July 24 - Maryland Board of Education Backs Race-Based Quota-System for School Discipline

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:
1) That's why they're supposed to perform studies before instituting these types of social experiments on our children.

That is exactly the first step that is required in Maryland. From the report to which you linked:

"A. The Department shall develop a method to analyze local school system discipline
data to determine whether there is a disproportionate impact on minority students."

Anonymous wrote:
2) How trite. Re-read the Maryland policy; what's suggested here is not simply an "investigation" of alternatives to reduce disparity, it's an ACTUAL and complete leveling of any (statistical) disparity in less than 3 years. Think about this for a moment, how do you modify the punishment statistics as a school administrator or teacher when you actually have control over only a very small, minute portion of that which is in a student's life that is actually causing misbehavior and have no control over many of the primary factors (poor home life, bad/weak parenting, wrong friends, psychological and self-esteem issues, and so on and so forth)? How do you get those race-based statistics down when you don't actually have control over many of those root causes of misbehavior in your student population? Think about it.

From the same report:

"C. If the Department identifies a school’s discipline process as having a
disproportionate impact on minority or special education students, the local school system
shall prepare and present to the State Board a plan to reduce the disproportionate impact
within 1 year and eliminate it within 3 years."

You have made it abundantly clear in this thread that you are capable of imagining exactly one idea for this plan: increasing suspensions for white students. I, on the other hand, can think of several more. For instance, if the disparity is the result of a broadly-defined offense, a good first step would be to narrow the definition. If two students commit the same action, that action should be defined as the same offense -- if it is an offense -- regardless of their racial group. If punishments are not applied consistently between schools, implement requirements for consistency. Reduce suspensions by identifying an alternative punishment to suspension -- one that has less negative impact on the student's ability to receive an education. Look into preventing the causes of the offenses that lead to suspension.

Anonymous wrote:
3) This is has never been an issue in the thread. For, it has been I (certainly not you), that has first and foremost brought this up time and again as being the singular silver lining in this policy. Do not claim this as your own.

I am not claiming anything as my own, but asking a question. If you believe that an alternative to out-of-school suspensions would be beneficial, why do you oppose the actions taken in Maryland and Oakland? I understand that you learned about this via the Daily Caller. It was portrayed as a race-based discipline system. Yet, if you read the actual Maryland report, it is not that at all. Only your complete refusal to read the report with an open mind and seriously consider what is being required by the report prevents you from getting beyond your initial Daily Caller influenced understanding.

Anonymous wrote:
Just because you run an internet board, doesn't mean that what you say on it is well-informed. Please re-examine the the policy and think through its implications in the REAL world.

What makes me well-informed is the fact that I have learned that you simply cannot trust the claims that come from publications such as the Daily Caller. Such publications find racial division beneficial. Their goal is not serious examination of public policy to understand its impact on society, but the exploitation of base tribal animosity. I read the Maryland report. The actual report that was voted upon and approved, not a draft. None of your original claims were shown to be true. Just like the Daily Caller, you chose extreme, racially-divisive language to say things that simply were not true. You initially stated that "those sweet oriental kids are going to have to be suspended and expelled from schools at a rate that is equal to the rate that blacks are suspended, expelled, and otherwise punished...". Do you still stand by that statement?

[Anonymous]

It is not suprising in America there is a disproportionate impact of discipline on minorities in public school. The teachers in American public school systems (e.g., MCPS) do not come close to representing the diversity of the students they teach. This rings true in almost every sector of American society. Study after study confirms inherent biases towards minorities after all is controlled for from health care disparities, public school discipline and public stops and searches. This dates back to teh post-recontruction period in her brief history.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is not suprising in America there is a disproportionate impact of discipline on minorities in public school. The teachers in American public school systems (e.g., MCPS) do not come close to representing the diversity of the students they teach. This rings true in almost every sector of American society. Study after study confirms inherent biases towards minorities after all is controlled for from health care disparities, public school discipline and public stops and searches. This dates back to teh post-recontruction period in her brief history.

Sorry I'm not buying it. O'Malley's policy, as presented, is a bad idea and your post has little to do with its real world implementation. It's got the right final objective in mind (reducing suspensions of minorities). However, the policy uses an improper methodology (a shallow, short-term gaming of the numbers) to feign an otherwise admirable end at the long-term expense our children (misbehaving and well mannered alike, regardless of race). Accountability is important.

From another school system jumping on to this new education "trend"....

Every commenter at the Oakland Tribune seems to "get it"

http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_21650203/oakland-schools-enter-agreement-feds-reduce-suspensions-black

nearly 5 pages of commenters at the Sacramento Bee "get it"

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/28/4863596/oakland-to-reduce-black-student.html

[jsteele]

Anonymous wrote:
From another school system jumping on to this new education "trend"....

Every commenter at the Oakland Tribune seems to "get it"

http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_21650203/oakland-schools-enter-agreement-feds-reduce-suspensions-black

nearly 5 pages of commenters at the Sacramento Bee "get it"

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/28/4863596/oakland-to-reduce-black-student.html

Anyone who has spent any time at all reading the comments sections of newspapers knows that the comments are dominated by racists or people who are unable to discuss any topic outside the parameters of race. Moreover, these comments sections are also generally dominated by the most ignorant group of individuals you could ever possibly hope to find. The fact that you must rely on newspaper comment sections rather than the primary sources of the new regulations says all that needs to be said about your argument.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"it means that those sweet oriental kids are going to have to be suspended and expelled from schools at a rate that is equal to the rate that blacks are suspended, expelled, and otherwise punished regardless of what the reality is in the school system."

Just for your information - people aren't oriental. Rugs are oriental. People are Asian.

Ooh! Good one. I wonder will bi racial and multi racial students will have fractional suspensions. Hmm.

Also in MD, in school suspensions have to be reported and show up in the stats for schoolodex.

[Anonymous]

OP-- People who are Jewish are not members of the Jewish Race. You are an anti semite. Judaism is a religion.

[Anonymous]

It is not suprising in America there is a disproportionate impact of discipline on minorities in public school. The teachers in American public school systems (e.g., MCPS) do not come close to representing the diversity of the students they teach. This rings true in almost every sector of American society. Study after study confirms inherent biases towards minorities after all is controlled for from health care disparities, public school discipline and public stops and searches. This dates back to teh post-recontruction period in her brief history.

Sorry I'm not buying it. O'Malley's policy, as presented, is a bad idea and your post has little to do with its real world implementation. It's got the right final objective in mind (reducing suspensions of minorities). However, the policy uses an improper methodology (a shallow, short-term gaming of the numbers) to feign an otherwise admirable end at the long-term expense our children (misbehaving and well mannered alike, regardless of race). Accountability is important.

From another school system jumping on to this new education "trend"....

Every commenter at the Oakland Tribune seems to "get it"

http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_2165...-feds-reduce-suspensions-black

nearly 5 pages of commenters at the Sacramento Bee "get it"

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/09/28/4863596/oakland-to-reduce-black-student.html

I don't expect anybody who gets their primary education from reading blogs and commentary rather than reading the primary papers and manuscripts on this subject to buy anything but Kool-aid.

[Anonymous]

Defining Deviancy Down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Another school system has joined Martin O'Malley and the Maryland Board of Education in signing on-board with the Obama administration's afformentioned, misguided philosophy of promoting a race-based quota system for school discipline .

Oakland schools enter agreement with feds to reduce suspensions of black students
http://www.insidebayarea.com/breaking-news/ci_21650203/oakland-schools-enter-agreement-feds-reduce-suspensions-black

What's racist is not this post, but rather the idea that it's "okay" to hand out (or withold) punishment based on race.

I said it before and will say it again, Maryland Governor O'Malley (and now the Oakland's Board of Education also) proposal of finding alternatives for misbehaving students to get an education whilst being punished gets an A+. That is as it should be. However, Martin O'Malley's endorsement and participation in this movement from the perspective of unfairly dolling out punishments based on the race of the offender (reducing punishment for blacks, and increasing harsher more frequent punishments for whites and asians).

Let me guess, next someone will say the Oakland Tribune is racist too. Puh-leaze. Your bank called. They said your race card is over the credit limit on this one.

The Facebook poster's at the bottom of that Oakland Tribune article get it, even if there are a few self-loathing brainwashed liberals in this thread that do not. Wake-up. If not for yourselves, then for your own children, for pete's sakes.

LOL! Didn't O'Malley watch the 4th season of "The Wire"? Oh, wait, probably not. He was too busy throwing a hissy fit over his portrayal in the show with the Carcetti character.

[Anonymous]

Disparate impact failure...

Denver Teachers Say They Deal with Too many Bad Kids

http://www.9news.com/news/article/336375/188/Teachers-say-they-deal-with-too-many-bad-kids


At least the news anchors "get it," and have an appreciation for the work of teachers. Too bad O'Malley still doesn't and insisted on moving forward with Disparate Impact-based policy in spite of the facts.


By the way, 9News is an NBC affiliate. So much for the "dailycaller" theory.

[Anonymous]

I have a question re: disparate impact. With regard to punishment, couldn't it mean that the school system will look not whether minorities are punished more often than Caucasians, but whether they are punished more harshly for the same offenses as Caucasians? Wouldn't that make more sense? This is an honest query I'm not being snarky.

[Anonymous]

bullshit

We haven't had ISS since the 90s, hon.

It ain't coming back!

Anonymous wrote:Relax.

What will happen is schools will start instituting "in school suspension" only not calling it "suspension" so they don't have to report it. In school detention, maybe. Instead of sending kids home for 3 days, they will send them to the suspension room. Schools will have to cough up the money to have someone supervise the kids and it will inconvenience parents less (won't have to take time off from work) so the practice probably won't reduce misbehavior much. But it will allow the schools to state correctly that they are suspending fewer kids of all groups.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:bullshit

We haven't had ISS since the 90s, hon.

It ain't coming back!

Wrong! ISS is alive and well. I've personally had a couple of students on ISS for a day or two this school year.

[Anonymous]

Whose fault is that?

You're saying only blacks can teach blacks? that only Hispanics can teach Hispanics? Asians with Asians?

I think diversity is valuable, and as a white female who's the minority in my school, I would welcome an increase in rigor and expectations across the board for ALL students. But what I tend to see instead are teachers grumbling about low skills, handing out worksheets, and giving way too much seat work. This laziness stems from ignorance, as I've seen very few over the 20-some years I've taught who truly understand good planning.

And guess where many of my brilliant colleagues are now? in schools where there are few to no FARMs, where they can teach w/o killing themselves - I, in fact, am at that point in my career, as I've seen no change in instruction and few attempts at planning while keeping rigor at the center.

Five good teachers cannot transform a school. And while they may make a difference for a short period, once those kids leave them and enter classrooms where expectations were low, all that hard work amounts to nothing. I've seen it again and again and again.


So your statement is very simplistic.

Teaching is complex, and while I do believe institutionalized racism exists, there are still teachers of minority status who are also to blame for ignoring rigor, for giving out too much seat work, and for handing out worksheet after worksheet.

It all boils down to expectations.

Anonymous wrote:It is not suprising in America there is a disproportionate impact of discipline on minorities in public school. The teachers in American public school systems (e.g., MCPS) do not come close to representing the diversity of the students they teach. This rings true in almost every sector of American society. Study after study confirms inherent biases towards minorities after all is controlled for from health care disparities, public school discipline and public stops and searches. This dates back to teh post-recontruction period in her brief history.

[Anonymous]

Wow

I've been in the system for 20 years. I've worked at three high schools - soon to be four this fall. The last time I saw this in practice was in the late 90s. Personally, It's a band aid approach. The kids learn nothing in ISS, and while they're out for a day or two, they come back just as unpleasant as ever - hoping to return to ISS the next day.

It does no good in the long run.

And I can't imagine we still have schools - at least schools in high-profile systems - that would implement that practice. It's ass backward!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:bullshit

We haven't had ISS since the 90s, hon.

It ain't coming back!

Wrong! ISS is alive and well. I've personally had a couple of students on ISS for a day or two this school year.