The Classification Rate of Black Students as Disabled: Four Distinct Trajectories among School Districts

• In Event: 207 - Section on Sociology of Education Roundtable Session (one-hour).
  In Refereed Roundtable: Table 08. Racial/Ethnic Disparities: The Role of Social Context

Abstract

Racial and ethnic disproportionality in special education is a problematic educational and social issue in the United States that has persisted for decades despite extensive regulations. Inequitable trends among students are well documented, with Black and Latino males being overrepresented in subjective disability categories. For this study, I conducted Nagin clustering and included sociodemographic risk factors to assess the posterior probability of a school district in a Northeastern state (n = 671) being in each particular cluster. Results indicate that there are indeed four distinctive trajectories among districts in the rate at which they classify black students as students with disabilities, when formed according to a maximum-probability rule. Also group membership is relevant to how covariates, particularly percent non-white enrollment, relate to the degree of change in classification rate. These results demonstrate the importance of community context when evaluating disproportionality within a school district and its associated inequities.

Author

• Alexandra Aylward, New York University