K-12 School Discipline and the Race-Gender Vulnerabilities of Black Males

• In Event: From K-12 to Postsecondary: Repositioning Black Masculinities, Identities, and Vulnerabilities

Abstract

Over the past three decades, researchers have noted and theorized the disproportionate disciplining of Black students in U.S. schools. Although useful, the theories advanced by scholars have lacked the ability to explain the disproportionate disciplinary vulnerability Black males suffer in comparison to all other student populations, including their female counterparts. Subsequently, this paper explores the following three questions: 1) What does quantitative data reveal about the discipline rates of Black male students? 2) How do researchers theorize the specific disciplining of Black students? and 3) Do the theories employed by scholars examining school discipline capture the vulnerabilities of Black male students? This paper concludes with recommendations for advancing theories with greater explanatory power concerning Black male vulnerabilities in schools.

Author

• Taharka Anderson, University of Texas at Austin