Category: Data
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Duality of Discipline Disparity
Horace Mann spoke in 1848 that “Education…is a great equalizer of conditions of men” however in today’s U.S. education system the only greatness to be witnessed is that of the duality of students which leads to inequality and injustice. In a duality system of civil rights and criminal wrongs, students bear the burden of society’s…
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What is the difference between the medical and social models of disability and why does it matter?
According to the medical model of disability, ‘disability’ is a health condition dealt with by medical professionals. Disabled people are thought to be different to ‘what is normal.’ It’s seen as abnormal. Disability’ is seen to be a problem of the individual. From the medical model, a disabled person is in need of being fixed…
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The Office of Civil Rights is not doing enough…
Advocacy groups such as ours, we rely on data collection and reporting from state and federal agencies. One of the primary sources of information we use for tracking is the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) data collection. To be useful and actionable data must be accurate, relevant, and timely. Unfortunately, the…
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Questioning the Evidence Behind Evidence-Based Approaches
Some of the most ineffective and harmful treatments are considered “evidence-based.” The phrase in isolation is meaningless without understanding the quality of the evidence AND whether the evidence supports the purpose for which the treatment is being used. Additionally, practices that were at one time considered evidence-based can be found through additional research and time…
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What is the school-to-prison pipeline?
The school to prison pipeline is a term coined early in the early twenty-first century to refer to the policies and practices that directly and indirectly push students out of school and on a pathway to prison. These policies and practices include overuse of harsh school disciplinary procedures including suspension, seclusion, restraint, and expulsion; increased…
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Maryland use of restraint and seclusion increasing
According to a recent report from the Maryland State Department of Education, the use of restraint and seclusion is increasing in Maryland schools. The report, Restraint and Seclusion: Data Collection, Findings, and Recommendations 2018/19 indicated that there were 19,713 instances of restraints and 9,532 instances of seclusion reported during the 2018/19 reporting period.
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Restraint and Seclusion by the Numbers
The civil rights of disabled children and minorities are being violated Restraint and seclusion disproportionately impact disabled children and African American students in the United States. Many of the children impacted by restraint and seclusion are elementary school students as young as five years old. In the 2015–2016 school year over 122,000 students were restrained…