Racial Disparities in School Discipline

• Social-psychological theory explains racial disparities in school discipline in the U.S.
• Disciplinary problems negatively impact students' learning and life outcomes.
• Students of color are disproportionately affected.
• Bias and apprehension about bias exacerbate inequality, creating a vicious cycle between teachers and students.
• This approach is more comprehensive and offers novel implications for policy and intervention, and extends research on bias and stigmatization.
• Teacher-student relationships, school discipline, and race disparity are key factors.
• High levels of discipline problems and expulsions, especially among Black and Latino students, exist.
• Black students are suspended/expelled more than three times as often as White students.
• Nearly half of Black students had been suspended, compared to 18% of White students.
• Suspension rates for Black and Latino children increased from 1999-2007.
• Negative stereotypes about racially stigmatized children influence teachers and students, undermining relationships.
• Misinterpretations and mistrust escalate between teachers and students.
• Exclusionary discipline undermines learning opportunities.
• Black students cite suspensions/expulsions as reasons for dropping out more often.
• Completing secondary school can improve life outcomes.
• School discipline problems are associated with juvenile detention, adult incarceration, and recidivism.
• The "school-to-prison pipeline" leads Black children to experience discipline problems, drop out, and face incarceration.
• Macrosocial factors (poverty, chaotic schooling) contribute to discipline issues.
• Black students receive disproportionate punishment for the same offenses.
• Bias of teachers/officials plays a role in discipline.
• Deficiencies in children's social and emotional skills contribute to discipline issues.
• An exclusive focus on either teacher bias or student misbehavior fails to address the entire problem.
• A toxic social-psychological dynamic arises between teachers and students, informing interventions for racially disproportionate disciplinary action.
• Teacher-student relationships may worsen over time, contributing to racial disparities.
• Stereotypes affect social perception when information is ambiguous, leading to disparities in subjective offense referrals.
• Black children are more likely referred for subjective offenses like disrespect/threat.
• Racial stereotypes about Black people (aggressive, dangerous) are applied.
• The risk of negative stereotypes can make even routine challenges in school stressful.
• Students worry about biased treatment and belonging.
• Harsh disciplinary responses may confirm fears, undermining trust and motivation.
• Negative dynamics arise between teachers' perceptions/treatment and students' responses.
• Real racial differences in behavior may result, stemming from bias and stereotypes.
• Stereotyping and threat research traditions are integrated to understand disparities.
• How perceptions/treatment differ based on group identity.
• How biased treatment affects experiences/outcomes.
• Processes unfold over time, causing stable behavior patterns.
• Stereotyping and threat create psychological predicaments for teachers and students.
• Teachers and students are exposed to stereotypes, leading to harsh responses and escalated misbehavior.

Teachers' Predicament

• Teachers want to educate/inspire.
• Students at risk of underperformance offer opportunity.
• Student misbehavior can be frustrating.
• Enacting discipline is the teacher's responsibility.
• School pressure reinforces this responsibility.
• Student misbehavior threatens control/teaching goals.
• This hindrance and racial stereotypes lead to harsher discipline.
• Blacks are stereotyped as unintelligent, hostile, dangerous.
• Stereotypes can alter attributions about misbehavior, resulting in harsher punishment decisions.
• Mere thoughts of Black people led to more negative judgments of a juvenile suspect.
• Crimes by Black children are attributed to internal causes.

Students' Predicament

• The perception that a student is a troublemaker is concerning for teachers, further implying a continued cycle of misbehavior.
• Harsh disciplinary responses may seem appropriate or essential, but can also impede the potential for more growth-oriented approaches to discipline.
• Teachers may classify misbehaving Black students as troublemakers more readily than White students.

Students' predicament

• Black students are exposed to negative stereotypes.
• They worry about biased treatment and rejection.
• Fears contribute to underperformance and misbehavior.
• Awareness of potential bias can make incidents threatening, and also students contend with the risk that negative events could signal that they are seen in biased ways or are not capable of succeeding in school
• They suspect race is a factor in critical feedback.
• Students who suspect bias may ignore feedback, frustrating teachers.
• Bias perceptions lead to disobedience, protest, and noncompliance.
• Social threats undermine self-control, increase aggression and decrease prosocial behavior.
• Black students misbehaving may then be due to the bias they suffer

Recursive Cycles

• Processes between teacher and student
• Black boys worry about unfair treatment and disengage.
• Teachers see misbehavior as a threat to control.
• Concern about control is heightened, confirming suspicions.
• Teachers discipline Black boys more harshly, reinforcing concerns.
• Social phenomena reinforce concerns, therefore intervention is justified

What is known about teachers over time

• A record of misbehavior significantly impacts punishment decisions.
• Punishes children more more harshly in schools
• Processes are accelerated by racial stereotypes, quickening punishments

Shared Predicaments

• Teachers experience stereotypes by racially stigmatized children.
• They may not be sensitive to their shared reality and experience due to outside factors.
• Need to promote the psychological experience and empathy for each other, also the assumption of basic intention is also crucial

Intervention Techniques

• Improve relationships that will lead to mitigating levels of school discipline problems for those affected by the most severe cases racialy stigmatized and other forms of bullying
• There needs to be improvement upstream because there is an established negative cycle
• They provide the most central theoretical claim that stereotyping and threat undermine relationships which contributes to the highest levels of discipline

How to improve relationships for teachers

• Help teachers find students in nonpejorative ways.
• Teach and increase empathy levels

Previous Intervention results

• Suspension rates were cut in half amongst students
• Improved interventions from communications from teachers to students.
• When there is critical academic comments from teachers, it needs to reflect their high standards and confidence for the abilities of the students being taught

Further opportunities

• Continue student based interventions
• Tested the intervention focused on relationships with students in the transition to middle school

Comparison and results to alternative solutions

• Focus and discuss ways in how to reduce discipline related problems with student and teacher relationships
• More improvements and long term solutions over time

Analysis

• Study of why or what contributes in the disparities between threat processes
• Understanding in better school interventions

Unanswered questions by scholars thus far

• Are there critical periods when relationships attitudes can change?
• Understanding bias with the students?
• Can reduce the reliance over biases and provide better outcomes?

Implications to the area and topics that may need to be addressed in the future

• Student and teacher relationships in a positive light
• Positive outcomes in the light of being able to identify problems in relationships between certain groups of people

Policy

• Review actions by authorities to help teacher/student actions, and make actions fair
• May not be enough to address certain areas

Conclusion

• School discipline is a problem with a clear racial bias
• The issue doesnt solely revolve around race, but perception of relationships and other personal factors
• Important to stay focused on those affected student and teachers when trying to look for better alternatives

Explore racial disparities in school discipline, including suspension rates and the impact of negative stereotypes. Understand the systemic issues contributing to disproportionate disciplinary actions against racially stigmatized children. The content covers effective strategies for addressing these issues, considering perspectives from teachers and students.