Is the disparity in disciplinary school policies contributing to juvenile DMC?: a study of the Baltimore County School system
Author/Creator
Date
2012Type of Work
vii, 103 leavesapplication/pdf
Text
theses
Department
University of Baltimore.School of Criminal JusticeProgram
University of Baltimore. Master of Science in Criminal JusticeRights
This item may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. It is made available by the University of Baltimore for non-commercial research and educational purposes.Subjects
disproportionate minority contacthigh stakes testing
juvenile arrests
school discipline
school system
suspensions
Student supension
Maryland
Baltimore
African American students
Baltimore City Public Schools
Discrimination in juvenile justice administration
Abstract
The present research examines whether Baltimore County Public Schools [BCPS] are disproportionately disciplining African American students through both in-school and out-of-school suspensions. This study utilizes data from Maryland State Department of Education Division of Accountability and Assessment for the academic school year 2008-2009, which is considered public record. Units of analyses include 172 schools within the Baltimore County Public School System, consisting of 105 elementary schools; 27 middle schools; 21 high schools and 19 non-traditional schools. The student population as a whole is very diverse in terms of race and ethnicity. Forty percent of BCPS total population is African American and approximately 49% is White. A quantitative research method of analysis was used to determine the relationship between the dependent variable, suspensions; and the independent variables, % of African American students, student gender and student performance. Results of chi-square analyses show that African American students are suspended at a significantly greater rate than their proportion of the student population in nearly all school types.