Posted on 01/12/2006 12:00:30 PM PST by Sopater
Nearly two decades after it began tracking student discipline, Seattle Public Schools continues to struggle with a chronic problem: African American students are still far more likely than their white peers to be suspended or expelled.
The "discipline gap" persists even as the district drastically lowered the overall number of students who were expelled last year, new statistics show.
Compared with white students, African Americans were nearly twice as likely last year to receive short-term suspensions, lasting 10 or fewer days. Long-term suspensions were imposed on black students more than twice the time.
"We're still seeing a lot of disproportionality," said School Board member Darlene Flynn, chairwoman of Student Learning Committee. "That hasn't improved at all."
The disparity was investigated by the Seattle P-I in 2002 in a special report, "An Uneven Hand," which found that black students were being disciplined at much higher rates than students of other races -- and had been for at least two decades.
The district has made an effort in recent years to provide better training to teachers and administrators and focus on alternatives to suspending or expelling students. But short- and long-term suspension rates are virtually unchanged since 2000, and in some cases are higher.
Flynn said the district needs to do a better job of lowering discipline rates, especially for black and Hispanic students.
READ THE REPORT
The Seattle Public Schools discipline report is available online at www.seattleschools.org/area/siso/disprof/2005/disprof_2005.xml, then click "Student Outcome Measures." The section on discipline rates begins on Page 41.
(Excerpt) Read more at seattlepi.nwsource.com ...
Stefan Sharkanski of Sound Politics has an excellent article here where he took just a few moments to compare the cultural issue of family structure to the instences of disciplinary action and found some interesting results...
Could it be that African American students behave offensively more often?
Nah. Couldn't be.
"Discipline gap", or behavior gap? Typical liberal crapola, blame the white guys.
I don't believe for one minute that the Seattle school district thinks that poor training of teachers is responsible for the higher rate of black students' suspensions and expulsions. Everyone knows why black students are disciplined at far higher rates--because they cause problems at far higher rates than other students! The school district knows this as well, of course. It's called p.r. Trying to fend off lawsuits, or whatever.
Sounds like there might actually be a "misbehavior gap".
I'd be curious to know how many suspended students regardless of race come from a home with a mother and father present
Sure. Let the inmates run the prison because they have white whiners looking out for them.
I know how to fix this! Throw more money at it! After all, that's generally why govie programs don't work, isn't it? Yes, more money will do the trick nicely....especially in Seattle.
WA ping
Could the black students be engaging in activity that warrants the punishments in a far higher percentage than the white students?
Figures lie and liars figure!
R3
The media trick is to state the proportional distribution of punishment, and not the proportional distribution of offenses.
They make it sound unjust, which is what they intend to do.
Gee, they've given extra training to teachers and the administration and tried all kinds of new ideas and it hasn't seemed to work. HELLOOOO, it isn't the teachers or the administration that has the problem, it is some of the black students. When about 70% of any racial group come from one parent homes, they're going to have a problem.
Given the way this story is written it would appear that drastic action is needed to end this "discipline gap". As a drastic measure I would suggest that any principal who suspends an African American student be fired for failing to adequately deal with the problem. I am quite sure that the "discipline gap" described will end very quickly (if that is the real problem).
I was trying to find anywhere in the article where it listed the proportion of offenses committed by black students vs white students. Or something like: "When a white student started a fight, he was suspended 50% of the time, when a black student started a fight, he was suspended 100% of the time." This just says black students are punished more, but doesn't explain the reasons behind punishment.
Discipline has been taken out of the schools what would Flyn expect?
The statistics would be much higher if all the student problems were addressed, probably twice as high.
Bury your head in the sand, Ostrich style, but addressing the problem would not be politically correct.
Just suspend more white students. Problem fixed.
Could that have something to do with the fact that they act up and need disciplined more often? That they are more likely to be fatherless? To be raised in a culture that tells them that actually trying to better yourself is a betrayal of your race????
DUMB LIBERALS! I wouldn't trust em to walk my dog... by the time they brought him back, he'd feel guilty for chaising cats, and self destructive because he actually enjoys being loyal.
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