Potential Factors Affecting Suspension at K-8 Schools in the United States

Khairul Islam

doi:10.12973/ijem.7.2.279

Abstract

<p style="text-align:justify">Suspension and expulsion are adversely related to negative outcomes of students, such as falling behind academically, an increased risk of absenteeism or dropout from schools. Suspension discrepancy due to ethnicity is evident and well known in the United States. The proper understanding of factors affecting suspension may lead to intervention towards the reduction of suspension episodes in the schools. The aim of this study is to determine how student, parent and school characteristics affect the likelihood of K-8 school students’ suspension in the United States. We analyze the National Household Education Surveys of 2019 with a sample of 9,699 K-8 students to evaluate the risk factors of suspension. The study finds that 6% students receive K-8 school suspensions. Bivariate analysis suggests that gender, ethnicity, poverty, parental education, school type, repeated grades, contacted for behavioral problem and school type are significantly associated with the K-8 students’ suspension. An adjusted analysis of these factors via multiple logistic regression suggests that the odds of suspension of NH-black students are 2.7 times the odds of NH-white students. Odds of suspension for students with parental education below HS is 3.2 (95% CI: 1.77-5.80) compared those with parental education at Graduate or professional level. Likewise, students of public schools have higher odds of suspension compared to private schools. There is significant evidence that students with repeated grades, poor parents, school type and those contacted for behavioral problems have substantially higher odds of suspension.</p>

Highlights

IntroductionSuspensions (in-school or out-of-school or expulsion) are various forms of disciplinary actions by schools or districts in relation to students’ behavioral issues
Suspensions are various forms of disciplinary actions by schools or districts in relation to students’ behavioral issues
Using multiple logistic regression analysis, this study finds that school type, repeated grades and whether contacted for behavioral problems are statistically significant in relation to the K-8 students’ suspension, while other factors investigated are significant except school size and times contacted for school home works

Summary

Introduction

Suspensions (in-school or out-of-school or expulsion) are various forms of disciplinary actions by schools or districts in relation to students’ behavioral issues. In in-school suspensions, students receive temporary removal from regular classrooms and remain under the active supervision of designated school personnel for at least half-a-day. In out-of-school suspensions, students receive temporary removal from regular schools to be sent to other settings, homes or behavior centers, for at least half-a-day for disciplinary purposes. Details about the forms of suspensions in the United States are available from the National Center for Education Statistics (2019). While in the academic year 2011-2012, 18% of the enrolled preschoolers in the United States are Black, it was evident that 42% of students suspended once, and 48% of students suspended multiple times from preschools are Black students

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