EXAMININING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP AND SCHOOL-TO-PRISON PIPELINE: TIER 2 BEHAVIOR INTERVENTIONS FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN AND HISPANIC STUDENTS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS A Project Presented to the faculty of Graduate and Professional Studies in Education California State University, Sacramento Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of SPECIALIST IN EDUCATION in School Psychology by Crystal Courtright LaShante Smith SPRING 2014 EXAMINING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP AND SCHOOL- TO-PRISON PIPELINE: TIER 2 BEHAVIOR INTERVENTIONS FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN AND HISPANIC STUDENTS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS A Project by Crystal Courtright LaShante Smith Approved by: _________________________________, Committee Chair Melissa Holland, Ph. ___________________________ Date ii Students: Crystal Courtright LaShante Smith I certify that these students have met the requirements for format contained in the University format manual, and that this project is suitable for shelving in the library and credit is to be awarded for the project. ___________________________, Graduate Coordinator ________________________ Geni Cowan, Ph.D Date Graduate & Professional Studies in Education iii Abstract of EXAMINING THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP AND SCHOOL-TO- PRISON PIPELINE: TIER 2 BEHAVIOR INTERVENTIONS FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN AND HISPANIC STUDENTS IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS by Crystal Courtright LaShante Smith Current discipline measures used in schools for African American and Hispanic students continue to be problematic, as there is an over-representation of these students in exclusionary discipline. The purpose of this project is to provide school psychologists, administrators, and teachers with current research and resources useful in empowering teaching staff to work with African American and Hispanic students, as well as assist African American and Hispanic students feel connected to school by helping them refine their social, emotional, coping, and communication skills.
The purpose of this group curriculum is two fold. First, the curriculum will provide information to teachers and administrators about African American and Hispanic students including: communication styles, the over-representation of African Americans and Hispanics in exclusionary discipline, background factors, and possible problems and solutions while working with these students. Those who attend the first session of the curriculum are expected to gain insight into the over-representation of African Americans iv and Hispanic students in exclusionary discipline, understand their own biases when working with African American and Hispanic students, and obtain information and resources to work more effectively with African American and Hispanic student to decrease out of class exclusionary discipline. Secondly, the group curriculum will teach African American and Hispanic students coping skills, help them to manage their behavior, improve their communication skills, and understand their strengths.
Students who attend the group counseling sessions are expected to be able manage their behavior appropriately in school, feel more connected to the school setting, and decrease their out of class time due to discipline. The prepared project is a group curriculum designed for school psychologists, administrators and teachers. Materials provided as a support to the curriculum include a group curriculum and activities and handouts related to each session of the curriculum. This presentation was designed so that it can be implemented by any school psychologist or school counselor.
______________________________________, Committee Chair Melissa Holland, Ph. _________________________ Date v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to acknowledge the kind guidance and encouragement of our advisor, Melissa Holland. Crystal: I would also like to thank my supportive and loving husband for all of his patience and encouragement throughout my long lasting educational journey. I couldn’t have done it without you! I would also like to thank God for the opportunity to pursue a career that I love.
LaShante: I would like to thank God for allowing me this wonderful opportunity, and my daughter, DeAmor, who has been my inspiration throughout this project. In addition, I would like to thank my spouse, David, for his everlasting support and love through it all, my mother for her support, love, and wisdom, and my family for being there through my educational career. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Acknowledgements. 1 Statement of Collaboration.
1 Purpose of the Project. 2 Defining Critical Terms. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE. 5 History of Discrimination.
5 Disproportionality of Minorities Identified in Exclusionary Practices. 13 Cultural Differences and Factors. 15 Positive Behavior Interventions. 20 Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports- Current Interventions.
21 Positive Behavior Supports and Minority Students. 22 Tier 2 Interventions and the Present Project. 26 vii Development of the Curriculum. 103 viii 1 Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION Statement of Collaboration The authors of this project, LaShante Smith and Crystal Courtright, who are graduate students in the School Psychology Program at California State University, Sacramento, collaborated on all aspects of this project.
The responsibilities of the project included: reading and incorporating research; writing; editing; sharing ideas; and creating a group curriculum. Background Schools are responsible for providing students with an education that will prepare them for the future. Some scholars say that schools are not only responsible for the education of children, but schools should be a place where students develop cognitively, emotionally, and socially. As such, the school system plays a major role in a child’s development.
Over the years, the school system has experienced a shift in the demographic makeup of students in the United States. By 2020, ethnic minorities will comprise the majority of the United States’ school system enrollment (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2014). Historically, minority students have received unequal access to education unlike their non-minority peers. They have had inadequate instruction, poor school facilities and access to fewer resources (Oakes, 2003; Esposito, 1999).
While minority students have suffered academically, they have also been discriminated against for behavior issues. Currently, research indicates that minority students, specifically African American and Hispanic students, are more often referred to 2 receive school discipline than their non-minority peers for similar offenses (Skiba. Disciplinary procedures are often exclusionary; minority students are expelled, suspended, or referred out of the classroom. Time out of the classroom leads to minority students falling further academically behind their peers, thus widening what is referred to as the “achievement gap,” defined as the difference between the academic performance of minority groups of students and their non minority peers (Gregory, Skiba, & Noguera, 2010).
Purpose of the Project The goal of this project is to explore the history of the problem of disproportionately identifying minorities for disciplinary measures, offer insight into cultural factors that exacerbate the achievement gap, and provide information on the school-to-prison pipeline. This goal will be met by utilizing a group curriculum designed for working with minority students. The objective of this curriculum is to empower teachers with knowledge and skills to work with minority students, and for minority students to feel empowered and build upon their communication and coping skills, as well as monitor and manage their own behavior. The purpose of the first session is to educate teachers on the diverse needs, backgrounds, and communication styles of minority students.
In addition, teachers will examine their own biases and learn helpful strategies to work with minority students. Sessions two through nine are designed to build upon minority students’ strengths, coping skills, communication skills, and conflict resolution abilities to help them utilize better behavior at school. By using the curriculum, the goal is to decrease classroom exclusionary practices (i., suspensions, 3 office referrals, etc.) as teachers and students work together to create a mutually beneficial school experience. As part of the group counseling sessions, the curriculum includes simple handouts to be sent out weekly to parents/caregivers and teachers to keep them informed of the skills their child/student is learning.
It is hoped that the skills learned in group will be reinforced in the home and school setting, in addition to the group counseling sessions. As part of the curriculum, students will also participate in a check in-check out intervention. Check in- check out allows students to set daily goals for behavior and receive feedback from teachers at each class period on how they are doing on that goal. Through check in-check out, students have the opportunity to learn to monitor their own behavior as well as obtain positive attention from school staff.
Defining Critical Terms Before examining the related literature, key terms of “ethnic minority groups,” “whites,” and “disproportionality” are defined. Ethnic Minority Groups. Ethnic minority groups are comprised of: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian American, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. The current project will focus on African American and Hispanic student populations.
Hispanic is defined as “a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013). Blacks or African Americans are defined as “people having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa.” The Black or African American population includes people who marked their race(s) as “Black, African American, or Negro or reported entries such as 4 African American; Sub-Saharan African (e., Kenyan and Nigerian); or Afro-Caribbean such as Haitian and Jamaican” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n. Whites are defined as “people having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n. Disproportionality refers to when a specific group is identified at higher rate than the population average.
A relative risk ratio of greater than 1.5 indicates that there is an overrepresentation (Pearson, n. Limitations The authors have recognized several limitations of this project. Given that the authors will not run or implement the curriculum in schools, the clinical effectiveness or practicality of the curriculum is unknown at this time. Therefore, it can only be assumed that this curriculum will have a positive impact on the student group for whom it is intended.
In addition, the curriculum is designed for professionals who have knowledge and skills in working with the African American and Hispanic populations. Further, depending on the school make-up, it may be difficult to get participants that match the population for whom the curriculum is designed. 5 Chapter 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE African American and Hispanic students have historically been found to be subject to biased disciplinary actions in school. Consequences of these biased disciplinary practices include: an increase rate of drop-outs for minority students, low academic achievement, and a pathway to the criminal justice system via a disconnect from school (Darensbourg, Perez & Blake, 2010).
In the literature review that follows, topics relevant to understanding the achievement gap between minority students and non minority students include: current research on contributions to the achievement gap and how they impact minority students; disproportionality among racial groups in exclusionary discipline, positive behavior intervention strategies (PBIS) and effectiveness with minority students; understanding of the school-to prison pipeline; and, a research based curriculum based on modified PBIS strategies. History of Discrimination Discrimination in education has a long history in the United States. In 1896, the United States Supreme Court decided that African American and White students should have their own school facilities in a key court case known as Plessy v. The court case reasoned and decided that having separate school facilities would be considered “separate but equal” (Noblit & Mendez, 2008, p.
the Board of Education challenged Plessy v. Ferguson in an effort to end segregation in public schools. The United States Supreme Court declared that having separate schools 6 for African American and White students was unconstitutional (Noblit & Mendez, 2008). George Noblit and Jason Mendez (2008) examined the repercussions of Brown vs.
Board of Education. For years, Noblit and Mendez noted, many schools simply ignored the fact that they were supposed to desegregate schools. When it became apparent that schools would be forced to comply, schools continued to fall back on the Plessy v. Ferguson ruling of 1896.
School districts argued that desegregation had to occur in a way that would keep White students in the school system.