Abstract This chapter first discusses not only the racialized ramifications of exclusionary discipline practices in public education but also factors that contribute to the issue. For example, the chapter discusses issues such as suspension, expulsion, and contact with the juvenile justice system and explores a theoretical explanation for said contributions. Further, critical race theory is discussed as a possible explanation. Next, the chapter exposes the reader to the number of approaches and programs that have shown to be effective in preventing or reducing behavior problems in school settings before these behaviors result in harsh disciplinary measures. These include schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports.

School social workers provide social, emotional, and behavioral interventions for elementary-age students within multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) when disruptive behavior and deficits in self-control are observed.Secondary/Tier 2 cognitive-and behaviorally-oriented interventions that target self-control have been shown to impact positive outcomes in academic, social, emotional, and behavioral realms for elementary-age students.This study sought to evaluate the Zones of Regulation® intervention for elementary-age students identified with disruptive behavior via a small randomized controlled trial (N = 63).Students were identified for disruptive behavior concerns through a universal behavior screening process and were randomly assigned to the intervention group or the control group.School social workers utilized twelve selected lessons from the cognitive-behaviorally oriented Zones of Regulation® curriculum sequence for a six-week Secondary/Tier 2 group intervention.Implementation of the Zones of Regulation® curriculum did not result in statistically significant decreases in students' disruptive behavior or improve their self-control.More tailored efforts to explore the social validity and effectiveness of the Zones® within MTSS school structures is warranted given the widespread use of the curriculum by school social workers and other specialized instructional support personnel.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore coping and impacts of religious difference and discrimination among a sample of 50 middle and high school Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and Universalist Unitarian adolescent public school students. Content analysis employing grounded theory strategies resulted in 7 themes: 1) Importance of religious affiliation and community; 2) Influence of parental religiosity; 3) Parents as advocates and expert consultants; 4) To have or not to have friends from other religions; 5) Response to negative incidents; 6) Perceptions of teachers; and 7) The school culture needs to change. Implications for interventions aimed at promoting resilience and positive religious identity are discussed in addition to recommendations for making schools a welcoming and safe place for students of all religious backgrounds.

National and state surveys over the past several decades have concluded that school social workers, despite an awareness of and training in macro level practice strategies, are highly individualistic in their practice focus. Although clinical skills are necessary, they are insufficient for effective school social work practice in the 21st century. No studies have moved beyond asking what tasks school social workers perform to asking what predicts these tasks. The purpose of this study was to explore which factors appear to shape and influence school social work practice in Tennessee. The authors found no evidence that school social workers' characteristics (for example, gender, race, education, grade levels served) affect their choice of interventions, but they did find evidence that organizational and systemic sociocultural factors affect the types of interventions that school social workers perform. The authors discuss the implications for practice and organizational change.

A number of case studies and legal briefs describe very troubling incidents faced by secondary school students because of their minority religious group affiliation. The purpose of the study described in this article was to understand the lived experiences of minority religious youths who attend public schools in an area of the United States where the majority of students are affiliated with one dominant religious tradition. Semistructured focus groups were conducted with 50 adolescents (in grades 6 to 12) affiliated with religious minority groups (11 students were Jewish, 11 Muslim, 18 Catholic, and 10 Universalist Unitarian). Analysis was conducted using grounded theory methodology, and a method of constant comparative analysis was applied. The data yielded four major themes: (1) minority status, (2) precursors, (3) teacher and adult roles, and (4) perception of peer intent. Several of the incidents described by the participants were congruent with the definition of hate crime or bullying; other experiences were representative of the concept of microaggression. One of the most unanticipated findings from this study was participants' reports of teachers as perpetrators in several incidents. Findings from this study point to the need for the implementation of strategies designed to increase religious tolerance in our increasingly diverse public schools.

Journal Article The Development of a National School Social Work Practice Model Get access Andy J. Frey, Andy J. Frey Andy J. Frey, PhD, MSW, is professor and coordinator of the school social work specialization, Kent School of Social Work, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY. ajfrey01@louisville.edu Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Michelle E. Alvarez, Michelle E. Alvarez Michelle E. Alvarez, EdD, MSW, is assistant professor, Department of Social Work, Minnesota State University, Mankato. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Christine Anlauf Sabatino, Christine Anlauf Sabatino Christine Anlauf Sabatino, PhD, LICSW, C-SSW, is associate professor, National Catholic School of Social Service, and director, Center on the Advancement of Children, Youth, and Families, Catholic University of America, Washington, DC. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Brenda Coble Lindsey, Brenda Coble Lindsey Brenda Coble Lindsey, EdD, MSW, is clinical associate professor and director of the BSW program, School of Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Dave R. Dupper, Dave R. Dupper David R. Dupper, PhD, MSW, is professor, College of Social Work, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar James C. Raines, James C. Raines James C. Raines, PhD, MSSW, is professor and chair, Health, Human Services and Public Policy Department, California State University, Monterey Bay. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Frederick Streeck, Frederick Streeck Frederick Streeck, MSW, ACSW, is executive director, School Social Work Association of America, Sumner, WA. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Anne McInerney, Anne McInerney Anne McInerney, MSW, LICSW, is a school social worker, St. Paul Public Schools, St. Paul, MN. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Molly P. Norris Molly P. Norris Molly P. Norris, LICSW, is lead school social worker, Mankato Public Schools, Mankato, MN. The development of the national model for school social work practice was supported in part by Minnesota State University, Mankato, through a 2011 Strategic Planning Grant awarded to Michelle E. Alvarez. In addition, the authors acknowledge the many social workers who have reviewed and provided feedback on the model to date, in particular Martell Teasley and Dawn Anderson-Butcher, for their insights on and contributions to the social justice perspective and leverage resource sections, respectively. Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Children & Schools, Volume 34, Issue 3, July 2012, Pages 131–134, https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/cds025 Published: 03 October 2012

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-5), the U.S. Department of Education (2012a) has awarded more than $4.35 billion for Race to the Top (RTT) grants to states that were willing to implement school reform. The grant proposals were required to address educational reform in the areas of improving student outcomes, standards and assessment for students, and teacher and principal evaluations that incorporate student outcome data (U.S. Department of Education, 2012b). In 2010, 11 states (Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, Tennessee) and the District of Columbia were awarded RTT funds, and in 2011, seven states (Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania) received funding (U.S. Department of Education, 2012b). This editorial addresses the evaluation mandate component of RTT and its implications for school social work. Specifically, we summarize major lessons learned...

School exclusion (out-of-school suspension and expulsion) is the most common and serious discipline response to student misbehavior. While most existing studies have considered student and school level risk factors for exclusion separately, multilevel analysis that evaluates student and school level variables together is needed since students are nested within their schools.This article addresses this need by using multilevel modeling to predict the likelihood of school exclusion following the last infraction of the year for 9706 middle and high school students in one school district. Multilevel modeling shows that students' poverty, previous suspensions, and severity of the last infraction predict exclusion while the schools' duplicated suspension rate predicts exclusion at the school level. These results highlight the need for comprehensive interventions that seek to change student behavior as well as the school environment. The role of school administrators, faculty and staff in developing and implementing these interventions and other implications for school personnel are discussed. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

This chapter discusses a number of issues surrounding the most widely implemented school disciplinary practices in U.S. public schools today out-of-school suspension and expulsion. It discusses the current prevalence of suspensions, the effectiveness of suspensions, and health and social problems that have been shown to be associated with suspensions. It also examines what is known about the reasons why students are suspended from school and raises a number of questions and concerns about the way in which certain categories of offenses are defined and reported. It discusses issues surrounding the disproportionate rates of suspensions for African-American and Hispanic students and concludes with a brief discussion of the prevalence and outcomes associated with the use of corporal punishment in those states where it remains legal.

The transition from elementary to middle school is difficult for many students. However, the association between such transitions and changes in the types and frequencies of student discipline problems has not been adequately investigated. Using data from two school years, infractions and dispositions for all 5th-grade students (N = 4,196) from one school district are followed from the final year of elementary school through the first year of middle school. Results show a substantial increase in reported student discipline problems and the use of in-school suspension in middle school. This increase is most dramatic for subjectively defined infractions like "class disturbance" and "failure to follow rules" compared to more concrete, objective infractions. Implications for educators and school administrators are discussed.

Does the Punishment Fit the Crime? The Impact of Zero Tolerance Discipline on At-Risk Youths Get access David R. Dupper David R. Dupper Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Children & Schools, Volume 32, Issue 2, April 2010, Pages 67–69, https://doi.org/10.1093/cs/32.2.67 Published: 01 April 2010

In many U.S. school districts, there has been a near epidemic of out-of-school suspensions (OSSs) for relatively minor or vaguely defined student offenses. Suspension provides temporary relief to frustrated teachers and administrators and may result in more parental involvement. However, for a large number of at-risk youths, it appears that being suspended leads to significant problems outside of school, increases the likelihood of receiving additional OSSs, and may result in dropping out of school. As a result, school social workers need to be made aware of programs that focus on the elimination of students' problematic behaviors rather than the elimination of students themselves. This article summarizes recent research on individual and school factors that have been shown to be associated with and predictive of OSSs. On the basis of these findings, the authors present a set of practice guidelines for reducing OSSs and identify and describe promising and proven programs within each practice guideline. They conclude with a discussion of challenges facing school social workers seeking to implement alternatives based on these practice guidelines.

Students need a strong,, positive relationship with caring adults in school. Although the vast majority of adults in authority interact respectfully with students, some adults physically and psychologically bully students. This article examines the extent to which 50 alternative education students reported being victimized by teachers or other adults during their school career. Of respondents, 86% reported at least one incident of adult physical maltreatment in school and 88% reported at least one incident of adult psychological maltreatment in school. Almost twice as many students reported that an adult, rather than a peer, was involved in their worst school experience (64.4%), with several students indicating that their worst school experience involved being physically mistreated by an adult; half reported being upset by the experience "a lot." These findings indicate that students are being bullied by teachers to a surprising degree and in a wide range of destructive and harmful ways.