AN EXAMINATION OF PATTERNS IN EDUCATOR’S DEMOGRAPHICS AND FACTORS IN THE DISCIPLINE DECISION- MAKING PROCESS THAT LEAD TO AN OFFICE DISCIPLINE REFERRAL

Abstract

The likelihood of a student being issued an office discipline referral for subjective offenses increases when students enter middle school, particularly for minority students (Theriot and Dupper, 2015). The problem investigated for this dissertation was the disproportionality of office discipline referrals issued to Black males in 6th grade and the discipline decisions made by classroom teachers in a large, suburban school district. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to explore factors related to ODRs using existing system data followed by exploratory focus groups of selected sixth grade classroom teachers to better understand their decision-making processes for subjective behaviors identified as disrespect, disruption, or insubordination. Discipline data were collected from two middle schools designated as disproportionate by Maryland State Department of Education in Mid Atlantic Public School System and four focus groups comprised of 6th grade classroom teachers from the two identified schools. Findings from this study revealed that Black males in 6th grade received 59% of all subjective office discipline referrals issued to 6th grade students between 2016-2020 in both schools. Additionally, the study investigated classroom teachers’ perceptions of the discipline decision making process. All classroom teachers participating in focus groups reported that relationships are critical to improving discipline outcomes, the structures in schools to support discipline decisions must be uniform and consistently implemented, and that teachers must have opportunities to authentically improve their classroom management skills. This study affirms that Black males in 6th grade continue to experience subjective discipline at rates greater than their peers, how classroom teachers perceive student behaviors differs based on student race and gender, and how the discipline decisions made by classroom teachers relies on their perceptions of student behavior and what the teacher deems to be disrespect, disruption, or insubordination.