1. Strategies for Addressing Discipline Disproportionality
Texas Disproportionality Summit
Kent McIntosh
University of Oregon
Handouts:

2. Acknowledgements Information from this session comes from:
McIntosh, K., Girvan, E. J., Horner, R. H., & Smolkowski, K. (in press). Education not incarceration: A conceptual model for reducing racial and ethnic disproportionality in school discipline. Journal of Applied Research on Children.
Thanks also to ongoing work of the National PBIS Center’s Disproportionality Workgroup
Clynita Grafenreed
Kelsey Morris
Jen Rose
Russ Skiba

3. Handouts: http://www.pbis.org
Session Overview
Describe the problem of disproportionality
Share a 5-point multicomponent intervention for reducing disproportionality
Define and describe the role of implicit bias in discipline decision making
Share a new set of strategies for assessing and addressing implicit bias
Handouts:

4. ACLU, 2013, the war on marijuana in black and white

6. Stop and Frisk – New York City (2004-2012)
New York Police Department records obtained during class action litigation shows that, from 2004 to 2012, its officers conducted over 4.4 million stops, 2.3 million of which included a frisk for weapons. As shown by the bars in Table 2, the stops disproportionately included African Americans and excepted Whites. While Whites made up approximately one-third of the residents of the City during that period, they represented just 10% of those stops. By comparison, African Americans, who constitute less than one-quarter of the population, were subject to 52% of the stops. Moreover, NYPD data suggests that that its officers’ decisions were highly error prone. The vast majority of those stopped and frisked were innocent. Just 12% of the stops resulted in an arrest or summons. Overall, officers found weapons in only 1.5% of the frisks. Where weapons or other contraband were found during a frisk, the hit rate was actually higher for Whites than for African Americans. Such racial disparities in the focus of police officer’s efforts at law enforcement, and the disassociation of those efforts from the resulting hit rates, are not unique.

7. Disproportionality in School Discipline (Losen & Skiba, 2010)
Risk index

8. A 5-point Intervention to Enhance Equity in School Discipline

9. School Discipline Guidance http://www2. ed

10. 5-point Intervention to Enhance Equity in School Discipline
Use effective instruction to reduce the achievement gap
Implement SWPBIS to build a foundation of prevention
Collect, use, and report disaggregated student discipline data
Develop policies with accountability for disciplinary equity
Teach neutralizing routines for vulnerable decision points

11. 1. Why a focus on effective academic instruction?
Teacher presents student with grade level academic task
Student’s academic skills do not improve
Student engages in problem behavior
Student escapes academic task
Teacher removes academic task or removes student
(McIntosh et al, 2008)

12. What do we mean by effective academic instruction?
Explicit instruction
High rates of engagement and OTRs
Quality performance feedback
Progress monitoring and data-based decision making
(Hattie, 2009)

13. Effects of Effective Instruction on the Achievement Gap
Tigard-Tualatin School District (Chaparro, Helton, & Sadler, in press)

14. 2. Why use a foundation of SWPBIS?
Proactive, instructional approach may prevent problem behavior and exposure to biased responses to problem behavior
Increasing positive student-teacher interactions may enhance relationships to prevent challenges
More objective referral and discipline procedures may reduce subjectivity and influence of cultural bias
Professional development may provide teachers with more instructional responses
Hidden curriculum – by not assuming that all students KNOW how to be students, we can do better.
(Greflund et al., 2014)

15. Effects of SWPBIS on Discipline Disproportionality (Vincent, Swain-Bradway, Tobin & May, 2011)
72 in blue
81 in red
School w/ 10+ African American and 10+ White students in
, the median B/W ODR risk ratio was The 25th percentile was 1.38.
1.25 EEOC disparate impact

16. 5. How do we begin to address racial bias without it backfiring?

17. Time Out: Our options for building support
Show data: either theirs or national
Hit them over their heads with inequities
Cognitive dissonance: pattern that is not in line with our values as educators
Common Outcomes:
Defensiveness
Challenging validity of the data
More blaming of students
How many have tried this?

18. Time Out: Our options for building support
Tell people to be less biased
Explain importance of equity
Describe the laws on discrimination
Tell people to cut it out
Common Outcomes:
No change in levels of discrimination
Don’t care
Don’t have specific guidance
(Girvan, 2014; Girvan et al., 2014; Lai et al., 2013; Pettigrew & Tropp, 2006)

19. Time Out: Our options for building support
Cultural sensitivity training
Discuss value of diversity
Introduce concept of White Privilege
Brief introductions to various cultures
Common Outcomes:
Defensiveness
White people crying
Shift in attitudes for some?
No new strategies
(Lai et al., 2013; Pettigrew & Tropp, 2006)

20. Time Out: Our options for building support
Introduce the concept of implicit bias and provide specific strategies
Describe the concept of implicit bias
Explain vulnerable decision points (VDPs)
Teach a self-instruction strategy
Am I in a VDP?
If so, use an alternative response
Common Outcomes:
???

21. Implicit Bias in School Discipline

22. What is implicit bias? Unconscious, automatic Based on stereotypes
We all have it (even those affected by it)
Generally not an indication of what we believe or would endorse
More likely to influence:
Snap decisions
Decisions that are ambiguous
Describe IAT results

23. Implicit Bias at Work Attractiveness Height
Real estate agents rated as more attractive sell homes for significantly higher prices (Salter, Mixon, & King, 2012)
Height
One inch of height is worth $789 per year in salary (Judge & Cable, 2004)
“Less than 15% of American men are over six foot tall, yet almost 60% of corporate CEOs are over six foot tall.

24. Implicit Bias in Refereeing (Carlson, 2014)
Teams with louder stadiums have the largest differentials
UNC, Duke = loud
Miami, Florida State = quiet
Others: SPORTS (White players are gym rats, watch tape, prepared, disciplined; Black players are blessed with prowess)

25. Implicit Bias and Gender (Reuben et al., 2014)
Subjects randomly split into groups of 4 (employers and job candidates)
Job candidates paid by performance on timed math (adding sets of 2 digit numbers)
Employers paid if they chose the best of 2 job candidates
Hiring criteria:
Appearance
Self-reported performance
Actual pre-test performance

26. The top bars show the percentages of female candidates that were picked, and the middle bars show the percentages of times the lower-performing candidate in the pair was picked.
The top bars show the percentages of female candidates that were picked, and the middle bars show the percentages of times the lower-performing candidate in the pair was picked. This percentage is computed using all the hiring decisions made in each treatment: 507 in the No Information condition, 160 in the Cheap Talk condition, and 265 in the Past Performance condition. The bottom bars show the percentage of times that the chosen candidate was male, conditional on the lower-performing candidate in the pair being chosen (230 cases in the No Information condition, 50 in the Cheap Talk condition, and 47 in the Past Performance condition). Error bars correspond to 95% confidence intervals calculated with regression analysis clustering SEs on employer (SI Appendix, Tables S4–S6).
Reuben E et al. PNAS 2014;111:
©2014 by National Academy of Sciences

27. Implicit Bias and Race
“the challenge is not a small number of twisted white supremacists but something infinitely more subtle and complex: People who believe in equality but who act in ways that perpetuate bias and inequality.” -Nicholas Kristof, The New York Times
2014 – “Is everyone a little bit racist” NYT OpEd

28. No teacher or administrator wakes up and says “I want to perpetuate racial inequities” or “I want to send more black boys to the office”

29. A Unidimensional View of Bias
Racial Bias
Disproportionate Discipline
2 problems:
1. it focuses solely on one variable that has been shown in many studies to be highly resistant to change
2. fails to consider contextual variables that may be as critical to biased decision making but are much more malleable.

30. A Multidimensional View of Bias
Racial Bias
Disproportionate Discipline
Situation
no change to his or her attitudes or beliefs, an individual may selectively show racial bias in different decision situations. For example, a teacher may make more equitable discipline decisions at the start of the day but be more likely to send students of color to the office at the end of the day
More accurate predictor of biased decision making AND

31. Interventions for Implicit Bias in School Discipline

32. What is a Vulnerable Decision Point?
A specific decision that is more vulnerable to effects of implicit bias
Two parts:
The person’s decision state (internal state)
The situation

33. Resource Depletion (Girvan et al., 2014)
As we become fatigued, our filters for appropriate behavior can be affected
Effects of hunger (Gailliot et al., 2009)
Decreases in willpower later in day
“The Morning Morality Effect” (Kouchaki & Smith, 2014)
Examples…
My kids at school
My diet

34. Options for Identifying VDPs for Intervention
Levels of specificity:
All ODR/suspension decisions (general self-instruction routine)
Identify VDPs through national data
Use school or district data

35. Dr. Kelsey Morris

36. National SWIS Data (2011-12) 3,026,367 ODRs 6,269 schools
47 states, plus DC

37. Office Referrals by Problem Behavior

38. Office Referrals by Location

39. Office Referrals by Time of Day

40. VDPs from national ODR data
ambiguity
Subjective problem behavior
Disruption, defiance, major vs. minor
Non-classroom areas
Hallways
Afternoons
LACK OF contact
fatigue

41. Multidimensional View of Bias
Racial Bias
Disproportionate Discipline
Situation
Discuss bias research on judges and lemonade.
Vulnerable Decision Points Subjective Behavior Hunger Vague Discipline System Fatigue Common Areas Unfamiliar with Student

42. School Example
Urban K-8 School

43. Risk Indices
Black/White ODR Risk Ratio = 2.5

44. Problem Behavior: All Students

45. Problem Behavior: Black Students Only

46. Drill Down: Physical Aggression
Black/White ODR Risk Ratio = 6.5
43 ODRs
(6.5 risk ratio)

47. Drill Down: Physical Aggression Playground
20 ODRs
70% of ODRs for Pagg there were Black (4.5 risk ratio)

48. Addressing Common Questions
“Isn't it all really about poverty?”
Poverty plays a role, but racial disproportionality remains, even when controlling for poverty
American Psychological Association, 2008
Skiba et al., 2005
Wallace et al., 2008

49. Addressing Common Questions
“Aren’t Black boys just more violent?”
No evidence of different base rates of behavior for any subgroups
Bradshaw et al., 2010
Losen & Skiba, 2010
Skiba et al., in press

50. Addressing Common Questions
“Are you saying that all teachers are racist?”
No! Our research indicates that disproportionality comes from unconscious bias – that we’re not even aware of.
Banaji & Greenwald, 2013
Greenwald & Pettigrew, 2014
van den Bergh et al., 2010

51. Two-step Neutralizing Routine for Staff:
When you see problem behavior, stop and ask yourself:
Is this a VDP?
Situation
Decision state
If so, use an agreed-upon alternative response

52. Neutralizing Routines for Reducing Effects of Implicit Bias
Self-assessment
“Is this a vulnerable decision point?”
Setting event
Antecedent
Behavior
Consequence
Lack of positive interactions with student
Fatigue
Loud complaints about work (subjective behavior)
Send student to office (ODR)
Student leaves class (Escape social interaction)
Alternative Response
“See me after class.”

53. What makes for a good neutralizing routine?
Brief
If-then statements
Clear steps
Doable

54. What makes for a good alternative response?
Delay
“See me after class”
Pause
Think it through before sending to office
Use least exclusionary choice
Delayed ODR
Speak with student
State your confidence in them
Ask about their needs privately

55. Neutralizing Routine Examples
“If this is a VDP, am I acting in line with my values?”
“If disrespect, keep in class”
“If I am tired, delay decision until I can think clearly”

56. Two-step Neutralizing Routine for Staff:
Can also be used as precorrection
Am I about to enter a VDP?
What are my values?
When I see problem behavior, I’ll use the alternative response

57. Two-step Neutralizing Routine for Administrators: (Susan Barrett)
When you have to handle problem behavior, stop and tell yourself:
Don’t just do something, stand there!
Be sure you are ready to act in line with values
Get information from student and staff
Assess student-teacher relationship
Whenever possible, use an agreed-upon instructional response
Teaches missing skills
Connects student to school and staff

58. The Restorative Chat (Alton School District, Alton, IL)
Tell me what happened.
What you were thinking at the time?
What do you think about it now?
Who did this affect?
What do you need to do about it?
How can we make sure this doesn't happen again?
What I can do to help you?

59. Professional Development
Use data to identify:
The extent of the problem
Vulnerable Decision Points (VDPs)
Teach and practice:
Implicit bias
VDPs
Neutralizing routines
Follow up:
Ongoing coaching
Monitor progress with data

60. Contact Information
Kent McIntosh
Special Education Program
University of Oregon
@_kentmc
Cannon Beach, Oregon
© GoPictures, 2010
Handouts:

61. References
American Psychological Association. (2008). Are zero tolerance policies effective in the schools? An evidentiary review and recommendations. American Psychologist, 63, Anand, R., & Winters, M. (2008). A retrospective view of corporate diversity training from 1964 to the present. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 7, Bradshaw, C. P., Mitchell, M. M., O'Brennan, L. M., & Leaf, P. J. (2010). Multilevel exploration of factors contributing to the overrepresentation of black students in office disciplinary referrals. Journal of Educational Psychology, 102, Chaparro, E. A., Helton, S., & Sadler, C. A. (in press). Oregon Effective Behavioral and Instructional Support Systems initiative: Implementation from district and state level perspectives. In K. McIntosh & S. Goodman (Eds.), Multi-tiered systems of support: Integrating academic RTI and school-wide PBIS. New York: Guilford.

62. References
Gailliot, M. T., Peruche, B. M., Plant, E. A., & Baumeister, R. F. (2009). Stereotypes and prejudice in the blood: Sucrose drinks reduce prejudice and stereotyping. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 45, Girvan, E. J. (2014). Wise restraints?: How learning the law affects socially-biased decision-making. How Learning the Law Affects Socially-Biased Decision-Making (June 4, 2013) (available at SSRN: Girvan, E. J., Deason, G., & Borgida, E. (2014). The generalizability of gender bias: Effects of expertise and accountability on sexism in labor arbitration decisions. Manuscript submitted for publication. Greenwald, A. G., & Pettigrew, T. F. (2014). With malice toward none and charity for some: Ingroup favoritism enables discrimination. American Psychologist, 69,

63. References
Greflund, S., McIntosh, K., Mercer, S. H., & May, S. L. (2014). Examining disproportionality in school discipline for Aboriginal students in schools implementing PBIS. Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 29, Judge, T. A., & Cable, D. M. (2004). The effect of physical height on workplace success and income: preliminary test of a theoretical model. Journal of Applied Psychology, 89, Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. New York: Macmillan. Kouchaki, M., & Smith, I. H. (2014). The morning morality effect: The influence of time of day on unethical behavior. Psychological Science, 25, doi: / Lai, C. K., Hoffman, K. M., Nosek, B. A., & Greenwald, A. G. (2013). Reducing implicit prejudice. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 7, Losen, D. J., & Skiba, R. J. (2010). Suspended education: Urban middle schools in crisis. Montgomery, AL: Southern Poverty Law Center.

64. References
McIntosh, K., Girvan, E. J., Horner, R. H., & Smolkowski, K. (in press). Education not incarceration: A conceptual model for reducing racial and ethnic disproportionality in school discipline. Journal of Applied Research on Children. McIntosh, K., Barnes, A., Morris, K., & Eliason, B. M. (2014). Using discipline data within SWPBIS to identify and address disproportionality: A guide for school teams. Eugene, OR: Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports. University of Oregon. Pettigrew, T. F., & Tropp, L. R. (2006). A meta-analytic test of intergroup contact theory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 90, 751. Reuben, E., Sapienza, P., & Zingales, L. (2014). How stereotypes impair women’s careers in science. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111, Salter, S. P., Mixon Jr, F. G., & King, E. W. (2012). Broker beauty and boon: a study of physical attractiveness and its effect on real estate brokers’ income and productivity. Applied Financial Economics, 22,

65. References
Skiba, R. J., Chung, C. G., Trachok, M., Baker, T., Sheya, A., & Hughes, R. L. (in press). Where should we intervene? How infractions, students, and schools all contribute to out-of-school suspension. In D. J. Losen (Ed.), Closing the school discipline gap: Research for policymakers. New York: Teachers College Press. Skiba, R. J., Michael, R. S., Nardo, A. C., & Peterson, R. L. (2002). The color of discipline: Sources of racial and gender disproportionality in school punishment. The Urban Review, 34, doi: /A: Staats, C. (2014). State of the science: Implicit bias review Columbus, OH: Kirwan Institute. Vincent, C. G., Swain-Bradway, J., Tobin, T. J., & May, S. (2011). Disciplinary referrals for culturally and linguistically diverse students with and without disabilities: Patterns resulting from school-wide positive behavior support. Exceptionality, 19, Wallace, J. M. J., Goodkind, S., Wallace, C. M., & Bachman, J. G. (2008). Racial, ethnic, and gender differences in school discipline among U.S. high school students: 1991–2005. Negro Educational Review, 59,