What contributes to disproportionate representation of diverse students in special education?

Possible causes of disproportionate special education representation are psychometric test bias, socio- demographic factors, unequal opportunity in general education (the most consistent findings in education research is that students achieve in direct proportion to their opportunity to learn), teacher ethnicity (as ...

What are the factors associated with the disproportionate representation in special education?

Research indicates that factors such as test bias, poverty, poor general education instruction, and insufficient professional development for working with diverse students can cause this overrepresentation.

What is disproportionate representation of culturally diverse students in special education?

Disproportionate Representation in Special Education

Disproportionality in special education refers to the idea that racist and discriminatory practices have resulted in a high number of students from certain racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups being placed in special education.

What are some of the factors that contribute to racial disproportionality in special education?

For example, research has shown that the following influence disproportionate outcomes for culturally and linguistically diverse students in special education: (1) discipline policies and practices, (2) interventions and referrals, (3) instruction and assessment, (4) differential access to educational opportunity, (5) ...

What is disproportionate placement in special education?

Disproportionality is the overrepresentation of a specific race or ethnicity identified in one or more of four areas: identification of a disability in general; identification of a specific race or ethnicity in a specific disability category; discipline; and placement.

Don't Put People in Boxes

What are three factors influencing disproportionality in special education?

“Significant disproportionality” refers to three separate but related trends that impact a student's educational experience: (1) identification for special education (also called eligibility); (2) educational placement (once identified as eligible for special education); and (3) discipline.

What is disproportionality in special education in general why is this a problem what causes this?

Disproportionality in special education placement and school discipline are issues that need to be addressed by educators and policymakers, as students of color—especially students of color with disabilities—are disproportionately subjected to exclusionary discipline and may more often be placed in segregated settings ...

Why are minorities disproportionately diagnosed with learning disabilities?

Many researchers are concerned that disproportionate identification of racial/ethnic minorities with learning disabilities is part of the long history of racism and stratification within education (Patton 1998; Skiba et al. 2008). Some attribute disproportionality to blatant educator racism (Anderson 1997; Skiba et al.

Which of the following students are disproportionately overrepresented in special education?

Q 2. The two racial/ethnic groups most disproportionately overrepresented in special education are African American/Black and Hispanic/Latino.

What race is underrepresented in special education?

The debate over over representation in special education

The most credible studies allow researchers to control for a rich set of student-level characteristics, rather than using data aggregated to the district level, and firmly establish that blacks are disproportionately under-represented.

Are black children disproportionately overrepresented in special education?

Although many prior studies found that Black children are disproportionately overrepresented in special education (e.g., Oswald et al., 1999; Skiba et al., 2005), some recent studies have found that they are less likely to be referred or found eligible for special education when contrasted to otherwise similar White ...

Why is cultural diversity a concern for special educators?

What are the Challenges of Diversity? One of the first issues of special education is identification of deficits. Children with different racial, ethnic or language backgrounds may have difficulty understanding classroom instruction and may not actually have special needs.

Which groups of students are overrepresented in special education?

Minority groups are overrepresented in special education. However, in gifted programs, Asian and Pacific Islanders are overrepresented while other minority groups, such as African American, Native American, and Hispanic/Latinos are underrepresented(page 89).

What are the four 4 social factors associated with educational inequality?

Unequal educational outcomes are attributed to several variables, including family of origin, gender, and social class. Achievement, earnings, health status, and political participation also contribute to educational inequality within the United States and other countries.

What is the inequality in education for people with disabilities?

Nationally, only 65 percent of students with disabilities graduate from high school compared to 86 percent of students without disabilities. Only seven percent of students with disabilities graduate from college. There are many factors contributing to inequality in our educational system for people with disabilities.

What are the barriers to inclusion of learners with disabilities?

Programmatic barriers.

Staff may not know how to provide inclusion supports such as individual needs assessments, environmental inventories, behavioral teaching techniques, adaptations, or specialized equipment. And the activities offered may not be a good match for persons with some types of disabilities.

What does overrepresented mean in special education?

Overrepresentation is defined “as the representation of a group in a category that exceeds our expectations for that group, or differs substantially from the representation of others in that category” (Skiba et al., 2008: 266). From: International Encyclopedia of Education (Third Edition), 2010.

Are students of color overrepresented in special education?

The current process of identifying districts for significant disproportionality in special education was built over two decades of evidence that students of color were overrepresented in special education populations.

Which of the following groups are generally underrepresented in special education?

Summary: A new federally funded study finds that racial, ethnic, and language minority elementary- and middle-school students are less likely than otherwise similar white, English-speaking children to be identified as having disabilities and, as a result, are disproportionately underrepresented in special education.

Why are so many students of color in special education?

Research suggests that some teachers may be more likely to refer students of color to special education, even when they have similar academic and behavioral needs as their White peers. Poverty: Students from low-income families are more likely to be identified as needing special education services.

Are children from minority groups underrepresented when it comes to students being identified as having special needs?

These studies find that minority students are less likely than otherwise similar white students to be identified for special education. This finding raises the possibility that Black and Hispanic students may be less likely to receive the specialized services they need.

What problems do minorities face in education?

Many Black students in the United States face distinctive challenges when it comes to completing postsecondary programs. Barriers to completion include the high financial cost of higher education and implicit and overt forms of racial discrimination that cause many to stop out or never enroll in the first place.

What are the main reasons for inequality in education?

There are many factors that contribute to educational inequity, including poverty, racism, and inadequate funding for schools in low-income areas. To address these challenges, policymakers and educators must take a multifaceted approach that includes several key strategies.

What are some factors that have contributed to educational inequality?

Why does disproportionality happen?

There are various factors which cause disproportionality that are not only tied to the way the system is structured but also to the existing policies, practices, and mindsets of the individuals engaged in student placement and discipline at various levels.