THE EFFECTS OF SUSPENSION

Rita Shackel

(Reprinted with permission from author)

I. INTRODUCTION

Over the last decade there has been a steady increase in the number of suspensions being meted out to school students in the United States. Approximately three-quarters of schools in the United States have automatic expulsion policies for serious offenses (94% for firearms, 91% for other weapons, 88% for drugs, 79% for violence and 79% for tobacco use). However, despite a widespread perception that suspension and expulsion are reserved for serious incidents, it seems that in practice, only a small proportion of suspensions and expulsions are actually handed out in response to serious acts of misconduct. For example, in 1997-98 only about 4% of the suspensions and expulsions in Indiana were in response to serious disruptions. In North Carolina in 2000-2001, 27% and 26% of short-term suspensions cited aggressive behaviour and undisciplined behaviour respectively as the primary reason for suspension. Moreover, only three percent of short-term suspensions were due to possession, abuse, sale, or distribution of controlled substances and only one percent related to possession or use of a weapon. These statistics seem to suggest that the use of suspensions and expulsions in schools may be indiscriminate. School exclusion practices that are inconsistent or indiscriminate is alarming given the potentially detrimental if not devastating effects of exclusion from school (particularly when it is long-term) on individual students and the broader school community.


II. USE OF SUSPENSION IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS


More and more public school students in America are spending more and more time out of school and away from classes because of suspensions. In North Carolina, just in the period between 2001-02 and 2002-03 the number of short-term suspensions (10 days or less) given to North Carolina public school students increased by 7% (from 264,287 to 283,823). Even more disturbing however is the increase in the number of long-term suspensions being handed out to public school students in this state. In 2002-03 the number of long-term suspensions in North Carolina rose for the third consecutive year showing a 14% increase from 3,484 (in 2001-02) to 3,987. Moreover, between 2001-02 and 2002-03 the number of expulsions reported in North Carolina public schools rose by 53% from 230 to 381.

Recent data published by the North Carolina State Board of Education reveals that a staggering one out of every nine public school students in North Carolina was suspended at least once in 2002-03. In total, the 287,810 suspensions handed out to public school students in North Carolina in 2002-03 amounted to over 1,000,000 instructional days. The 282,240 short-term suspensions given in 2002-03 in North Carolina involved 139, 818 different students and totalled 817,523 school days; long-term suspensions totalled 267,785 school days (an average of approximately 67 school days per suspension). Moreover, in 2002-03 60,410 students (up from 55,327) in North Carolina received multiple short-term suspensions and 118 students received multiple-long term suspensions (70 of these students were suspended for more than 100 days). Importantly, multiple short-term suspensions for an individual student can result in significant amounts of school being missed. Needless to say that students with multiple long-term suspensions will miss out on substantial amounts of school. Overall, the data reveals that an increasing number of students are being removed from North Carolina public schools for increasing periods of time as a result of disciplinary action.

Undoubtedly, such widespread use of suspensions represents a significant loss of educational instruction for many students, even accounting for the fact that some suspended students are placed in alternative schools or programs. Accordingly, it is essential that the impact (both short-term and long-term) of exclusion from school on students be thoroughly understood. This is particularly so in light of the fact that there is a growing body of research, which shows a link between long-term exclusion from school and future negative life outcomes.


III. SHORT-TERM EFFECTS OF SUSPENSION

• Loss of instructional time and academic achievement

Obviously, suspension from school deprives students of instructional time particularly where no alternative educational placement is provided. Absence from school in itself is recognized as likely to impact adversely on a student’s learning and educational advancement. For example, the impact of absenteeism on learning is recognised in some North Carolina Schools where absence for more than 10 days in a school year results in an automatic Fail grade. Logically, absence from school resulting from suspension is likely to place suspended students at greater risk of not achieving academically. In fact, research suggests that students who receive suspensions are already at greater risk of failing academically. For example, in North Carolina in 2000-2001 exceptional students received more than one-fourth of all short-term suspensions although they comprised only 14% of the school population and in 1999-2000, students in programs for Exceptional Children accounted for about one of every four expulsions. For academically challenged students, suspension is likely to exacerbate pre-existing difficulties in academic performance. There is an inherent paradox in the approach of a school system that on the one hand recognises the deleterious effects of absenteeism from school on academic performance and which on the other hand liberally uses exclusion from school to address problems in student behaviour and discipline.

A strong link between out-of school suspensions and poor academic performance has been substantiated by a number of research studies. Higher rates of out-of-school suspension have been shown to be associated with lower rates of achievement, in reading, writing and mathematics. In North Carolina students who received one or more out-of-school suspensions during the 2000-2001 school year were less likely to score at or above grade level on End-of-Grade (EOG) and End-of-Course (EOC) achievement tests across various subject areas. More specifically, students who received either short-term or long-term suspensions were less likely to score at or above Level III on EOG tests in both reading and mathematics and less likely to score at or above Level III on EOC tests in Algebra I, Biology, and U.S. History. Importantly, the academic performance of suspended students declined as the number of days spent out of school due to suspension increased. Students who received short-term suspensions in 2000-2001 were less likely to score above grade level on Reading and Mathematics EOG tests as their number of days suspended increased, this was regardless of whether they had scored at or above grade level in that subject area in the previous year. By way of comparison in 2000-2001, 77% of students state-wide in North Carolina in grades 3-8 achieved Level III or above on the EOG reading tests however only 61% of students suspended for one day achieved similar results, 57% of students suspended for 2 days, 56% of students suspended for 3-5 days and only 45% of students suspended for 6 or more days achieved an equivalent level of performance. Moreover, in 2000-2001 82% of students in North Carolina statewide in grades 3-8 achieved Level III or above on EOG mathematics tests. In comparison, only 69% of students suspended for one day, 65% of students suspended for 2 days, 64% of students suspended for 3-5 days and 51% of students suspended for 6 or more days performed at this level. Similar patterns of performance were also reported for suspended high school students. For example, in 2000-2001 76% of students statewide in North Carolina achieved Level III or above on the Algebra I EOC test compared to 62% of students suspended for one day and 50% of students suspended for 6 or more days. Further, 61% of students in the State in 2000-2001 achieved Level III or above on the Biology EOC test however only 43% of students suspended for 1 day performed at this level and only 34% of students suspended for 6 or more days achieved a Level III or above. Similarly, 51% of students in North Carolina achieved Level III or above on the US History EOC test in 2000-2001compared to only 34% of students suspended for 1 day and 27% of students suspended for 6 or more days. These findings suggest that the impact of suspension (even when only short-term) on the academic progress and success of students may be very profound indeed. For students who had previously achieved poor academic results their decline in academic performance was most marked as the number of days suspended increased. This provides further evidence that suspension from school is likely to impact most profoundly on those students who are already experiencing academic difficulties.

Unfortunately, even placement of a suspended student in an alternative school or program may not adequately address the needs of many students or mitigate the potentially detrimental impact of removal from their regular school setting. Whilst there is a disturbing absence of research on the efficacy of alternative schools and learning programs in relation to academic outcomes, certain features of these programs raise concerns about whether alternative placements may actually increase the risk of adverse educational outcomes for some students. One disturbing characteristic of alternative schools and programs is that they often become a dumping ground for unwanted students. Moreover, few students sent to alternative schools ever return to their regular schools, and their likelihood of dropping out of school altogether is increased.

• Negative attitudes towards school and future disruptive and behavioural problems

The use of suspensions as a disciplinary action may reinforce negative attitudes amongst suspended students towards teachers, fellow students and the school environment generally. This is likely to undermine the positive culture of schools and impact adversely on the learning environment in schools and eventually result also in increased rates of poor academic achievement and school dropout. In one inner-city school in Indiana for example with rates of dropout approaching 70%-80% among minority youth, consultants worked with teachers, helping them increase their rates of praise and reframe classroom rules to be more positive. In just one year, school suspensions dropped by 35%, and over the course of the three-year project, school dropout decreased by almost 40%. The results of this project highlight the destructive nexus that may form between increased use of suspensions, negative attitudes in the classroom and school dropout rates. Research of this kind provides strong evidence that schools may have to re-think their current approach to the use of suspensions.

• Truancy

• Social-emotional maladjustment



IV. LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF SUSPENSION

• School dropout rates

Numerous studies have shown that students who are suspended or expelled are more likely to dropout of school. As discussed above, students who are suspended from school are at greater risk of falling behind academically following their suspension. For many students catching up on missed schoolwork may seem an insurmountable task particularly if they are already experiencing academic problems at school. For these students dropping out of school altogether may seem to be the only option they have.

In North Carolina the number of suspensions handed out to school students has for several years consistently peaked in the ninth grade. From 1999-2003, approximately one-third of all long-term suspensions and 21% of short-term suspensions in North Carolina were given to ninth graders. This may be a significant factor, which increases the risk that suspended students will dropout of school. There is now an emerging body of research, which indicates that the transition to high school may be a pivotal factor, that impacts on the decision to dropout of school.


• Mental health morbidity

• Involvement in the criminal justice system

Students who are removed from the school setting following suspension or expulsion may be at greater risk of becoming involved in the criminal justice system and in the long-term, receiving a prison sentence and being incarcerated. Recent research has shown that States with higher rates of out-of-school suspension also have higher overall rates of juvenile incarceration therefore confirming a clear relationship between school suspension and juvenile incarceration.

Initially, students removed from school and who are not placed in an alternative educational placement often go unsupervised and have substantially more time to interact with older peers not attending school and who may be involved in delinquent or criminal activities.


V. CONCLUSION

A clear link between the use of long-term suspensions and decreased rates of violent and disruptive behaviour in schools has not been established. On the other hand, the use of long-term suspensions in schools is increasingly being shown to be associated with a series of negative educational outcomes including heightened risk of academic failure, increased rates of school dropout and eventually involvement in the criminal justice system.