As a reviewer of middle level schools, their programs, policies, curricula, mission statements, instructional behaviors, assessment processes, and student-oriented community the author offers observations that can promote better student equity. He suggests: (1) "Producing Equity Belief Statements." Mission, Equity, or Inclusion…

Increasing efforts have been made in the field of special education to identify positive, evidence-based practices (EBPs) to meet the needs of students who engage in problem behavior, with a major goal being to eliminate or limit the use of reactive measures such as restraint and seclusion (Snell & Walker, 2014). Various stakeholders,…

In this brief, recent actions related to school discipline, discipline disparities in schools, the school-to-prison pipeline, and the added costs of suspending students in the U.S. are explored. The recommendations offered focus on how school leaders and policy makers can address disparities and how school cultures can be changed to reduce the…

Using disciplinary exclusions, such as office referrals, suspensions, and expulsions, has been the subject of significant concern related to student and family civil rights, school policy, and negative impact on short- and long-term outcomes for students. Embedded in this phenomenon is the documentation of significant and persistent…

The PASSAGE (Positive and Safe Schools Advancing Greater Equity) initiative in Chicago brought together representatives from Chicago Public Schools (CPS), the parent organizing group COFI (Community Organizing and Family Issues), and the youth education organizing group VOYCE (Voices of Youth in Chicago Education), facilitated by the Annenberg…

With the passing of the Gun Free School Act of 1994, the 1990s bore witness to the birth of zero-tolerance policies. During the remainder of that decade, several school shootings occurred that solidified zero-tolerance in schools across the United States. With the possibility of threats constantly increasing, school personnel having a thorough…

School suspension is the most widely used disciplinary practice in U.S. schools. It is a programmatic regularity, as Seymour would say. He would also say "programmatic regularities have implicit or explicit outcomes." Like Seymour, the author is concerned about what he describes as the "frequent discrepancy between regularities and…

In their efforts to manage the college environment, many higher-education institutions have deployed complex systems of student discipline--often in the form of legalistic codes of conduct. Paradoxically, says the author, major challenges involving students on campuses appear to be getting worse: high-risk alcohol/drug use persists; student…

It is generally acknowledged that school discipline is failing. Through a comparison of two very different disciplinary situations, I inquire into possible causes of failure and conditions of success. The argument is made that if discipline is to succeed, students must believe in and identify with the goals it is designed to support. Questions are…

The model presented is intended to return discipline to a legitimate place in education and educational research; it focuses on three elements--pupil development, ecological factors, and disciplinary approaches. (DS)

Five criteria useful in evaluating any discipline model will help evaluators make sense of a complex issue. Discipline policies should be philosophically sound, pedagogically defensible, psychologically appropriate, pragmatically feasible, and professionally evaluated. (TE)

Aggregate data for the U.S. and selected cities demonstrate that minority students are suspended in disproportionately large numbers. The data suggest that this may be caused by interpretations of what constitutes acceptable behaviors that differ for various race, sex, and age groups; by inconsistent application of school codes to different race,…

The case against corporal punishment in the schools is made, and alternatives to it are suggested. Readers are asked to respond to a tear-out opinion poll. (JL)

The effectiveness claims for Assertive Discipline made by Lee Canter and other advocates are not supported by the limited research that has been conducted in the program's 12 years of existence. (Author/TE)

Identifies and discusses some successful alternatives for coping with classroom behavior problems. (FL)