Kari Schwietering

Action Research
Project
Field Based Research
Spring 2014
258
171
87
1017
770
247
Total SOC White
High School (9-12)
Middle School (6-8)
Total # of Incidents
60.5
39.5
33.7
66.3
White SOC
% of school
population
% of incidents
61.3
38.7
24.3
75.7
White SOC
High School
(9-12)
Middle School
(6-8)

Background of the Problem


St. Louis Park
High School & Middle School
Disciplinary Incidents
Semester 1 2013-2014

TIME SPENT IN LEARNING IS THE SINGLE BEST
PREDICTOR OF POSITIVE ACADEMIC OUTCOMES.
SKIBA AND SPRAGUE, 2008


Over the past few decades, a growing body of literature has shown
that students of color are disproportionately represented in
disciplinary actions relative to their population in the student
body at public schools.
There are considerable risks for those students who are
overrepresented. Exclusionary disciplinary actions remove
students from the learning environment, which risks weakening
the student-school bonda factor potentially contributing to
later delinquency, juvenile justice involvement, dropping out,
and poorer academic achievement.
Lowered self-esteem, a sense of rejection, and negative
community-wide perceptions about the public education
process are further dangers for minority groups who are
disproportionately expelled or suspended.
Literature
Review

School discipline and security: Fair for all students? Kupchik, A., & Ellis, N. (2008; 2007).
Overrepresentation of African American students in exclusionary discipline the role of school
policy. Fenning, P., & Rose, J. (2007).
The color of discipline: Sources of racial and gender disproportionality in school punishment.
Skiba, R. J., Michael, R. S., Nardo, A. C., & Peterson, R. L. (2002).
Race is not neutral: A national investigation of African American and Latino disproportionality in
school discipline. Skiba, R. J., Horner, R. H., Chung, C., Rausch, M. K., May, S. L., & Tobin, T.
(2011).
The achievement gap and the discipline gap: Two sides of the same coin? Gregory, A.,
Noguera, P. A., & Skiba, R. J. (2010).
Net-deepening of school discipline. Irby, D. J. (2013).







High School Middle School
t-test 0.930 0.002
mean
SOC 1.772 4.784
mean
white 1.750 2.872
SOC
# of students: 101
% of students: 68
# of students: 150
% of students: 64
White
# of students: 48
% of students: 32
# of students: 86
% of students: 36
Results of
Data Analysis

Statistical Analysis

Data of students involved in
disciplinary incident
Average Number of
Disciplinary Incidents by Race

0.09
0.31
0.07
0.28
0.15
0.27
0.42
2.73
0.33
1.25
2.67
2.00
0.00
0.50
1.00
1.50
2.00
2.50
3.00
White Black Asian/Pacific
Islander
Hispanic American
Indian
SOC
High School Middle School

Professional Learning: Restorative Practices
Nancy Riestenberg, MDE School Climate Specialist
Oscar Reed, The Restorative Way


Create and implement a way to record
restorative practices being used in school
Then collect data looking for correlation
between discipline and restorative practices
(i.e. repeat offenders, overall discipline
numbers, staff and student feedback about
school climate).






Recommendations
for Action