Stop Kicking Black Students to the Curb

Why are we still throwing black kids out of school like there’s no tomorrow?

A recent study conducted by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) of more than 9,000 middle schools found that African-American boys are three times more likely to be suspended than their white male classmates, while African-American girls are suspended at four times the rate of white girls.

Further, the study -- Suspended Education: Urban Middle School Crisis -- revealed that in 175 middle schools an unbelievable one-third -- that's right, 1 in 3 -- of black male students were suspended at least once during a school year.

The study noted that there is "no evidence that racial disparities in school discipline are the results of higher rates of disruption among black students."

It's obvious that there is significant racial bias going into school suspension decisions.

Of course the disproportionate suspension rate among African-American students is nothing new. There is a long documented history of disparate punishment of black students in our schools.  However this latest study points to a dramatic rise in the suspension of black children. According to the study, the gap between suspension rates for blacks and whites has tripled, from about three percentage points in 1970 to over 10 percentage points today.

Being physically removed from school carries with it many risks for both students and society.  When students are suspended from school and are at home unsupervised, they are more likely to become involved in harmful "high risk behaviors." It should come as no surprise that left to their own devices, kids are more prone to use drugs and alcohol, engage in sexual intercourse and get caught up  in an array of potentially self-destructive behaviors, including criminal activity. Critics blame suspensions for pushing students into what they term the "school-to-prison pipeline."

The SPLC  suspension study specifically focused on middle schools because of the demonstrated link between middle school success and future success in and outside of school. The study suggests that "suspension at the middle school level may have long-term repercussions," which I take to mean, middle school is where a student's trajectory is set for good or bad.

Unfortunately, suspension rates aren't often addressed in discussions about improving our schools and the education of our children. That's a glaring oversight.

Why are suspension rates for black students skyrocketing?

One reason is the move by nearly all school districts to a "zero tolerance" discipline policy in the wake of the Columbine school shootings. Often the most minor of  infractions can lead to a suspension -- more than 3.3 million annually, which are disproportionally meted out to black students. Unruly acts like using profanity, being disruptive in class, talking back,  pushing and shoving -- behavior  that used to warrant a trip to the principal's office or detention, now result in automatic suspension.  It's ironic that the tragedy at Columbine, a predominantly all-white school, has had such a negative impact on African-American kids.

Another major factor to consider, as highlighted by the SPLC study, is that on average 20 percent of the teachers represent nearly 80 percent of a school's suspension rate.

What is going on with this handful of teachers? That's obviously the question school administrators should be asking. It needs to be determined if these teachers are unduly stressed by large class sizes; have trouble relating to African-American students; or are dealing with some personal demons that's causing them to possible act out inappropriately toward their students.  Clearly, when a small population of teachers is generating such a large number of suspensions, the fault isn't exclusively with the student.

It's time for schools to scrap outdated and unproven "zero tolerance policies" that have shown no evidence of making schools safer. It's time for school administrators to follow in the steps of school districts like Baltimore, which have revamped the discipline code and instituted peer mediation, in-school monitoring and intervention programs that have seen suspension rates drop by 39 percent.

The plain fact is, kids can’t learn if they aren’t in school. If the main goal of schools is to educate kids, punishing them by excluding them from school is counterproductive.

Photo credit: Steelight