Posted on 03/24/2014 6:02:10 AM PDT by YourAdHere
Even preschoolers are getting suspended from U.S. public schools—and they're disproportionately Black, a trend that continues up through the later grades.
Data released March 21 by the Education Department's civil rights arm finds that Black children represent about 18 percent of children enrolled in preschool programs in schools, but almost half of the students were suspended more than once. Six percent of the nation's districts with preschools reported suspending at least one preschool child.
Advocates have long said that get-tough suspension and arrest policies in schools have contributed to a "school-to-prison" pipeline that snags minority students, but much of the emphasis has been on middle school and high school policies. This data shows the disparities starting in the youngest of children.
Earlier this year, the Obama administration issued guidance encouraging schools to abandon what it described as overly zealous discipline policies that send students to court instead of the principal's office. But, even before the announcement, school districts have been adjusting policies that disproportionately affect minority students.
Overall, the data shows that Black students of all ages are suspended and expelled at a rate that's three times higher than that of White children. Even as boys receive more than two-thirds of suspensions, Black girls are suspended at higher rates than girls of any other race or most boys.
The data doesn't explain why the disparities exist or why the students were suspended. Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Attorney General Eric Holder were scheduled to appear at J.O. Wilson Elementary School on March 21 in Washington to discuss the data.
Nationally, one million children were served in public preschool programs, with about 60 percent of districts offering preschool during the 2011-2012 school year, according to the data. The data shows nearly 5,000 preschoolers suspended once. At least 2,500 were suspended more than once.
Daniel Losen, director of the Center for Civil Rights Remedies for the Civil Rights Project at UCLA, said the findings are disturbing because the suspended preschoolers aren't likely presenting a danger, such as teenager bringing a gun to school.
"Almost none of these kids are kids that wouldn't be better off with some support from educators," Losen said. "Just kicking them out of school is denying them access to educational opportunity at such a young age. Then, as they come in for kindergarten, they are just that much less prepared."
Losen said it's appropriate to discipline a 4-year-old, but a more appropriate response might be moving them to a different educational setting with additional services.
"Most preschool kids want to be in school," Losen said. "Kids just don't understand why they can't go to school."
Judith Browne Dianis, co-director of the Advancement Project, a think tank that specializes in social issues affecting minority communities, has been advocating against the overly zealous use of suspensions against African American students. Unfortunately, she said it didn't surprise her to hear that even younger black students were being kicked out of school at a high rate.
"I think most people would be shocked that those numbers would be true in preschool, because we think of 4- and 5-years-olds as being innocent," she said. "But we do know that schools are using zero tolerance policies for our youngest also, that while we think our children need a head start, schools are kicking them out instead."
Heather Mac Donald has a pretty good take down of this nonsense:
Must we discipline on quotas and not what the situation called for?
It’s clearly the result of tribalism.
Maybe if they stop acting up, they won’t get suspended.
Racism?
Or...
The basis for a statistical behavioral study?
(Just remember, correlation does not equal causation—but it can tell you which way to bet).
“...Earlier this year, the Obama administration issued guidance encouraging schools to abandon what it described as overly zealous discipline policies that send students to court instead of the principal’s office. But, even before the announcement, school districts have been adjusting policies that disproportionately affect minority students....”
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Yes, by all means let these little feral, undisciplined creatures run wild and disrupt the learning environment for all the other pre-schoolers. Hell, they might even serve as models for the other children to emulate.
Clearly its not because the black children are more prone to get in fights, inot listen, or do what the teacher tell them to do.../s
Visit any McDonald’s and sit and watch the children play on the playgrounds there for an hour and the answer will become abundantly clear...
Ok everyone, let’s just calm down — We will simply just lower the standards...problem solved.
Why bother with teaching self-control, respect, and discipline...those are very old and outdated social norms that our Grandparents used to insist upon...how boring.
And lying, cheating, and stealing...well, just look at their role models - Clinton and Obama...
The question is -
disproportionate to WHAT?
Where there is no love, there is no charity.
There’s a nasty racist rumor going around that the high number of black children suspended is because the blacks are unruly and don’t know how to conduct themselves in a polite and civilized manner.
The parents of the black children say that is clearly a racist statement and they will kick the s**t out of any honkie m*****f****r who disagrees.
Brilliant! Don't discipline kids unless and until they are toting weapons in the schoolyard.
If you want to see a liberal act like you just kicked him in the jubblies,
point out how their efforts to “help people” have destroyed the black family structure.
Conservatives getting all whacked about an inter-Democratic party racialist feud.
WOW! What a surprise.
+1
Looks like more proof that the system is racist!
Convenient.
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