"We Can't Fix That": Deficit Thinking in Educators' and Students' Perceptions of a Disciplinary Alternative School

• In Event: 46.085 - Roundtable Session 15
  In Roundtable Session: 46.085-8 - Disrupting Deficit Views About Difference

Abstract

Educators place students in disciplinary alternative schools in spite of mounting evidence that such placements not only do not help students, but are linked with negative outcomes; educators’ beliefs about what these students deserve are implicated in their decision-making. Using Valencia’s (2010) deficit thinking as a theoretical framework, this study examines teachers’ and students’ beliefs about schooling as well as about students with challenging behaviors. Findings indicate that both educators and excluded students use deficit-oriented language to describe discipline events, alternative school placements, and the students themselves. However, students also point to institutional factors that limit their chances for success. Both students and some teachers challenged deficit thinking by focusing on institutional supports that could improve these students’ educational experiences.

Authors

• Brianna L. Kennedy-Lewis, University of Florida

• Olivia Soutullo, University of Florida