Dirt on My Record: Black Males’ Perceptions of Disciplinary Practices in Schools

• In Event: Same Story, Different Places: Examining Cross-Regional Variations in Black Students’ Educational Experiences

Abstract

Black male students are increasingly being identified as a vulnerable population, as their school outcomes and graduation rates are disconcerting (Edley & de Velasco, 2011; Schott Foundation, 2010). These poor outcomes are related to the stratification of opportunity for Black males in school and in society, and long-standing persistent negative stereotypes that work to undermine young people as they seek academic success (Noguera, 2008). This is true both in predominantly minority urban schools, where learning opportunities tend to be inferior to behind those available in wealthier and whiter schools and districts (Darling-Hammond, 2010). Many have described the ‘gaps’ that characterize the experiences of Black male students in school; in addition to achievement gaps, scholars have described ‘discipline gaps’, and have argued that Black male students are frequently subject to discipline in schools in ways that are discriminatory, but are in line with the negative stereotypes about their group (Dance, 2002; Ferguson, 2000; Noguera & Wing, 2003). While we know that disparities exist in disciplinary practices in schools, fewer studies capture Black male youth’s perceptions of classroom and school discipline at the high school level, and even less is known about the nature of discipline practices in spaces that Black male student view as supportive and positive.

This paper will focus on Black male students' perceptions of classroom and school disciplinary practices in two settings—a typical classroom setting and an all male, all Black manhood development class at their school. We draw on interviews with 25 Black male 9th graders from three high schools in a large urban district in northern California. Importantly, all of these schools reflect the racial/ethnicity diversity of California and were settings where race was rarely discussed explicitly by school personnel. Findings show that youth viewed discipline in the school context as primarily punitive and unjust, as well as reflective of teachers' poor regard for them. In contrast, in an all male, all Black manhood development class environment, these same students viewed discipline and punishment as fair and for their benefit, and reflective of their teachers' caring for them. The paper examines the interconnections between relationships, trust, and perceptions of discipline in these two spaces, and offers insight into the kinds of disciplinary practices (and the relationships that underlie them) that the students identify as supportive.

Authors

• Nailah Suad Nasir, University of California - Berkeley

• Maxine Ramona McKinney de Royston, University of California - Berkeley

• Jarvis Ray Givens, University of California - Berkeley

• Kihana Miraya Ross, University of California - Berkeley