Zero-tolerance in school disciplinary procedures impacts or contributes to the nationwide school-to-prison pipeline (STPP). According to the American Bar, school prison incarceration rates in the United States (U.S.) have been correlated to the excessive practices of school disciplinary policies. The U.S. incarcerates more citizens than any other…

The 2021 LDOE report emphasized out-of-school suspensions and expulsions as a key concern in student well-being. It revealed that Louisiana students missed 30,259 days of instruction due to suspensions, equivalent to 180,000 hours or 168 school years of lost learning. The report provided a list of 41 offenses, with instigating/participating in…

Zero tolerance policies were designed to create safety by implementing automatic exclusion (e.g., suspensions, expulsions) for misbehavior in response to rising school violence in the United States. However, evidence over the past four decades shows that these policies fail to increase objective and subjective safety, and instead foster poor…

This article summarizes the accomplishments of research on school safety in the past quarter century, identifies important gaps, and indicates promising directions for further progress. Although closely related, there are distinguishable bodies of research on physical and psychological safety. Physical safety research concerns the prevention of…

Zero tolerance policies have contributed to suspension and expulsion becoming common methods of addressing problem behaviors in schools. If suspension and expulsion are being used as forms of punishment, they should theoretically result in a reduction of problem behavior after their administration. In reality, exclusionary disciplinary practices…

Research shows that discipline problems are prevalent in public schools and continue to be one of the greatest challenges in education. In "Building Bridges," author Don Parker shows educators how to address this issue head-on. He shares an array of evidence-based strategies to build teacher-student relationships and create a welcoming…

Research reveals that zero-tolerance policies lead to school suspensions of a disproportionate number of African American students in urban areas (Center for Civil [CCRR], 2015). Suspensions increase student failure rates and dropout likelihood and reduce the ability to graduate on time (Skiba, Arrendondo, & Williams, 2014). Studies have also…

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…

The purpose of this qualitative document analysis research study was to explore how public high schools in California create local unexcused absence and truancy policies in similar and different ways. The study used Lipsky's "street-level bureaucracy" and the American Psychological Association Zero Tolerance Task Force's definition of…

Challenging behaviors can significantly alter the learning environment of any classroom. Traditionally, schools have implemented practices that remove the offending student from the classroom, deliver punitive disciplinary actions, or refer the student to special education evaluation. Unfortunately, such practices have demonstrated little…

While acknowledging the discursive constitution of student identities through the interplay of unequal power relations and discriminatory processes, the article discusses the ways in which social, emotional and behaviour difficulties (SEBD) are "produced" and "managed" within current schooling. SEBD are routinely framed in…

The zero tolerance policy movement across most of this country's school districts significantly limited school personnel's disciplinary alternatives for students who break rules on campus. This has resulted in millions of primary and secondary age students who have experienced suspension, arrests, and for some, expulsion. Within the student…

Several studies identify inequitable educational outcomes for students from diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds. For example, when compared to White/Caucasian students, such students are more likely to be disciplined in school settings. School-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) is an intervention likely to improve disproportionate…

There is no doubt that the safety of children in schools and in communities is paramount. Incidents of school violence in the United States have motivated researchers and practitioners to explore and employ effective methodologies and strategies to promote safety in classrooms and schools. Still, issues of disruptive behavior top the list of…

Schools' use of zero tolerance policies has been increasing since the 1980s as part of a societal movement to crack down on drug abuse and violence among youth. But far from making schools safer, this harsh, inflexible approach to discipline has been eroding the culture of schools and creating devastating consequences for children, writes…