Racial Disproportionality in Special Education By Daniel J. Losen ©

Racial Disproportionality in Special Education: Measurement, Data Accuracy, and Reporting Issues Part I: Describing Disproportionality in the Nation and in Wisconsin

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4 What is Risk? Risk is the percentage of students of a given racial group that are identified as belonging in a particular category. Risk = # of students of a given racial group in a disability category # of students of a given racial group enrolled in the district

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 5 What is Risk? For Example: Black students with CD = 2 = 2% Black students enrolled = 100 The risk of an enrolled Black student being labeled as having CD = 2%.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 6 Wisconsin Risk for Other Health Impaired by Racial/Ethnic Groups

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 7 Wisconsin Risk for Specific Learning Disability by Racial/Ethnic Groups

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 8 Wisconsin Risk for Emotional Behavioral Disability by Racial/Ethnic Groups

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 9 Wisconsin Risk for “Cognitive Disability” by Racial/Ethnic Groups

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 10 Wisconsin Risk for Disability Category by Racial/Ethnic Groups

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 11 Risk Ratio Compares the risk of one racial group with that of another; or compares the risk of one racial group with the risk of all the other groups combined.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 12 Risk Ratios: How to Calculate Risk Ratio = Risk for Black students with CD Risk for White students with CD

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 13 Risk Ratios: How to Calculate For Example: Risk for Black students with CD = 2.0 = 4.0 Risk for White students with CD = means the same risk 2.0 means twice as likely.5 means half as likely

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The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 15 Wisconsin Risk and Risk Ratio for Disability Category by Racial/Ethnic Groups

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 16 Q: Why is it important to analyze risk as well as risk ratio? A: Risk ratios alone leave out important information.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 17 Racial Disproportionality in Placement and Discipline Disproportionality in Identification and Placement and Discipline are Linked The research on the factors that contribute to these patterns will be examined in Part II.

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The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 19 Risk of Substantially Separate Placement in Wisconsin (WDPI 2004)

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The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 22 Wisconsin’s Risk Ratios For Suspension > 10 Days By Race/Ethnicity Compared to Whites Source: 2003 OSEP Child Count – excludes students who are educated in separate facilities.

Part II: State/District Obligations Under IDEA 2004 The many factors that may contribute to racial disproportionality.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 24 Overidentification: IQ Larry P. in California Construction of difference: the cut score (85 to 70) Rampant mis-diagnosis The IQ/ achievement differential –IQ is just another achievement test –IQ measures poverty and other environmental factors –IQ can change –Is the bias in the test, or in the decision to rely on it to label children?

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 25 Subjectivity of Evaluation and Identification Myth of objectivity – who is being referred? Most referred students are identified as eligible Technical Controversies: 10 out of 55 LD misdiagnosed – and that was the most favorable study (Ysseldyke 2001) Who to test, what test to use, how to weigh the results, how to interpret the score IDEA provision bars discriminatory methods – is there training on culturally sensitive measures?

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 26 IEP TEAM Parents perspectives are often given little weight – especially poor and minority parents. Conclusions of evaluators are rarely doubted by parents or educators. Teachers are often reluctant to question team members (especially superiors). High degree of deference to the “experts.”

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 27 Race and Gender are Contributing Factors Poverty and related factors correlate highly with the incidence of disability, but once socio- economic factors are accounted for, the effect of gender and race remains significant. (See Oswald, Coutinho and Best, “Community and School Predictors of Over Representation of Minority Children in Special Education” in Racial Inequity in Special Education (September 2002)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 28 Black Males In the most profound example, contrary to expectations, as factors associated with wealth and better schooling increase, Black males are at greater risk of being disproportionately labeled “mentally retarded.” (See Oswald, Coutinho and Best, “Community and School Predictors of Over Representation of Minority Children in Special Education” in Racial Inequity in Special Education)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 29 THE RACIAL COMPOSITION Of DISTRICTS MATTER The Risk for MR and ED Among Black Children Increases as the White Population Increases

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 30 Are Racial Disparities Explained by Poverty? Regression analysis says no. Blacks and Latinos have divergent patterns for MR. Gender differences for risk for MR among Blacks are far greater than for Whites. Controlling for poverty related factors ignores the legacy of discrimination.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 31 Lead and other Environmental Toxins v. Bias National Research Council (NRC) implies environment contributes to racial disparities, but provides no correlation study linking increased risk with racial disparities for MR, ED or SLD in any location.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 32 States With Extraordinarily High Percentages of Students with Mental Retardation (MR) are Mostly in the South U.S. Dept. of Ed. OSEP DATA available at The states are: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, West Virginia (8 of 13 are southern). Iowa does not use the IQ discrepancy test. If OCR data were used, Louisiana would be added.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 33 Where is Lead Exposure in Housing the Greatest? According to The Prevalence of Lead-Based Paint Hazards in U.S. Housing (survey of national sample between 1998 and 2000) Northeast (40% risk) Midwest (33%) Lowest in South (17 %) West (15%) Government Supported Housing (17%)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 34 Lead Paint Exposure by Race/Ethnicity (in % of housing units) Latino 32% Afr. Amer. 29% White 25%

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 35 Lead Exposure and Disability Risks in Wisconsin Preliminary and informal analysis of UW study on positive lead tests and exposure to older housing (2004). Highest county for lead exposure, (double that of state) had risk levels below state averages for ED and SLD. CD risk was only slightly above state average. Low incidence categories were substantially higher than state average. Further study is recommended, but informal analysis yielded no obvious correlation between lead exposure and identification for CD, EBD or SLD.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 36 Risk Ratios of “Mental Retardation” and “Hard” Disability Categories for Blacks Compared to Whites Data from Tom Parrish /1999 school year - OSEP data.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 37 Restriction Risk by Disability Category percent of students with MR, and over 70 percent with ED are educated in resource rooms or substantially separate settings. Approximately 56 percent of students with specific learning disabilities are in full inclusion placements (pulled out less than 21 percent of the school day). Overrepresentation for ED and MR significantly increases the risk for blacks of being educated in a substantially separate program.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 38 Similarly Situated? Few states report data on racial disparities for inclusion within a disability category. Can the greater risk for segregation be explained by the greater risk for MR and SED alone? Data from CT suggests the answer is no.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 39 Inclusion: Race with Disability Among students with mental retardation, emotional disturbance and specific learning disabilities in Connecticut in 1995 Black and Latino Males and Females were far less likely to be in an inclusive setting than their White counterparts. Dramatic improvement was noted after the filing of a lawsuit and change in the federal law requiring monitoring of these racial disparities.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 40 Harvard’s Research Findings Subjectivity of assessment confounds determinations of special education eligibility. Race/Ethnicity and gender are highly correlated with significant overrepresentation of minority students in special education, even after accounting for the effect of poverty. Under-servicing of minority students with disabilities increases the likelihood of discipline problems and school failure. High-stakes testing can contribute to serious problems for minority students with disabilities. Minority students are more likely to receive services in restrictive special education settings.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 41 The Civil Rights Project and The National Research Council Say… School policies and practices are contributing factors. Inadequate teacher training and support for classroom and behavior management may contribute to racial disproportionality. Research indicates that special education over- identification and overly restrictive placements reflect some inappropriate use of special education as a disciplinary tool.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 42 Areas of Agreement Continued… To focus on reducing numeric disparities alone, without ensuring that minority students are making meaningful academic progress, is ill advised. Numerous studies demonstrating that racial stereotypes and bias affects decisions teachers make about students (Chapter 5 of NRC Report). Socio-economic and environmental factors likely contribute to heightened incidence of disability.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 43 Revised 618 New Data (618)(a) Racial and ethnic disparities in discipline including suspensions of one day or more Gender and English Language Learners added for collection and reporting Annual public reporting of data at the state level New Requirements (618)(d): analyze for significant disparities by race and ethnicity in identification, placement, and discipline. Early intervening services required where problems are evident as well as public reporting of interventions. Specifically triggers 15% spending on early intervention services under 613(f)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 44 Monitoring and Enforcement Priority Area in New Law 612 and : (a)(3) Monitoring Priorities: “Disproportionate representation of racial and ethnic groups in special education and related services, to the extent the representation is the result of inappropriate identification for special education” is one of three priority areas for the U.S. Secretary of Education. States must develop a plan of action with rigorous measurement and set targets.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University Evaluation procedures (614)(b)(2)(A) Shall use a variety of assessment tools…(3) are selected and administered so as not to be discriminatory on a racial or cultural basis: 2.(b)(5)Rule out inadequate instruction and LEP issues.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 46 Implicit Bias Measurement Brain science – based on speed of positive and negative associations. Implict Attitude Test (IAT) developed to elicit unconscious attitude. Applies to wide ranges of categories (Harvard v. Yale) (Age)(Gender)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 47 Implicit/Unconscious Bias Perceptions that have been reinforced are hard to change. We don’t see or use all the evidence – what we pay attention to matters. Measured through subtle, reflexive, unconscious types of behavior. All races….

“Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations” George W. Bush

Test Yourself

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 50 Unconscious Racial Bias Against Black Adults Against Black Children (same)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 51 Implicit and Explicit Racial Bias for Whites Exhibited by Blacks and Whites Source: Nosek, Banaji and Greenwald (2002)

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 52 Schools and Unconscious Bias Understand the Difference Between Unconscious Bias and Intentional Racism Review the Data Training Similar to Gender Bias – (Girls and Math) Same Concept as “Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations.” Understand the Magnitude: One of Many Factors

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 53 Racial Bias Theory is Well Grounded in Research The research lends support to the theory that implicit racial bias is a contributing factor. Addressing significant racial disparities does not require proof of intentional discrimination.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 54 Implicit Bias Findings Conscious attitudes can influence the magnitude of implicit bias. Explicitly non-biased respondents showed implicit pro-White bias. Asian and Hispanic respondents showed implicit and explicit pro-White bias at same levels as Whites.

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 55 Concern That Implicit Bias Affects Many Decisions and Outcomes Achievement Gap and Dropout Rate School Finances Access to Highly Qualified Teachers Gifted and Talented and AP Identification for Special Education School Discipline

The Civil Rights Project Harvard University 56 What Should the Remedy Look Like? Change the numbers: Reduce the differential? The risk? The risk ratio? Early Intervening Services? Improve the quality of regular education? Assuming unconscious racism contributes – how can you change that?