Fostering Equitable Learning Opportunities for Middle School Students in Special Education by Reducing Their Discipline Disproportionality Rates
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Authors
Clark, Alden
Issue Date
2019-05-31
Type
Thesis
Language
en
Keywords
special education , equity , discipline , restorative practices , whytry
Alternative Title
Abstract
Students with disabilities enrolled in public schools continue to struggle to gain equitable access to learning opportunities, despite federal protections. Because of the overuse of suspensions and expulsions, researchers have indicated that students in special education are disciplined at rates 2 to 3 times that of their nondisabled counterparts. The purpose of this study was to determine whether a reduction in discipline disproportionality rates of students in special education was observable within the first 2 years of an intentional discipline reform strategy due to the implementation of the WhyTry curriculum, restorative practices philosophy, community service, and the continuation of academic supports. The research questions for this study include: RQ1: Does implementing an alternative-to-suspension strategy based on the use of the WhyTry curriculum, restorative practices philosophy, community service, and the continuation of academic supports, increase or decrease discipline disproportionality rates among students in special education within the first 2 years of implementation?; and RQ2: Will implementing an alternative-to-suspension strategy based on the use of the WhyTry curriculum, restorative practices philosophy, community service, and the continuation of academic supports, result in a meaningful change in discipline disproportionality rates among students in special education within the first 2 years of implementation? The setting of this study was a public middle school located in southwest Washington and included a census of sixth to eighth-grade students who had experienced school discipline. This research was designed to provide data on one school's intentional intervention and should be pertinent to school leaders, students in special education, and their families. The data analysis procedure of the study included computing descriptive statistics for central tendency and an effect size measurement to determine meaningful significance. The findings of this study include a 67.5% reduction of incidents resulting in students with disabilities being suspended or expelled between the first pre- and last post-intervention data and a medium to large effect size change between all years examined. School leaders could apply similar strategies to identify and reduce discipline disproportionality rates in a school of similar demographics. One future research suggestion includes examining the success of a similar intervention if not all of the included components are implemented.
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License
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States
openAccess
openAccess