determine whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 6 Black students assigned to ISS and the proportion of Grade 6 White students assigned to ISS, yielded a statistically significant result, χ2(1) = 7292.02, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .02 (Cohen, 1988). Table 1 and Figure 1 display the percentages of Black and White students assigned to ISS. Though only 14.1% of the Grade 6 participants in this study were Black, 32% of them received ISS as compared with 14.2% of the Grade 6 White population who received ISS, yet White students comprised 34.7% of the study population.
Descriptive Statistics for Students Receiving In-School Suspension Discipline Consequences by Ethnic Membership.
Percentage of Black and White students who received in-school suspension as a function of grade level.
The Pearson chi-square used to determine whether a statistically significant difference in the proportion of Grade 7 Black students assigned to ISS and the proportion of Grade 7 White students assigned to ISS was present provided a statistically significant result, χ2(1) = 8054.96, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .02 (Cohen, 1988). Illustrated in Table 1 is the finding that although only 14.2% of the Grade 7 participants in this study were Black, 35.9% of them received ISS as compared with only 16.2% of the Grade 7 White population, who comprised 35.2% of the Grade 7 student population.
Finally, a Pearson chi-square was used to determine whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 8 Black students assigned to ISS and the proportion of Grade 8 White students assigned to ISS. The result was statistically significant, χ2(1) = 7317.38, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .02 (Cohen, 1988). Depicted in Table 1 are the percentages of Grade 8 Black and White students who were assigned to ISS. Although only 14.4% of the Grade 8 participants in this study were Black, 36.4% of them received ISS as compared with only 17.5% of the Grade 8 White students who received ISS, even though White students comprised 35.3% of the Grade 8 student population.
Out-of-School Suspension
The Pearson chi-square, conducted to ascertain whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 6 Black students assigned to OSS and the proportion of Grade 6 White students assigned to OSS, yielded a statistically significant result, χ2(1) = 11619.71, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .02 (Cohen, 1988). Depicted in Table 2 and Figure 2 are the percentages of Black and White students who were assigned OSS. Even though only 14.1% of the Grade 6 participants in the study were Black, 19.4% of them received ISS. Of the Grade 6 White student population, only 3.7% of them received OSS, although they comprised 34.7% of the Grade 6 student population.
Descriptive Statistics for Students Receiving Out-of-School Suspension Discipline Consequences by Ethnic Membership.
Percentage of Black and White students who received out-of-school suspension as a function of grade level.
A Pearson chi-square was used to determine whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 7 Black students assigned to OSS and the proportion of Grade 7 White students assigned to OSS. The result was statistically significant, χ2(1) = 12629.32, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .02 (Cohen, 1988). Table 2 illustrates the finding that although only 14.2% of the Grade 7 participants in the study were Black, 22.6% of them received OSS, as compared with 4.8% of the Grade 6 White population, who comprised 35.2% of the study population.
Finally, a Pearson chi-square was used to ascertain whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 8 Black students assigned to OSS and the proportion of Grade 8 White students assigned to OSS. The result was again statistically significant, χ2(1) = 12015.95, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .02 (Cohen, 1988). Table 2 illustrates the finding that although only 14.4% of the Grade 8 participants in the study were Black, 23.2% of them received OSS, as compared with 5.4% of the Grade 8 White population, who comprised 35.3% of the study population.
Disciplinary Alternative Education Program Placement
A Pearson chi-square, calculated to ascertain whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 6 Black students assigned to DAEP and the number of Grade 6 White students assigned to DAEP, was statistically significant, χ2(1) = 1716.66, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .01 (Cohen, 1988). Depicted in Table 3 and Figure 3 are the percentages of Black and White students who received DAEP. Although only 14.1% of the Grade 6 participants in the study were Black, 4.1% of them received DAEP, as compared with 1.1% of the Grade 6 White population, who comprised 34.7% of the study population.
Descriptive Statistics for Students Receiving Disciplinary Alternative Education Program Discipline Consequences by Ethnic Membership.
Percentage of Black and White students who received a disciplinary alternative education program as a function of grade level.
A Pearson chi-square was calculated to determine whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 7 Black students assigned to DAEP and the proportion of Grade 7 White students assigned to DAEP. The result was statistically significant, χ2(1) = 2090.25, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .01 (Cohen, 1988). Table 3 illustrates the finding that although only 14.2% of the Grade 7 participants in the study were Black, 5.9% of them received DAEP as compared with 1.8% of the Grade 7 White population, who comprised 35.2% of the study population.
Finally, a Pearson chi-square was used to ascertain whether a statistically significant difference was present in the proportion of Grade 8 Black students assigned to DAEP and the proportion of Grade 8 White students assigned to DAEP. The result was again statistically significant, χ2(1) = 1926.57, p < .001. The effect size for this finding, Cramer’s V, was small, .01 (Cohen, 1988). Grade 8 Black students were assigned to DAEP 7.0% of the time, compared with 2.6% of Grade 8 White students who were assigned to DAEP. Readers are referred to Table 3 for these percentages.
Discussion
Researchers continue to document that Black students receive more discipline consequences in school than their same-aged White peers (Skiba & Peterson, 2000). This inconsistency is particularly evident in middle school, a time period when students seem to be the most curious and cunning and seem to receive more discipline consequences than they do in elementary and high school (Skiba et al., 1997). Black students are also referred to the office for more minor infractions than are White students (Skiba & Peterson, 2000). One purpose of this study was to add to the growing body of research in the area of school discipline and proportionality of disciplinary assignments by ethnic membership.
Participants in this study were Black students and White students who were enrolled in Grade 6, Grade 7, or Grade 8 during the 2008-2009 school year; the latest school year for which data were available. Data were obtained from the PEIMS data base through the Texas Education Agency. For all discipline consequences, Grade 6 Black students received proportionally more discipline consequences than did Grade 6 White students. In this study, Grade 6 Black students received ISS consequences 2.26 times more often than Grade 6 Black students. Although Wallace et al. (2008) stated that little research in school discipline has been conducted on whether racial differences exist in the distribution of consequences less severe than suspension from school and expulsion, this finding for ISS was in line with their research finding that Black students had between 2 and 3 times higher suspension and expulsion rates than White students. The data for this study were reported using the commonly used definition of disproportionality (Harry & Anderson, 1995). The reported percentages reflect the percentage of the target group compared with the distribution of the category being analyzed. For example, the Grade 6 data analysis finding that 32.1% of Grade 6 Black students in this study received ISS indicated that 67.9% of the Grade 6 Black student population in this study did not receive ISS. However, Grade 6 Black students comprised only 14.1% of the study population. Using this calculation, Grade 6 Black students were assigned OSS and DAEP consequences, respectively, more than 5 times and almost 4 times the rate of their Grade 6 White peers. This finding supports earlier findings by Monroe (2005b) who reported that Black students were 2 to 5 times more likely to be suspended than their White peers.
As depicted in Table 1, Grade 7 Black students were 2.2 times more likely to receive ISS consequences than were Grade 7 White students. Table 2 illustrates that Grade 7 Black students were 4.7 times more likely to receive OSS than were Grade 7 White students. Table 3 illustrates that Grade 7 Black students were 3.7 times more likely to receive DAEP than were Grade 7 White students. Billitteri (2008) asserted that even in mostly Black urban schools, Black students were disciplined out of proportion to their enrollment. Adams (2008) reported that even middle-class and wealthy Black students were punished more often and more severely than their non-Black peers.
For all discipline consequences, Grade 8 Black students received proportionately more discipline consequences than Grade 8 White students. Grade 8 Black students received ISS more than 2 times as much as Grade 8 White students. This finding supports the research of Jordan and Anil (2009) who documented that in their study of Grade 8 students in four middle schools, Black students had a 1½ times greater chance of receiving a discipline referral than White students. Although Jordan and Anil also stated that poor students were more than 2½ times likely to receive disciplinary referrals than other students, this finding has been contradicted by the findings of a larger study of more than 11,000 students. Skiba et al. (2002) determined that socioeconomic status had a minimal influence on which ethnic group received more discipline consequences. This research, however, and the research of others continue to support the fact that Black students in middle school receive more discipline consequences than their same-aged White peers. Therefore, it is important to understand why Black students receive more discipline consequences than White students.
Researchers (e.g., Christle, Nelson, & Jolivette, 2007; Gordon et al., 2000; Monroe, 2005a) have established that differences in Black culture and White culture may influence Black student learning in schools. Monroe (2005a) supported the belief that because 87% of the teachers in the nation’s 100 largest school districts are White, a Eurocentric climate exists in schools, a climate that is different from the Black culture. In a recent study by Bone, Slate, and Martinez-Garcia (2011), the majority of the teachers employed in Texas public school districts were also White teachers. Black students use different communication styles and exhibit nonspoken behaviors that are very different from the communication styles of White students, who subscribe to the Eurocentric culture. Therefore, Black students are oftentimes disciplined for culturally based behaviors that are not intended to be disruptive (Gordon et al., 2000). This finding was supported by Christle et al. (2007), who determined that in 161 middle schools in Kentucky, majority White student enrollment was associated with low suspension rates. Additionally, Monroe (2005a) determined that the criminalization of Black males causes teachers to believe that Black youth require greater discipline control than White students, therefore, putting more emphasis on control of discipline in classrooms highly populated by Black youth than on academic learning.
To decrease the amount of discipline consequences assigned to students of all ethnicities and backgrounds, administrators throughout Texas, and other states as well, should collect and disaggregate data on the reasons why students are assigned discipline consequences. These data could be used to develop interventions that can occur in the classroom before a student is sent out of the classroom for discipline-related issues. Additionally, researchers should focus on schools that have successfully reduced their discipline referral rate and determine what is currently occurring to keep students in class. Last, valuable insight may come from studies on school climate and how it influences student discipline referral rate.
Because of a focus in this study on discipline as related to Black students and White students, data on only two ethnic groups were analyzed. In the process of data coding, it was determined that more than 45% of the middle school students in Texas were Hispanic. Further research should focus on ethnicities besides Black and White to ascertain if discipline consequences affect students in the Hispanic community, Asian community, and others in the same manner as Black students and White students.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.