In 2013 and 2015 Oregon enacted legislation that shifted school discipline policies from a zero-tolerance approach to one that emphasizes preventing behavioral problems and reducing unnecessary suspensions and expulsions. Suspensions and expulsions are often referred to as exclusionary discipline because they remove students from classroom…

This is the appendixes for the report, "Are State Policy Reforms in Oregon Associated with Fewer School Suspensions and Expulsions?" This study examined the association between state-level policy reforms and suspension and expulsion rates for grades K-12 in Oregon public schools. The findings suggest that the policy shift has led to some…

The Zero Tolerance policy was intended to eliminate learners who are a danger to a learning institution (Henson, 2012). The development of this policy was to assist schools with better policing approaches of students conducts by employing tough disciplinary action and subsequently provide a safer learning environment. While the Zero Tolerance…

Providing students with equitable and safe learning experiences is a fundamental right; however school districts grapple with balancing student learning and student safety. In the Brown vs the Board of Education (1954) decision, the court identified education as a basic public responsibility and a principal instrument to facilitate understanding…

School administrators develop, recommend, and carry out policy for school districts. The policy can have long lasting effect on students. Ideology and gender of the administrator can influence adoption and implementation of individual school's policy. A study consisting of quantitative and qualitative measures was utilized to determine the…

Traditionally, many schools have utilized punitive, zero tolerance policies when addressing student discipline. Critics of zero tolerance policies argue that not only are they ineffective in reducing incidents of student misconduct, but also this type of punishment, such as expulsions and suspensions, often excludes students, disconnecting them…

These are the appendixes for the report, "Changes in Exclusionary and Nonexclusionary Discipline in Grades K-5 Following State Policy Reform in Oregon" (ED610682). Students in grades K-5 who receive exclusionary discipline are more likely to experience chronic absenteeism, academic failure, and disciplinary problems throughout their…

Having the ability to manage the learning environment, motivate students in the environment, and offer instruction that itself is motivating and which contributes to students learning what they need to learn and acquiring skills they need to acquire characterizes effective teachers. To meet these expectations, teachers need highly developed skills…

Zero-tolerance policies have created schools that are often intolerant and destructive to children and communities. High rates of suspension and expulsion of students are associated with negative outcomes and school dropout. New approaches to staff development that create positive school communities are essential in stemming the…

During the past several years, there have been growing concerns regarding the effectiveness of school discipline policies, as well as their disproportionate impact on African American and Latino students. For at least a decade, questions have been raised about district-level "zero tolerance" policies that have contributed to larger…

What are the positives and negatives of zero tolerance? What should be considered when examining a school's program? Although there are no definitive definitions of zero tolerance, two commonly used ones are as follows: "Zero tolerance means that a school will automatically and severely punish a student for a variety of infractions" (American Bar…

Significant numbers of students are being pushed out of school as a result of "zero tolerance" school discipline policies. While nobody questions the need to keep schools safe, teachers, students, and parents are questioning the methods being used in pursuit of that goal. Zero tolerance policies were initially aimed at making schools safe. The…

In this paper, the contradiction of practising zero tolerance in inclusive schools is discussed using the critical method of Skrtic's immanent critique. The authors contend that the policy of inclusive schools for all is contradicted and undermined by the practice of zero tolerance policies, especially suspensions, expulsions and segregation.…

Significant numbers of students are being pushed out of school as a result of "zero tolerance" school discipline policies. While nobody questions the need to keep schools safe, teachers, students, and parents are questioning the methods being used in pursuit of that goal. Initially enacted to counter violent behavior and drug use, zero tolerance…

One key finding of the "Children Left Behind" series has been the critical role of school leadership in setting the tone for how the day-to-day discipline and management of misbehavior is conducted. Interview and survey data from the second and third briefing papers have demonstrated that: (1) principals are sharply divided in their …