Zero-tolerance school discipline policies not increasing safety, new report argues
LANSING -- A quarter-century after the rise of zero-tolerance school discipline policies, new research indicates the crackdown on misbehavior in schools has not increased school safety.
The Vera Institute of Justice, a national nonprofit group, released a report on the effects of zero-tolerance policies arguing that they have little effect on how students behave in the classroom.
"No studies show that an increase in out-of-school suspension and expulsion reduces disruption in the classroom and some evidence suggests the opposite effect," the report states.
Zero-tolerance discipline policies typically carry harsh penalties for violations involving drugs, alcohol, smoking, weapons and classroom incidents. The National Association of School Psychologists has claimed the policies are ineffective and harmful to students, citing the potential for students with behavioral problems to have less supervision as a result of suspensions for inappropriate behavior.
The Vera report cites research indicating that school suspensions double the chances a student will repeat a grade. "Being retained a grade, especially while in middle or high school, is one of the strongest predictors of dropping out," the report states.
The report also indicates zero-tolerance policies disproportionately focus on minority students. "Nationally, black and Latino students are suspended and expelled at much