Restorative for All? Racial Disproportionality and School Discipline Under Restorative Justice

A growing number of schools are adopting restorative justice (RJ) practices that de–emphasize exclusionary discipline and aim for racial equity. We examine student discipline as RJ programs matured in Meadowview Public Schools from 2008 to 2017. Our difference–in–difference estimates show that students in RJ schools experienced a profound decline in their suspension rates during the first 5 years of implementation. However, the benefits of RJ were not shared by all students, as disciplinary outcomes for Black students were largely unchanged. While the overall effects of RJ in this context are promising, racial disproportionality widened. Our results suggest that the racial equity intentions of RJ may be diluted as schools integrate RJ into their existing practices.

The inequitable consequences of school disciplinary policies on Black girls in Ohio

Studies have examined the effects of school disciplinary policies and practices on Black boys. Much of this research highlights the degree to which many of these disciplinary policies and practices have affected Black boys in P-12 contexts in negative ways. A small and emerging body of scholarship has begun to investigate the effects of school discipline policies and practices in P-12 contexts on Black girls. The focus of this study was to investigate the effects of disciplinary policies on Black girls in comparison to girls from other races in the 15 largest school districts in Ohio. Drawing from recent out-of-school suspension data from the Office for Civil Rights Data Collection, we examined the degree to which Black girls were suspended out of school in the 15 largest school districts in Ohio. More specifically, out-of-school suspension rates (1 or more suspensions combined) for Black girls in relation to the suspension rates of girls from other racial backgrounds was analyzed. Findings indicated that Black girls were suspended at disproportionately higher rates in the majority of the districts in this study. Recommendations for practice are discussed.

A Scalable Empathic-Mindset Intervention Reduces Group Disparities in School Suspensions

Suspensions remove students from the learning environment at high rates throughout the United States. Policy and theory highlight social groups that face disproportionately high suspension rates—racial-minoritized students, students with a prior suspension, and students with disabilities. We used an active placebo-controlled, longitudinal field-experiment (Nteachers=66, Nstudents=5,822) to test a scalable “empathic-mindset” intervention, a 70-minute online exercise to refocus middle-school teachers on understanding and valuing the perspectives of students and on sustaining positive relationships even when students misbehave. In pre-registered analyses, this exercise reduced suspension rates especially for Black and Hispanic students, cutting the racial disparity over the school year by 45%. Significant reductions were also observed for other groups of concern. Moreover, reductions persisted through the next year when students interacted with new teachers, suggesting that empathic treatment with even one teacher in a critical period can improve students’ trajectories.

“The Child is Not Broken”: Leadership and Restorative Justice at an Urban Charter High School

Background/Context There has been growing attention to the disproportionate and harmful effects of school exclusion, including suspension and expulsion, on boys of color. Restorative justice may be one possibility for addressing these disparities. Yet the research on restorative justice in schools is nascent, and in particular, little is known about the role of school leaders in enacting restorative practices as a means to creating more equitable schools. Focus of Study By highlighting the work of school leaders, this study contributes to our collective understanding of how restorative justice can function as a meaningful alternative to school exclusion. The study explores how two leaders exercise leadership, build legitimacy, and develop relationships with teachers and students. It examines how these leaders make sense of their efforts to transform the school from a place reliant on traditional punitive mechanisms as a form of control to a restorative school culture. Setting The study took place at a charter school with campuses in two neighboring cities in the Northeast United States. Research Design This study uses portraiture, a methodology that emphasizes participants’ phenomenological perspectives and illuminates the complexity of goodness and success, making it well-aligned with the topic of this research. I gathered data through in-depth interviews with and observation of the two leaders at the center of the study, as well as interviews and observations of students and teachers. Conclusions Ultimately, the leaders exhibited restraint, persistence, and respect, qualities that served as the basis for meaningful relationships with students and teachers. In turn, these relationships were an important component of how the school sought to reduce suspension rates and narrow racial gaps in exclusionary punishments.

Cancelamento de cirurgias eletivas em hospital escola: causas e estatísticas

Objetivo: Investigar las tasas de suspensión y motivos de cancelación de las cirugías electivas en un hospital en Rio Grande do Norte.Métodos: Estudio descriptivo, retrospectivo, cuantitativo, con análisis documental de los registros archivados en el sistema informatizado MV de la unidad del Centro quirúrgico del Hospital Universitario Onofre Lopes, en el período de abril de 2015 a abril de 2016.Resultados: De las 8.622 (100%) cirugías programadas para el período investigado, el 74,2% fueron realizadas y el 25,8% canceladas. Entre las cirugías canceladas (2.227), la mayoría de las cancelaciones se hicieron por cirugía general (37,5%) y urología (21,6%). Los principales motivos de cancelación se introdujeron en las categorías relacionadas con la organización de la unidad (34,4%); relacionados con recursos humanos (27,1%); relacionados al paciente (6,5%); relacionado con materiales y equipamientos (6,2%), sin justificación (5,5%) y cirugía condicional (0,3%).Conclusiones: Este estudio se torna relevante, pues permitió identificar las causas de cancelaciones de cirugías electivas en un hospital de la red pública, contribuyendo para mejorar la actuación profesional frente a la problemática, siendo posible reducir la cantidad de suspensiones, considerando que la mayoría de los motivos de cancelación son prevenibles Objective: To investigate the suspension rates and reasons for cancellation of elective surgery in a teaching hospital in Rio Grande do Norte. Methods: A descriptive, retrospective, quantitative study, with documentary analysis of the records filed in the computerized system of the Surgical Center unit of Onofre Lopes University Hospital, from April 2015 to April 2016.Results: Of the 8.622 (100%) scheduled surgeries for the surveyed period, 74.2% were performed and 25.8% canceled. Among the canceled surgeries (2.227), most cancellations were made by General Surgery (37.5%) and Urology (21.6%). The main reasons for cancellations were included in the categories related to the following aspects: unit's organization (34.4%); related to human resources (27.1%); patient-related (6.5%); related to materials and equipment (6.2%), without justification (5.5%) and conditional surgery (0.3%).Conclusions: The study identified the cancellations causes of elective surgeries in a teaching hospital, contributing to the improvement of professional performance. This may contribute to reduce the number of suspensions, considering that most reasons for cancellation are preventable.

Priming the Leadership Pipeline: School Performance and Climate Under an Urban School Leadership Residency Program

Purpose: This study examines school climate and student achievement trends under an ambitious school leadership residency program in an urban school district. The 2-year leadership residencies were intensive, combining at least 370 hours of professional development with on-the-job training, in which aspiring school principals held either assistant-level administrative or teacher leadership roles. Research Design: Using a difference-in-differences framework with school fixed effects, we estimate the relationship between schools’ cumulative exposure to program residents and measures of school climate and student performance. We measure school climate using school-by-semester teacher survey composites. Student performance is captured using school-by-year data on language arts and math scale scores, chronic absence rates, suspension rates, and graduation rates. Findings: In models that allow average time trends to vary between the state and the treatment city, an additional resident-by-year in an administrative role in high schools is linked to an additional 15% of a school-level standard deviation in math scale scores and an additional 3.6 percentage points in graduation rates, but also to an additional 10 percentage points in suspension rates. Results are sensitive to model specification, school level, and to residents’ placement in administrative or teacher leader roles. Implications: Due to the contracting nature of the district, only one of 30 entering residents became a school principal within 3 years of program inception. In some models, the estimates suggest potential for aspiring leaders to effect change from nonprincipal administrative roles. Potential for teacher leadership roles is less clear.

Have You Heard? Newsworthy items from the field

A Pew survey reveals how much and what kinds of religious expression students encounter in U.S. public schools. Teachers surveyed by the Data Quality Campaign say they value data, although learning to use data well requires time and training. An interactive website from the Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University enables users to explore average test scores, improvements in test scores, and trends in test scores in schools and districts across the United States. A new working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research looks at the relationship between schools’ suspension rates and the future lives of students in those schools.

Net-Widening in Schools?: The Collateral Consequences of Safe School Expenditures for Suspension Rates

Concerns about school safety are increasingly commonplace, especially considering the attention garnered by mass shootings and other instances of crime in schools. In response, billions of dollars in federal and state funding have been allocated to assist and support the safeguarding of the school environment and those within the school. However, it remains unclear whether safe school expenditures are consequential for school-related outcomes—specifically, school suspension rates. To fill this void, the current study uses multilevel Poisson and negative binomial regression to analyze school and school district data from the Florida Department of Education, the U.S. Census, the Uniform Crime Report, and the Florida Division of Elections. Findings suggest that safe school expenditures are associated with lower suspension rates for all students. However, the effect of expenditures on Black suspension rates indicates a curvilinear relationship. Safe school expenditures are associated with an initial reduction in the Black suspension rate to a certain threshold; however, once that threshold is met, continual increases in expenditures increase the likelihood of Black suspensions. Although safe school expenditures are associated with lower suspension rates for all students, additional increases in spending on school safety widen the social control net for Black students, thereby amplifying their likelihood of punishment.

Examining High School Student Engagement and Critical Factors in Dropout Prevention

There is a well-known positive relation between student engagement and a host of school outcomes. The following article describes a study that explores a commonly used tool for measuring engagement in high schools. Specifically, this study examined internal validity, factor structure, and the relation between factors of engagement (e.g., social, emotional, and academic) and outcomes of school attendance and suspension rates. Data were collected for 7,718 students in ninth through 12th grade. Engagement was measured using the High School Survey of Student Engagement (HSSSE). Analyses raise concern over the degree to which the structure of HSSSE fits with established constructs of engagement. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.