Examining Disproportionality and Quantitative Data - PowerPoint Presentation

Examining Disproportionality and Quantitative Data New York University Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools Technical Assistance Center on Disproportionality ENTER DISTRICT NAME ENTER DATE

Internal and External Dialogue: Shoulder Partner Talk – what are some of the internal and external discussions you have had related to disproportionality?

Overview of the Day Part 1: Framing beliefs about race and class Part 2: Being responsive to students’ needsPart 3: Analyzing district and school level dataPart 4: Collecting other dataPart 5: Reflection, wrap-up, and debriefing

Objectives Explore and discuss notions of culture, privilege, risk factors, protective factors, vulnerabilityExamine district and school level data Continue to develop a basic hypothesis around the patterns of data and identify the data (documents/activities) needed to explore the identified patterns in the data

Contract Push your growing edge Consider what’s in it for you and where you’re going Listen with respect and stay engaged Struggle together and expect to experience discomfort Speak your “truth” and respect the “truth” of others Keep personal conversations confidential “As we struggle together, we will have hit the growing edge—push your growing edge! ” -The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond

Part 1: Framing beliefs about race and class Critical Questions: What are some predominate beliefs about race and class? How do these beliefs manifest in your school district?

Discussing the Readings

Homework Assignment Reading : Truth in Labeling: Disproportionality in Special EducationWhat are the different forms of disproportionality?What factors contribute to disproportionality? How might we address disproportionality? White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack What is the invisible knapsack? What is in your invisible knapsack? How might our “knapsack shape our view of the world?Complete School-Wide TAC-D Survey

Activity: Reading “Grab Bag” Partner up with someone sitting next to you. Each partner chooses a quote (without looking) out of the “Grab Bag.” Take turns reading your quote aloud and discussing it with your partner. Be sure to think and talk about how the quote relates to the conversations we’ve started about disproportionality (particularly in your district and/or school)

Race and Class Based Beliefs What do the readings say about the importance of looking at race and class? What do the readings say about the relationship between race and class and disproportionality? How do the readings relate to your own beliefs on race and class? What are the predominant beliefs of race and class in your school district?

Beliefs and Facts about Race and Racism Beliefs Facts Race is biological There are no biological markers for race. Race is a social construct. Taking a “colorblind” or “race neutral” stance treats all students fairly “Colorblind” or “race neutral” stances devalue students lived experiences and identity Racism is perpetrated by the racist acts of individuals Institutional racism and White privilege ( Blanchett , 2006; McIntosh, 1992)

Beliefs and Facts about Class Beliefs Facts There is a culture of poverty that keeps poor people poor (Lewis, 1966; Herrnstein &Murray, 1992) Most poverty is caused by institutional practices and inequities and is not the result of the practices and beliefs of people from low income backgrounds ( Venkatesh , 2006 ; Wilson, 2009) Situational and generational poverty (Payne, 2005)

A look at culture Various identities will be shared. Find other individuals that share your identity and discuss. One rule…you can’ t be removed from the group! Once your group has been established, answer the following questions: What are the features we share around identity? What are some features each of us believes we may not share with others around this identity? Activity: Diversity Tables

Take a moment to jot any new ideas onto your “IDEAS” sheet

Part 2: Being responsive to students’ needs Critical Questions: Why is it important to pay attention to issues of race, class, and culture?How do our notions of race, class, and culture influence our education practices?

Activity: School Privilege by Ruth Anne Olson

Forms of Social Power and Privilege Economic Governmental PhysicalPolitical Media Knowledge Personal Situational Cultural and Institutional Power and privilege frame the ways in which we acknowledge and validate each other ’ s culture.

What does it mean to engage in culturally responsive practices? All practice is culturally responsive – but to which culture(s) is it responsive? Culture is involved in all learning. Culture is not a static set of characteristics located within individuals, but is fluid and complex.If we have this understanding of the schooling process, then we must examine every policy and practice in order to identify where is the cultural responsive gap…

Think-Pair-Share: Discuss a time in your life when you were vulnerable Describe the situation. What made you feel vulnerable? What do you think helped (or would have helped you) feel less vulnerable?

Dual Axis Model of Vulnerability Risk Factor Level Protective Factor Level High Low Low High Vulnerability (difficulties apparent) Masked Vulnerability (difficulties veiled) High Low Vulnerability (demonstrated, but often u nacknowledged resilience) Undetermined Vulnerability (positive outcomes predicted)

Differential Vulnerability – Margaret Beale Spencer All humans are vulnerable (i.e., chronically exposed to risk and protective factors) Varying levels of vulnerability are possible School can both provide protective factors and exacerbate risk factorsWe need to ensure that schools protective factors for all students SOURCE: Spencer, 2006; Spencer, Harpalani , Cassidy et al., 2006

What Would Y ou Do? Jose Antonio Vargas’ story What were Jose’s risk factors? What were his protective factors? https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJH1IKqF8PA

Risk Factors, Stresses, and Challenges Associated with Race Microaggressions Negative media portrayals Stereotype threatStructural Inequalities In general, the racial/ethnic identity of people of color is considered to be more vulnerable and salient than those of the dominant group because of their position relative to power (Tatum, 2003)

What do schools with low protective factors look like for racial/ethnic minority students? Presence of stereotype threat Lack of acknowledgement of cultural assets Minimal rigor and academic pressPre-tracking (K-4), soft tracking (grades 5-6), and explicit tracking (grades 7-12).Absence of understanding racial/ethnic identity development Limited understanding of conditions surrounding low-income status

Our Working Assumptions Race Matters. Almost every indicator of well-being shows troubling disparities/disproportionalities by race. Disparities are often created and maintained inadvertently through policies and practices that contain barriers to opportunity. It is possible – and only possible – to close equity gaps by using strategies determined through an intentional focus on race.If opportunities in all key areas of well-being are equitable, then equitable results will follow. Given the right message, analysis, and tools, people will work toward racial equity. SOURCE: Annie E. Casey Foundation, Race Matters )

Activity: Looking at Vulnerability Risk FactorsWho are our most vulnerable students?What makes them vulnerable? What are our students risk factors ? Protective Factors What protective factors do we have in place to address those risk factors?

Activity: Looking at Vulnerability Risk Factors Protective Factors Consider the most vulnerable students in your school. What risk factors do they face? What protective factors do they have and are provided?

Activity: Looking at Vulnerability Risk Factors Protective Factors Consider the least vulnerable students in your school. What risk factors do they face? What protective factors do they have and are provided?

Take a moment to jot any new ideas onto your “IDEAS” sheet

Part 3 : Analyzing district and school level data Critical Questions: What does our data tell us about our referral process? What can’t the data tell us?

Insert school level data

Take a moment to jot any new ideas onto your “IDEAS” sheet

Part 4: Collecting other data

Activity: What does the data tell us and what additional information is needed? What does the data tell us (put “NA” if the data did not apply to this)? What actions should be considered in response to the data?What additional data should be collected?

Activity: What does the data tell us and what additional information is needed? What does the data tell us (put “NA” if the data did not apply to this)? What actions should be considered in response to the data? What additional data should be collected? Discipline policies & practices Interventions & referrals Instruction & assessment Educational Opportunity Family & community Teacher expectations & misconceptions Cultural dissonance Socio-demographics

Where do we go from here? What are the parts of our processes that might be responsible for producing these outcomes or might be able to address these outcomes? What additional policies and practices should be explored? How are we going to explore them?

Data Collection Policies Data to Collect: Individual school policies related to code of conductreferralsprofessional development interventions ( RtI handbook) Practices Data to Collect: Completed discipline referral forms (or aggregated data) Observations of classroomsinterventions and support team practices Beliefs Data to Collect:Student/teacher expectationsSchool surveyFocus groups/interviews

Part 5: Reflection, wrap-up, and debriefing

Mapping the R oot Causes: What have we discussed today that may relate to the root causes of disproportionality?

Critical Questions: What are some predominate beliefs about race and class? How do these beliefs manifest in your school district?Why is it important to pay attention to issues of race, class, and culture?How do our notions of race, class, and culture influence our education practices? What does our data tell us about our referral process? What can’t the data tell us ?

Homework Assignment Complete readings: Racial Disproportionality in School Disciplinary Practices What factors contribute to disproportionality in school discipline practices?What steps could schools/districts take to reduce disproportionate discipline outcomes? The Color of Discipline What role do race, class and gender play in discipline disproportionality? Bring in assigned data

Wrap-Up and Debriefing What are some things we learned? What are some questions we still have? Further areas of interest based on today’s trainingPotential barriers

Evaluate Training Questions, Comments, or Concerns: Associate Name, email@nyu.edu

Handouts

Activity: Looking at Vulnerability Risk Factors Protective Factors Consider the most vulnerable students in your school. What risk factors do they face? What protective factors do they have and are provided?

Activity: Looking at Vulnerability Risk Factors Protective Factors Consider the least vulnerable students in your school. What risk factors do they face? What protective factors do they have and are provided?

Activity: What does the data tell us and what additional information is needed? What does the data tell us (put “NA” if the data did not apply to this)? What actions should be considered in response to the data? What additional data should be collected? Discipline policies & practices Interventions & referrals Instruction & assessment Educational Opportunity

Activity: What does the data tell us and what additional information is needed? What does the data tell us (put “NA” if the data did not apply to this)? What actions should be considered in response to the data? What additional data should be collected? Family & community Teacher expectations & misconceptions Cultural dissonance Socio-demographics