The Problems with Expulsion
By Molly Bryson
“Restorative justice is a systematic response to wrongdoing that emphasizes healing the wounds of victims, offenders and communities caused or revealed by the criminal behavior.” –Author Unknown
The former "zero tolerance policy" in CPS significantly increased expulsion rates, kicking out students for misbehavior barely worthy of the punishment. Not only were kids being expelled for bringing weapons to school, but also for minor infractions, such as violation of dress code and vandalism, misconduct that in other cases would only be reprimanded with suspension or a less severe punishment. With a rise in expulsion also came a rise in the racial gap. Between 1997 and 2003, the amount of African Americans being expelled increased 4%, and black enrollment dropped 50% (Skiba). Expulsions are a poor and ineffective form of discipline that isolate and extricate students from an environment that they should be nurtured in, not punished in.
Expulsion is part of an endless cycle in the schooling system; one mistake leads to suspension; feelings of hopelessness that arise from suspension trigger more misbehavior; misbehavior is punished with expulsion; expulsion prevents opportunity for education. Although this may not always be the case, it is fair to assume that a significant amount of kids being expelled are undeserving of their punishment, and even so, should have the chance to redeem themselves rather than be rejected from the opportunity to improve. Expulsion is a permanent solution; it offers no circumstance to evolve from a struggling to an achieving student. It enforces the wrong idea about education: that differences and mistakes are shunned instead of improved upon. Expulsion is often the first step to dropping out. To quote Rick Garlikov, "the central purpose of school is to educate students. To remove a student from classrooms appropriate to his or her educational needs and abilities for an offense that is not in any way educationally related and that does not threaten anyone else’s education or well-being, is a power no administrator and no school board should have."
Expulsion as it exists currently is far too standardized; the same punishment may be enforced for a student who commits a major offense as for the student who commits a minor offense. Choosing who is worthy of expulsion, on the other hand, is far too subjective, and often reflects racial prejudice and principal discretion. In more than one study, race and socioeconomic status were found to be leading factors in choosing which kids to expel. "After controlling for both poverty and the seriousness of behavior, African American students remain 1.5 times more likely than white students to receive an expulsion" says a statistic found by Russ Skiba. This directs our attention towards the proficiency of the schools who reflect this type of arbitrariness. In order to make punishment more equal and less biased, an alternative must be implemented.
Fortunately, there are methods being implemented to replace expulsion. Peace circles, peer juries, conflict resolution, and other forms of restorative justice are all plausible alternatives. These measures are a big step towards creating a better solution to the disciplinary problem in CPS. We hope that the zero tolerance policy will be substituted with a more innovative, opportunity based system, and that expulsion will only be a last resort.
Sources:
Finkel, Ed. "Catalyst-chicago.org." 700 Students Kicked out of CPS. N.p., 4 Dec. 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Karp, Sarah. "Catalyst-chicago.org." More Transparency on Suspensions and Expulsions, but Racial Disparity Lingers. N.p., 8 Jan. 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
"Revealing New Truths about Our Nation's Schools." Editorial. Office for Civil Rights The Transformed Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 12 Mar. 2012: n. pag. Print.
Skiba, Russ. "Study: Reasons for Suspension and Expulsion Complex, Race Still Central."Study: Reasons for Suspension and Expulsion Complex, Race Still Central.
N.p., 13 Apr. 2012. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Expulsion is part of an endless cycle in the schooling system; one mistake leads to suspension; feelings of hopelessness that arise from suspension trigger more misbehavior; misbehavior is punished with expulsion; expulsion prevents opportunity for education. Although this may not always be the case, it is fair to assume that a significant amount of kids being expelled are undeserving of their punishment, and even so, should have the chance to redeem themselves rather than be rejected from the opportunity to improve. Expulsion is a permanent solution; it offers no circumstance to evolve from a struggling to an achieving student. It enforces the wrong idea about education: that differences and mistakes are shunned instead of improved upon. Expulsion is often the first step to dropping out. To quote Rick Garlikov, "the central purpose of school is to educate students. To remove a student from classrooms appropriate to his or her educational needs and abilities for an offense that is not in any way educationally related and that does not threaten anyone else’s education or well-being, is a power no administrator and no school board should have."
Expulsion as it exists currently is far too standardized; the same punishment may be enforced for a student who commits a major offense as for the student who commits a minor offense. Choosing who is worthy of expulsion, on the other hand, is far too subjective, and often reflects racial prejudice and principal discretion. In more than one study, race and socioeconomic status were found to be leading factors in choosing which kids to expel. "After controlling for both poverty and the seriousness of behavior, African American students remain 1.5 times more likely than white students to receive an expulsion" says a statistic found by Russ Skiba. This directs our attention towards the proficiency of the schools who reflect this type of arbitrariness. In order to make punishment more equal and less biased, an alternative must be implemented.
Fortunately, there are methods being implemented to replace expulsion. Peace circles, peer juries, conflict resolution, and other forms of restorative justice are all plausible alternatives. These measures are a big step towards creating a better solution to the disciplinary problem in CPS. We hope that the zero tolerance policy will be substituted with a more innovative, opportunity based system, and that expulsion will only be a last resort.
Sources:
Finkel, Ed. "Catalyst-chicago.org." 700 Students Kicked out of CPS. N.p., 4 Dec. 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Karp, Sarah. "Catalyst-chicago.org." More Transparency on Suspensions and Expulsions, but Racial Disparity Lingers. N.p., 8 Jan. 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
"Revealing New Truths about Our Nation's Schools." Editorial. Office for Civil Rights The Transformed Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 12 Mar. 2012: n. pag. Print.
Skiba, Russ. "Study: Reasons for Suspension and Expulsion Complex, Race Still Central."Study: Reasons for Suspension and Expulsion Complex, Race Still Central.
N.p., 13 Apr. 2012. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.