Disrupting Suspension and Expulsion Policies and Practices to Promote Justice

• In Event: Accepting Our Responsibilities as Educators, Scholars, and Innovators: Reclaiming Educational Equity Efforts in a Color-Evasive World

Abstract

In this chapter, we trace the genesis and motivation of exclusionary policies and practices and restorative justice as an innovation that may be doing more harm than good. Specifically, our research questions are as follows:
(1) What factors help or hinder the implementation of restorative justice in an “urban emergent” school district (Author, 2012)?
(2) To what extent does restorative justice implementation impact the Black-White discipline gap?
(3) How can teachers use restorative justice policy and practice to better support and include students most often associated with the school-to-prison pipeline?
Decades of research on exclusionary policies and practices in schools suggest some students are disproportionately reprimanded, referred to the administrator’s office, and excluded from school settings for disciplinary reasons (Koon, 2020; Milner, 2013; Noguera, 2003; Skiba, Peterson, & Williams, 1997). Black students, students from low-income families, students with disabilities, and students at the intersections of these identities (e.g., Black student from a low-income family) are those most often on the receiving end of these disciplinary actions. The research literature attributes several factors to these trends. Notably, student behavior does not appear to be a significant predictor of whether a child will be disciplined (Blake, Keith, Luo, Le, & Salter, 2016; Pearman, Curran, Fisher, & Gardella, 2019). In fact, some studies suggest that White students are less likely to be disciplined for committing the same infraction as a Black student (Welsh & Little, 2018). This inequity has been labeled the “discipline gap” by scholars such as Francis Pearman and others. Over time, these studies have contributed to the notion of a “school-to-prison nexus” (Stovall, 2018). As a result, certain educational policies and practices push particular groups of students out of classrooms and schools and into streets and prisons.
To address the school-to-prison pipeline, many school districts and schools have turned to alternative forms of school discipline such as restorative justice. Recent research on the effects of restorative justice implementation, however, are mixed. While restorative justice programs do appear to significantly decrease the use of suspension in school settings, the disparities between the suspension of Black and White students persist. Scholarship on the topic calls for more research to understand why restorative justice policy and practice currently appear to have little to no effect on disproportionate rates of school discipline.
Using Critical Race Theory (CRT), we will employ a mixed-methods approach to identify schools and educators implementing restorative justice policy and practice in an urban emergent school district. Specifically, we will utilize data visualization software to illustrate patterns of restorative justice implementation across the school district. We will also interview and observe teachers and administrators in schools both where restorative justice is being implemented and where it is not being implemented to better understand factors related to implementation. We conclude the chapter with strategies and recommendations about ways to disrupt and end such policies and practices to promote equity and justice in schools.
 

Authors

• Bryant O. Best, Vanderbilt University

• Jacob Bennett, Vanderbilt University

• H. Richard Milner, Vanderbilt University