Test Punish and Push Out

About Us
Advancement Project is an innovative civil rights law, policy, and

communications “action tank” that advances universal opportunity
and a just democracy for those left behind in America. We believe
that sustainable progress can be made when multiple tools—law,
policy analysis, strategic communications, technology, and research—
are coordinated with grassroots movements.
Advancement Project was founded in 1999 in Los Angeles and

Washington D.C. by veteran civil rights lawyers who were looking
for new ways to dismantle structural barriers to inclusion, secure
racial equity, and expand opportunity for all.
We create change by:
• Promoting and supporting coalitions and organizations that bridge

race, culture, and class divisions;
• Building new tools for the national movement for social justice; and
• Effecting reform of public institutions responsible for providing

democratic participation, affordable housing, education, and public
health and safety.
TABLE of contents
• EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3
• INTRODUCTION 8
• PART ONE: HOW WE GOT HERE 9
• PART TWO: ZERO TOLERANCE CIRCA 2009 13
• PART THREE: HIGH-STAKES TESTING CIRCA 2009 25
• PART FOUR: WORKING IN TANDEM TO PUSH

STUDENTS OUT OF SCHOOL 28
• PART FIVE: COMMUNITY PUSHBACK 34
• CONCLUSION 43
• ENDNOTES 44
executive summary
Our tragically low national high school graduation rates Together, zero tolerance and high-stakes testing have
should shock the conscience of every American. Reform turned schools into hostile and alienating environments
is clearly needed, but it should start with the policies for many of our youth, effectively treating them as drop-
and practices that have resulted in millions of children outs-in-waiting. The devastating end result of these inter-
not receiving a full and equal chance to receive a high- twined punitive policies is a “school-to-prison pipeline,”
quality education. While there are many factors that in which huge numbers of students throughout the coun-
contribute to this sad reality, this report explores the two try are treated as if they are disposable, and are being
policies that may pose the most direct threat to the edu- routinely pushed out of school and toward the juvenile
cational opportunities of America’s youth: “zero toler- and criminal justice systems.
ance” school discipline and high-stakes testing.
The first section of the report examines the common
While they are usually considered separately, these two origins and ideological roots of zero tolerance and
policies are actually closely related. In fact, zero toler- high-stakes testing.
ance and high-stakes testing both share the same ideo-
logical roots, and together they have combined to seri- In the 1980s, a movement began to implement far more
ously damage the relationships between schools and the punitive policies in both the criminal justice and public
communities they serve throughout the country. Rather education systems. Modern zero tolerance (throughout
than helping to provide all students with enriching learn- this report, “zero tolerance” is used as shorthand for all
ing experiences, zero tolerance and high-stakes testing punitive school discipline policies and practices) and
lead to an impoverished education for many young peo- high-stakes testing policies are the direct result of that
ple. Instead of supporting students who are struggling or movement.
in need, both needlessly punish young people and limit
their opportunities to fulfill their potential and achieve Within criminal justice policy, it was zero tolerance-style
their goals. policing strategies implemented starting with the “War
3
TEST, PUNISH, AND PUSH OUT:
How “Zero Tolerance” and High–Stakes Testing Funnel Youth Into the School-to-Prison Pipeline
on Drugs” that led to the massive expansion of the adult discipline, constant assessment, performance-inducing
prison population. This “get-tough” approach was even- incentives, and the elimination of low performers.
tually exported to schools, leading to a huge increase in
the police and security presence in schools and far more While these principles may work in the business world,
harsh responses to student behavior. The results have been they are simply a bad fit in the context of public educa-
devastating, as across the country there have been dra- tion. They are based on faulty assumptions, fail to create
matic increases in the use of lengthy out-of-school sus- real improvement in schools, ensure that large numbers
pensions, expulsions, referrals to alternative schools, re- of students will fail academically, and fall far short of the
ferrals to law enforcement, and school-based arrests. In democratic purposes of our public education system.
effect, these policies and practices have blurred the line Nevertheless, zero tolerance and high-stakes testing have
between the education and criminal justice systems. followed the same path on their way to being frequently
– and inappropriately – substituted for meaningful educa-
In public education, the equivalent to the War on Drugs tion reform.
was the crackdown on so-called “failing schools” follow-
ing the 1983 publication of “A Nation at Risk.” That led The second section of the report examines the current
to a push for greater school accountability, which came state of zero-tolerance school discipline across the coun-
to mean broader use of standardized tests to measure try, and includes local, state, and national data.
achievement. As with zero tolerance, over time policy-
makers began using these tests punitively, in this case School districts around the country have adopted extraor-
against both students and educators. The No Child Left dinarily severe discipline policies and practices in recent
Behind Act (NCLB) was both a product of this movement years. These punitive measures extend far beyond serious
and a catalyst for its growth, as it has ushered in a new infractions; instead, the vast majority of punitive disciplin-
wave of inflexible, test-based accountability. ary consequences tend to result from relatively minor mis-
behavior or trivial student actions. In fact, the problem in
Since the passage of NCLB in 2002, both the use of high- most cases is not the student, but, rather, the adults who
stakes tests and the severity of the consequences attached react inappropriately to youthful behavior.
to them have risen dramatically, leading to a rapidly
dwindling set of opportunities for students who do not Additionally, schools have increasingly devoted huge
score well on these exams. Moreover, this “test and pun- chunks of their budget to law enforcement personnel and
ish” approach has had a devastating effect on the qual- security infrastructure, effectively turning many public
ity of education being offered at many schools. Because schools into well-policed fortresses. The result has been
of the severe consequences attached to these tests, many the widespread, and needless, criminalization of students.
schools have been turned into test-prep factories, with For example:
narrowed, distorted, and weakened curricula often domi-
nated by mindless drilling, rote memorization exercises, • In Pennsylvania, the number of school-based arrests
and “teaching to the test.” This has suffocated high-quality has almost tripled in just seven years.
instruction, and made it more difficult than ever for teach-
ers to engage students and create authentic and sustained • In Florida, there were over 21,000 arrests and refer-
learning. Thus, this “get-tough” approach to accountabil- rals of students to the state’s Department of Juvenile
ity has created an education system that increasingly turns Justice in 2007-2008, and 69% of them were for mis-
students off to learning and teachers off to teaching. demeanor offenses.
Despite substantial evidence of the damage caused by zero For a large percentage of school-based arrests, it is incon-
tolerance and high-stakes testing and the overwhelming ceivable that the student would have been arrested if not
body of research supporting alternative approaches, these for the close relationship between school staff and law
policies have spread like wildfire due to their easy politi- enforcement personnel. Nevertheless, because of the in-
cal appeal. The promoters and defenders of these policies creasingly strong ties between schools and law enforce-
have used the same, undeniably persuasive arguments ment, perhaps the most “policed” group in the country
grounded in principles of accountability and personal re- right now – outside of prison and jail inmates – is public
sponsibility that many Americans associate with success school students.
in other fields, such as business. Indeed, the driving ide-
ology behind both high-stakes testing and zero tolerance Arrests in school represent the most direct route into the
comes right out of the corporate playbook, as it is based school-to-prison pipeline, but out-of-school suspensions,
on the notion that problems are solved and productivity is expulsions, and referrals to alternative schools also push
improved through rigorous competition, uncompromising students out of school and closer to a future in the juve-
4
nile and criminal justice systems. The use of these punitive • Suspension, expulsion, and school-based arrest
disciplinary measures has risen over time at the national are associated with a higher likelihood of school
level, and has increased dramatically in many communi- dropout; and
ties. Not coincidentally, that rise has coincided with the
passage of NCLB and other test-driven policies. For exam- • Suspension and expulsion increase the likelihood
ple, at the national level, there were almost 250,000 more that the child or youth will enter the juvenile or
students suspended out-of-school in 2006-07 than there criminal justice systems.
were just four years earlier, when NCLB was signed into
law. During the same timeframe, the number of students In short, these practices are unjust, contrary to sound edu-
expelled across the country increased 15%. cational policy, and also represent woefully shortsighted
economic policy, as they carry huge short-term and long-
At the local and state levels, the dramatic expansion of term costs for communities.
the zero-tolerance approach is even more apparent. For
example: The third section of the report presents an overview of
high-stakes testing and its effects on students, educators,
• In Chicago Public Schools, under the leadership and schools.
of then-Chief Executive Officer and current U.S.
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, the number As with zero tolerance, the use of high-stakes testing has
of out-of-school suspensions district-wide nearly exploded in recent years, fundamentally transforming the
quadrupled in just six years. educational experiences of countless students and edu-
cators. Not only are more standardized tests being used
• In Texas, over a five-year period, the number of than ever before, the stakes attached to them have been
expulsions increased by 23% and the number of ratcheted up across the country, for both educators and
out-of-school suspensions increased by 43%. students.
In just one school year, 2007-08, there were over
128,000 referrals of students to alternative disci- However, high-stakes testing has not been proven effec-
plinary schools. tive at improving overall student achievement or closing
the achievement gap between White students and stu-
While zero tolerance is affecting a greater diversity of dents of color. While reports of dramatic gains in state
communities than ever before, due to continuing biases, test scores are quite common, they are usually illusory,
disparate treatment, and systemic inequities, students of as scores on independent, relatively low-stakes exams do
color are particularly harmed by these policies and prac- not show similar increases.
tices. In fact, racial disparities in school discipline are
getting worse, as the use of suspensions and expulsions Perhaps more important is the damage done by high-stakes
for students of color has increased since the passage of testing to the student experience in school. Not only do
NCLB, while it has decreased for White students. formulaic, test-driven reforms neglect the important role
schools have to play in helping students become well-
These policies and practices are especially misguided giv- rounded citizens, they also turn school into a much less
en the clear research showing that zero-tolerance school engaging, and even hostile, place for youth by eliminating
discipline can turn schools into inhospitable environments the components of education they find most interesting.
that fail to promote either school safety or academic suc- Additionally, the emphasis placed on test results above all
cess. For example: other priorities has an alienating and dehumanizing effect
on young people, who resent being viewed and treated as
• Removing a student from school appears to little more than test scores.
predict higher rates of future misbehavior;
The effects can accumulate even more when additional
• Schools with higher rates of school suspension consequences are attached to the tests. For example, there
and expulsion have less satisfactory ratings of is a long record of research demonstrating the consistent
school climate; association of high-stakes exit exams with decreased grad-
uation rates and increased dropout rates. Additionally, the
• Zero-tolerance school discipline is associated results from standardized tests are often used to retain stu-
with an adverse impact on individual and school- dents in grade. Yet grade retention has been shown to be
wide academic performance; the single largest predictor of student dropout.
5
While high-stakes testing continues its ascendance in the native schools. These practices are contemptible, but not
world of education policy, the undeniable fact is that it has surprising when one considers that those educators’ future
had a devastating effect on teaching and learning in many employment or salary may be determined by the results of
schools, driving teachers out of the profession and students a single test.
out of school. The impact has been particularly severe for
students of color, low-income students, English language The combined effect of these dynamics is that countless
learners, and students with disabilities. Nevertheless, U.S. students are entering the “school-to-prison pipeline” every
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has been promoting day. The criminalization of youthful actions in school de-
the broader use of standardized test scores, including us- scribed above represents a direct linkage between schools
ing them to determine teacher pay. It can be expected and prisons. But there are also indirect linkages, caused
that such a change would lead to an even more test-driven by zero tolerance and high-stakes testing driving students
education system. to drop out of school, at which point they become more
than eight times as likely to be incarcerated as high school
The fourth section of the report examines how zero tol- graduates.
erance and high-stakes testing have become intertwined
and even mutually reinforcing, combining to push huge Beyond the undeniably negative impact of zero tolerance
numbers of students out of school. and high-stakes testing policies on individual students,
families, and schools, evidence of more widespread sys-
Zero tolerance and high-stakes testing have joined togeth- temic effects is accumulating rapidly. For example, recent-
er to change the incentive structure for educators, putting ly-released data show that the nation’s graduation rate in
many teachers and administrators in the unenviable po- 2006 – 69% – was the lowest it has been since before
sition of having to choose between their students’ inter- NCLB was passed. Of particular concern is that the rates
ests and their own self-interest. Education has become, for Black and Latino students – 51% and 55%, respective-
more than ever, a “numbers game.” The clear message ly – dropped significantly from 2005 to 2006. Addition-
from high-stakes testing policies is that educators’ focus ally, in 2008, the number of persons taking the GED test
should not be on nurturing and educating each child to was at its highest level since before NCLB. These are all
reach their full potential; their focus should be on getting strong indicators of a rampant student pushout problem.
as many students as possible to reach the level of “pro-
ficiency.” The message sent by zero-tolerance policies is Focusing just on the 100 largest school districts in the
that education is not for everyone; rather, it is for those country provides an even better sense of the devas-
students who “deserve” it. The combined effect is that, tating effects recent policies have had on many com-
within this new system of incentives, individual students munities. These large, mostly urban districts together
matter little. serve about 40% of the nation’s Black, Latino, and Na-
tive American students. While graduation rates in most
Because of the focus on test scores and the severe con- of these districts were improving up until NCLB was
sequences attached to them, if a student acts up in class, signed into law, since then they have deteriorated.
it is no longer in educators’ self-interest to address it by
• From 1996 until 2002 (when NCLB was signed
assessing the student’s unmet needs or treating the inci- into law), sixty-eight of the 100 districts experi-
dent as a “teachable moment.” It is much easier and more enced rising graduation rates. Twenty-four of
“efficient” to simply remove the child from class through those districts achieved double-digit increases in
punitive disciplinary measures and focus on the remaining their graduation rates, while only four had dou-
students. With so much riding on these tests, being able ble-digit drops during that period.
to transmit as much of the test material as possible often
overrides concerns about the impact such practices have • However, after the passage of NCLB, seventy-
on students. three of the 100 largest districts experienced de-
clining graduation rates from 2002 to 2006. Sev-
As a result, the practice of pushing struggling students out enteen of those districts experienced at least a
of school to boost test scores has become quite common. double-digit drop in their graduation rates. Only
There are a number of widely used strategies for manipu- two districts experienced a double-digit increase.
lating test scores, such as withdrawing students from at-
tendance rolls, assigning students to alternative schools, While these developments cannot be solely attributed
coercing or encouraging students to drop out or enroll in to zero tolerance and high-stakes testing, the impact of
General Educational Development (GED) programs, along “get-tough” policies do become apparent when examin-
with using suspensions, expulsions, and referrals to alter- ing individual states. There is a familiar pattern that has
6
developed in many states in recent years: first, the imple- (2) Limit the involvement of law enforcement and secu-
mentation of greater “accountability” in the form of high- rity personnel in schools to conduct that poses a serious,
stakes tests; followed by dramatic increases in the use of ongoing threat to the safety of students or staff;
zero-tolerance school discipline; then the appearance
of “collateral damage” such as more students being en- (3) Replace high-stakes testing with policies that will en-
rolled in special education programs, more students be- courage schools to keep students in the learning environ-
ing retained in grade, more high school dropouts taking ment and develop enriched curricula that are engaging
the GED exam, and declining teacher morale; and finally, and intellectually challenging, ensure deep understand-
the pushout of huge numbers of students, exemplified by ing of content, and are focused on authentic achieve-
plummeting or abysmally low graduation rates. ment; and
While the most well-known example of testing and zero (4) Ensure that every student is provided a high-quality
tolerance combining forces to push students out of school pre-K-12 education that includes a full and equal op-
happened during former U.S. President George W. Bush’s portunity to fulfill their potential, achieve their goals,
tenure as Governor (the so-called “Texas Miracle”), the improve the quality of their lives, become thoughtful
same pattern has been repeated all throughout the coun- and engaged democratic citizens, and become life-long
try. Examples discussed include Florida, North Carolina, learners.
and Virginia; all states where high-stakes testing and zero
tolerance have worked in tandem to devastating effect. Also included are detailed recommendations for imple-
Nevertheless, these states continue to be used as models mentation of each action item at the local, state, and fed-
for education reform in other states and at the national eral levels, including through the reauthorization process
level. of the No Child Left Behind Act and the implementation
of the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act of 2009
The fifth section of the report profiles successful grass- (the “stimulus”).
roots efforts to eliminate zero tolerance and high-stakes ***
testing, and presents recommendations for replacing The educational opportunities of millions of children
policies that drive students out of schools with those that across this country are continuously put at risk by zero-
tolerance school discipline and high-stakes testing. This
will allow all young people to receive a high-quality pre-
new brand of punitive educational policy has brought
K-12 education. students of all races, in all 50 states, perilously close to
being high school dropouts and/or entering the juvenile
Over the last few years, there has been a groundswell of and criminal justice systems. This is especially true for stu-
grassroots advocacy around these issues. Parents, students, dents of color and low-income students, who, too often,
and community leaders have educated policymakers on are being punished for losing a race in which their peers
the destructive impact of punitive education policies. To were given a head start.
their credit, many school districts and legislators have re-
sponded to this community pressure and recognized the This report is intended to assist in moving beyond the
need for changing the policies and practices that have led use of zero tolerance and high-stakes testing policies that
to student pushout and unhealthy learning environments. have transformed schools into hostile and alienating envi-
Together, grassroots advocates and policymakers have ronments for youth. Just as President Obama has said that
worked hand-in-hand to forge a brighter future together. “this country needs . . . the talents of every American”
and dropping out of school is not an option, so too should
This report highlights communities that have implement- pushing students out of school through these punitive pol-
ed the following four key action items for addressing the icies not be an option.
problems of zero tolerance and high-stakes testing and
creating sustainable educational justice in our schools: There is no easy answer to our nation’s “dropout crisis,”
but the one thing that absolutely must happen for this
(1) Create more caring and supportive learning en- problem to be solved is for every student to be given a full
vironments for students by eliminating policies and and equal opportunity to receive a high-quality educa-
practices that unnecessarily push students out of school tion. The solution has to start there. We must eliminate the
through the use of suspensions, expulsions, referrals to use of education policies that treat students as if they are
alternative schools, referrals to law enforcement, and disposable, and instead make a smart, long-term invest-
school-based arrests; ment in our youth by creating a more just educational
system for all children.
7
introduction
How can it be that the richest country in the world grad- While they are usually considered separately, these two
uates fewer than 7 out of every 10 high school students?1 policies are actually closely related. In fact, zero toler-
ance and high-stakes testing share the same ideologi-
How is it that barely half of all Black, Latino, and Native cal roots, and together they have combined to seriously
American students in the United States graduate from damage the relationships between schools and the com-
high school?2 munities they serve throughout the country. Rather than
helping to provide all students with enriching learning
How can New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and experiences, zero tolerance and high-stakes testing lead
Houston graduate fewer than half of all their students; to an impoverished school experience for young people.
Philadelphia and Cleveland graduate less than 40% of Instead of supporting students who are struggling or in
their students; and Detroit fail to even graduate 3 out of need, both needlessly punish young people and effec-
every 10 students?3 tively nail shut the doors to educational opportunity for
them. Together, zero tolerance and high-stakes testing
These figures are shameful, and should shock the con- have turned schools into hostile and alienating environ-
science of every American. Indeed, answering these ments for many of our youth, effectively treating them as
questions may be the single most important challenge dropouts-in-waiting. The devastating end result of these
our public education system faces. Fortunately, the intertwined punitive policies is a “school-to-prison pipe-
“dropout crisis” has suddenly become a hot topic, as line,” in which huge numbers of students throughout the
many policymakers are realizing that the current situa- country are treated as if they are disposable, and are be-
tion is both unacceptable and unsustainable. President ing routinely pushed out of school and toward the juve-
Obama even cited the dropout rate as one of the three nile and criminal justice systems.
most pressing issues facing our country in his first ad-
dress to Congress.4 Yet, while it is certainly encouraging ***
that policymakers are finally paying attention to this is- Fortunately, there is cause for optimism. Over the last
sue, too often, they are looking for answers in the wrong several years, there has been a wave of grassroots advo-
places. cacy for educational justice by those who recognize that:
every student must be valued, children are more than
First, they frequently misdiagnose the problem. Low test scores, and “zero” tolerance is not nearly enough.
graduation rates are not the problem; they are a symp- While many school districts continue to over-use pu-
tom of the problem. The real problem is that our educa- nitive measures, through the tireless work of parents,
tion system is not currently designed for every child to students, organizers, and advocates working to address
succeed. Instead, the educational opportunities of mil- these problems, for the first time in years there is actu-
lions of young people are continuously put at risk by ally a critical mass of school districts that are rejecting
policies that set students up to fail. zero tolerance and implementing more just and effective
approaches to school discipline. Additionally, grassroots
Second, at the same time as policymakers lament the mobilization against high-stakes testing and for higher-
huge number of dropouts, they continue to adopt mis- quality learning experiences has intensified, leading to a
guided policies that push more students out of school and sense of optimism that the “test-and-punish” approach
onto a track toward unemployment, under-employment, may soon be retired. Together, these devoted advocates
and prison. Until those destructive policies are reversed, have re-invigorated the idea that a high-quality educa-
there will be no significant improvement in graduation tion is the right of every child; it is not a privilege that
rates. On the contrary, they will likely get worse. should be taken away so easily.
*** This report is intended to provide an overview of zero-

tolerance school discipline and high-stakes testing, how
Reform is clearly needed, but it should start with the they relate to each other, how laws and policies such as
policies and practices that have resulted in millions of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) have made school
children not receiving a full and equal chance to receive discipline even more punitive, and the risk faced if these
a high-quality education. While there are many fac- devastating policies are not reformed. It also profiles
tors that contribute to this sad reality, the two policies grassroots efforts to eliminate zero tolerance and high-
that may pose the most direct threat to the educational stakes testing, and presents recommendations for replac-
opportunities of America’s youth are “zero tolerance” ing policies that drive students out of schools with those
school discipline and high-stakes testing. that will allow all young people to receive a high-quality
pre-K-12 education.
part one: how we got here
In the 1980s, a movement began to implement far more The major cause of the dramatic increase was a renewed
punitive policies in both the criminal justice field and effort by policymakers to get “tough on crime,” begin-
in public education. Modern zero tolerance (throughout ning in the 1980s with the Reagan Administration’s dec-
this report, “zero tolerance” will be used as shorthand for laration of the “War on Drugs.”6 Three strategies, in par-
all punitive school discipline policies and practices) and ticular, brought zero tolerance policing to a new level:
high-stakes testing policies are the direct result of that
movement. While the use of these policies is justified • Mandatory sentencing laws – In 1986, Congress
by claiming that they will create safer and more effec- enacted mandatory minimum sentencing laws,
tive schools, the most significant effect of those reforms requiring fixed sentences for individuals convict-
has not been higher-quality education, but rather that ed of a drug crime, regardless of culpability or
they have combined to deprive countless young people other mitigating factors.7
of opportunities to reach their full potential.
• “Three strikes” laws – These laws, passed by a
Bringing Punitive Measures from the Streets to the number of states, require a mandatory and ex-
Schools tended period of incarceration following the con-
viction of a third crime.8
The rise of zero-tolerance school discipline is directly
tied to the law enforcement strategies that have led to • “Broken windows” theory – This is a law enforce-
the extraordinary increase in the number of Americans ment strategy characterized by aggressive polic-
behind bars in recent years. From 1987 to 2007, the na- ing of traditionally ignored, minor offenses.9
tional prison population nearly tripled, and the United
States now has the most incarcerated persons, and the These policies contributed to there being more than 2.3
highest incarceration rate, of any country in the world.5 million adults locked up in 2008 in the United States,
9
meaning more than 1 in every 100 adults was behind wide range of student actions. For example, under
bars.10 Yet despite the many devastating consequences the discipline policy of Palm Beach County (Flori-
of these policies,11 they have proliferated, in large part da) Public Schools, schools are required to
because tough-on-crime stances have been politically respond to a wide variety of student conduct with
triumphant.12 In fact, for many politicians there is noth- out-of-school suspensions or expulsions, regard-
ing more feared than the “soft on crime” label.13 less of circumstances.24 Additionally, of the 80
potential infractions listed in the policy, 38 of
As the types of conduct being “policed” expanded,14 them must be reported to law enforcement.25
the population subject to these zero tolerance methods
broadened as well. Young people were increasingly tar- • “Three strikes” laws – Colorado, for example, has
geted by these policies; as a result, the number of youth a law that allows teachers to permanently remove
in custody rose dramatically, and the juvenile justice sys- students from their classroom if they are disrup-
tem followed the trend of the adult system and moved tive three times over the course of a year,26 and
away from rehabilitative approaches and toward more another law that mandates expulsion if a student
punitive approaches.15 is suspended three times during a school year for
causing a “material and substantial disruption.”27
Before long, the “get tough” approach made its way from
the streets to the schools. A key factor in this expansion • “Broken windows” theory – Many school districts
was the “superpredator” theory, which held that Ameri- have discipline policies that attach severe con-
ca was under assault by a generation of brutally amoral sequences to minor, and even trivial, student ac-
young people.16 Despite the fact that the data showed tions. In Detroit Public Schools, for example,
that school violence was actually in decline,17 a handful activity such as “insubordination,” talking or mak-
of highly publicized juvenile crimes led to a variety of ing noise in class, and public displays of affection
new laws and policies intended to punish youth offend- can result in out-of-school suspension of up to
ers more severely, such as the Gun Free Schools Act of 20 days and removal from the school entirely.28
199418 and state laws allowing adolescents to be tried Some places, such as Florida and Toledo, Ohio,
within the adult criminal justice system.19 The tragedy at have laws that actually make classroom disrup-
Columbine High School in 1999 then effectively opened tions a criminal offense.29
the floodgates to the increased use of zero-tolerance ap-
proaches.20 Applying criminal justice practices designed for adults
to youth is fraught with problems. Such punitive treat-
Now, in many communities across the country, the “law ment ignores the critically important emotional, psy-
and order” approach to handling student behavior has chological, and physical developmental needs of young
been fully embraced by schools. Schools have become people.30 Nevertheless, these get-tough criminal justice
a growth industry for law enforcement, as there has theories have changed the face of school discipline, and
been a massive increase in the police and security pres- the results, which will be explored in greater detail in
ence in schools.21 Many school districts now have their Part Two, have been catastrophic. There have been dra-
own police departments – some with detective bureaus, matic increases in the use of lengthy out-of-school sus-
SWAT teams, canine units, and armed officers – and an pensions, expulsions, referrals to alternative schools,
ever-increasing number of schools have metal detectors referrals to law enforcement, and school-based arrests.
and surveillance cameras.22 And while zero-tolerance Huge numbers of young people are being unnecessarily
school discipline policies were initially focused primar- pushed out of school and into the juvenile and crimi-
ily on weapons offenses, they have now become virtu- nal justice systems. Due to continuing biases, disparate
ally all-encompassing, mandating harsh punishment for treatment, and systemic inequities, students of color are
even trivial actions.23 The result is that, outside of prison particularly harmed by these policies and practices.31 Yet
and jail inmates, perhaps the most policed group in the despite the creation of this “school-to-prison pipeline,”
country right now is public school students. research suggests that zero-tolerance policies have not
been effective in improving school safety or the quality
Not only has the philosophy driving this dramatic change of the learning environment.32
been taken from the criminal justice world, the strategies
used to implement it are identical to those that drove the Of course, there may certainly be a need for swift (but
expansion of the adult prison population: flexible) consequences for the most serious student mis-
conduct, and some communities plagued by violence
• Mandatory sentencing laws – Many school dis- may require a short-term security presence at schools.
tricts now impose mandatory punishments for a However, the current state of school discipline practice
10
in many communities has gone too far, blurring the line • Schools can be closed or reconstituted (often into
between the education and criminal justice systems and charter schools); and
creating an on-ramp from schools to prisons.
• Schools and their personnel are shamed or com-
Punitive Policies Invade the School Curriculum mended through public rating systems.37
Just as overly-harsh criminal justice policies have led The No Child Left Behind Act was both a product of this
to the proliferation of zero-tolerance school discipline, movement and a catalyst for its growth, as it has ush-
so too has the “get tough” philosophy been infused into ered in a new wave of inflexible, test-based accountabil-
education policy in the name of “accountability.” In fact, ity. Since the passage of NCLB in 2002, both the use of
the dynamics in the two separate issue areas were identi- high-stakes tests and the severity of the consequences
cal: in both cases, there was an arguably overstated call attached to them have risen dramatically.38 All public
in the early 1980s to address a social “crisis,” followed school students are now subjected to high-stakes tests,
by a demand by policymakers for more punitive poli- and some students face an almost unfathomable number
cies that have since taken hold and fundamentally trans- of such tests.39 In many districts throughout the coun-
formed the public school system. try, even kindergarten and pre-K students are required to
take standardized tests in preparation for the test-driven
The high-stakes testing movement was triggered by the education that awaits them, though many of these chil-
1983 publication of “A Nation at Risk” by the National dren do not even know how to hold a pencil or read.40
Commission on Excellence in Education.33 This report
claimed that America’s future as an economic power The proliferation of testing allows policymakers to
was at risk unless our public education system was over- claim to be able to identify and crack down on “prob-
hauled. While many scholars disagreed with this bleak lem schools” and “under-performing” students. Just as
portrait of the nation’s schools,34 the report neverthe- within criminal justice policy, few dare to push back
less sparked an increased focus on raising the academic on this trend for fear of being labeled “soft” on failing
standards within schools.35 schools.41 Yet this “no excuses” approach to education
policymaking (which will be discussed in greater detail
Policymakers, often aligned with the business commu- in Part Three) has had a devastating effect on the quality
nity, used the report to crack down on failing schools by of education being offered at many schools.42 Because
demanding greater accountability through broader use of the severe consequences attached to these tests, at
of standardized tests to measure achievement.36 Over many schools, what is not tested is not taught. This has
time, policymakers went further by making the tests essentially turned many schools into test-prep factories,
“high-stakes,” meaning that dramatic and life-chang- with narrowed, distorted, and weakened curricula.43 Ad-
ing consequences for students and educators were at- ditionally, young people who do not score well on these
tached to the results, including determining whether: tests face a rapidly dwindling set of opportunities. For
example, many thousands of students are held back in
• Students are promoted to subsequent grades; school or not allowed to graduate simply because they
have not scored well enough on a single standardized
• Students are able to graduate high school with a test.44
diploma (“exit exams”);
In short, this “test and punish” movement has resulted in
• Low-scoring students can switch schools; an education system that increasingly turns students off
to learning and teachers off to teaching.45
• Schools have to fund tutoring services for low-
scoring students; Short-Term Politics and Long-Term Damage
• Students have to attend mandatory Saturday Despite substantial evidence of the damage caused by
school, after-school programs, and summer zero tolerance and high-stakes testing, and the over-
school; whelming body of research supporting alternative ap-
proaches, these policies have spread like wildfire. Pro-
• Teachers, administrators, and schools receive ponents argue that improving school safety and turning
financial bonuses for high student scores; around low-performing schools requires the adoption
of these more tough-minded approaches.46 The rhetoric
• Teachers and administrators can be reassigned or used is undoubtedly persuasive, as it is grounded in princi-
fired for low student scores; ples of accountability and personal responsibility that many
11
Americans associate with success in other fields, such testing punish those students who face the biggest chal-
as business. Indeed, the ideological roots of high-stakes lenges in getting a high-quality education. The effect is
testing and zero tolerance are right out of the corporate that these policies force students to shoulder the burden
playbook, as they are based on the notion that problems for adults’ failures to meet their needs.
are solved and productivity is improved through rigor-
ous competition, uncompromising discipline, constant Fourth, as appealing as the get-tough rhetoric used to
assessment, performance-inducing incentives, and the advance zero tolerance and high-stakes testing reforms
elimination of low performers. may be, these sorts of punitive policies do not create
real improvement. Zero tolerance does not foster better
However, while these principles may work in the busi- learning environments; it is a mere temporary fix that
ness world, the corporate approach is simply a bad fit ignores the root causes of the offending behavior, fails
in the context of public education. First, it is based on to teach students appropriate behavior, and often results
a “zero-sum” notion of competitiveness in which every in more problems down the road for the student and the
encounter will have clear winners and clear losers, and school. Similarly, the high-stakes testing system confus-
the losers are moved out of the way so the winners can es the measurement of student achievement with actu-
progress. For example, while it is known that zero toler- ally improving student achievement, and promotes the
ance will lead to some students facing serious negative misapplication of standardized test score results as the
consequences (the losers), it is justified by claiming that sole indicator of learning.48 These two policies combine
other students will benefit by having the “disruptive” to force educators to focus their energies on an exces-
students out of the classroom (the winners). Similarly, sively narrow set of goals and exclude those students
attaching high stakes to standardized tests will result in who are most challenging to teach (and most likely to
some students not making the cut and eventually drop- score poorly on high-stakes tests). Therefore, test scores
ping out of school (the losers), but those who do pass rise for some children and policymakers can claim suc-
will be certified as competent and will receive oppor- cess while ignoring the damage caused by the process to
tunities for advancement (the winners). Thus, these pu- achieve those elevated test scores.49
nitive policies serve a sorting function within schools,
separating out those who will succeed from those who Perhaps most concerning is that these punitive policies
will fail. While that approach may be suitable for the are at odds with what may be the most important pur-
marketplace, in the world of public education it results pose of the American public education system: to ensure
in huge numbers of students being left behind, with no that every child is prepared to become a full participant
opportunity to succeed. in our democracy. Rather than viewing schools as plac-
es where young people should be nurtured, supported,
Second, while accountability and personal responsibil- and developed to their full potential, zero tolerance
ity are certainly worthy goals, when those being held ac- treats students as adversaries or threats to be suppressed
countable are children, it is axiomatic that many, if not or even discarded in the quest for good schools. High-
most, of them will sometimes fail to measure up. While stakes testing regards our youth as products to be tested,
that may not pose much of a problem in a low-stakes or measured, and made more uniform.50 Each of these pol-
no-stakes context, when the consequences for students’ icies has too often been inappropriately substituted for
slip-ups or academic struggles are as severe as they are meaningful education reform.
currently – including criminalization, grade retention,
and denial of a diploma – the expansion of the school-
to-prison pipeline becomes inevitable.
Third, in order for this competitive approach to avoid

replicating and reinforcing underlying social inequities,
it must create a level playing field. In the education con-
text, that means that every child must be provided the
support and resources they need to succeed. The real-
ity, however, is that young people in this country are
provided radically different opportunities to learn, based
on their race, class, and neighborhood.47 Rather than
bridging those “opportunity gaps” and working to ensure
that every student is given a full and equal opportunity
to achieve their goals, zero tolerance and high-stakes
12
part two: zero tolerance circa 2009
In 1999, while working in the Mississippi Delta and before Zero Tolerance in Action
zero-tolerance school discipline had become such a wide-
ly-recognized problem, Advancement Project heard story Schools have become increasingly intolerant of young
after story about the unconscionable treatment of young people, and the results are often absurd or outrageous:
Black students. Teachers paddled their students and put
notches on their paddles to keep a tally of the number of • In Richardson, Texas, a 14-year-old boy with As-
young people they had struck. Children were charged with perger’s syndrome was given a $364 police cita-
serious felony offenses for incidents as minor as throw- tion in May 2009 for using an expletive in his
ing peanuts on a school bus. And students were regularly classroom.51
given 10-day out-of-school suspensions for “disrespecting
authority,” which usually just meant questioning a teacher. • In October 2009, a six-year-old student in New-
ark, Delaware was so excited about joining the
What happened to these youth was symptomatic of a much Cub Scouts that he brought his camping utensil
larger problem: many of the people put in position to support to school to use at lunch. Because the tool had
and care for our young people had become increasingly fear- a small knife, he was suspended and referred to
ful of, and hostile toward them. Because of that mindset, dur- an alternative school for 45 days.52
ing the last ten years the zero tolerance philosophy has spread
across the country, fundamentally transforming school culture • A 12-year old student in Stuart, Florida, was
and the way young people are viewed. In the process, this arrested in November 2008 for “disrupting a
punitive disciplinary approach has caught millions of students school function.” The “disruption” was that the
and their families in its wake, robbing young people of their student had “passed gas.”53
education and irrevocably damaging countless lives.
13
• In November 2009, 25 Chicago middle-school The absurdity of it is that most adults can recall multiple
students were rounded up, arrested, taken from instances in which they committed these same sorts of
school, and put in jail after a food fight in the acts when they were in school. Most of them subsequent-
school cafeteria.54 ly learned their lesson without suffering serious conse-
quences. Yet examples abound of districts that either
• In May 2007, an 8th-grader in Norfolk, Virginia, mandate or endorse extraordinarily harsh punishments
was suspended and ordered into a program for for behavior that – while it may need to be addressed –
substance abusers after she got some Tylenol from is actually quite typical and age-appropriate. As a result,
a classmate to deal with a headache.55 the vast majority of punitive disciplinary consequences
tend to result from relatively minor misbehavior or trivial
• In April 2007, a 13-year-old girl in New York City student actions. The problem in most cases is not the
was removed from her school in handcuffs for student but rather the adults who react inappropriately
writing the word “Okay” on her desk.56 to youthful behavior. Indeed, in a great many schools, it
is seemingly no longer acceptable for young people to
• After the election of President Obama in Novem- act their age.
ber 2008, a Black student in Calhoun City, Missis-
sippi, was paddled for repeating the campaign This widespread use of zero tolerance also represents a
slogan “Yes We Can.” Another Black student in fundamental misunderstanding of child and adolescent
Pearl River, Mississippi, was suspended for two development. It is simply a normal part of childhood and
days for merely speaking the name of the Presi- adolescence to question authority, be especially suscep-
dent-elect at lunchtime.57 tible to peer influence, and not fully consider or under-
stand the consequences of one’s actions.61 Yet students
These incidents are not anomalies, but rather examples are continually given extremely harsh punishments for
of an oppressive school discipline culture that frequent- doing exactly what adults should expect them to do.
ly and unnecessarily turns children’s lives upside-down.
This is the face of school discipline today, and it has two In fact, it is increasingly the youngest and most vulner-
separate, but equally important prongs that have com- able children who are being subjected to the blunt force
bined to ratchet up the consequences for youth: (1) over- of these policies and practices.62 For instance, the rate
ly harsh school discipline policies and practices, and; (2) of expelling children from preschools is over three times
an expansion of the role of law enforcement in enforcing higher than it is for K-12 students.63 Or consider the
school discipline and the school security infrastructure. examples of five-year-old Dennis Rivera, five-year-old
Ja’eisha Scott, and six-year-old Desre’e Watson, all kin-
Intolerance of Youth dergarten students who were handcuffed, arrested, and
taken away from school in police cars for throwing tem-
Many school districts have adopted extraordinarily harsh per tantrums in class.64 Desre’e Watson’s wrists were so
school discipline policies and practices in recent years. small that the handcuffs had to placed around her bi-
These punitive measures extend far beyond serious in- ceps.65 Sadly, it is not unusual for such small children to
fractions, such as acts of extreme violence or bringing be treated as hardened criminals. As the Chief of Police
weapons to school. For example: who arrested Desre’e said when questioned, “Do you
think this is the first six-year-old we’ve arrested?”66
• In Akron, Ohio, a student can be expelled for be-
ing late to class, having cigarettes, or uttering The inescapable message is that schools and the police
profanity.58 see even very young children as threats, as being unwor-
thy of tolerance and understanding, or both. As a result,
• In St. Louis, Missouri, under the 2008-09 Student because seemingly every misstep can result in a poten-
Code of Conduct, tardiness could result in a 10- tially calamitous disruption in education and even arrest,
day suspension, “disruption” or “disrespect” every child’s education is at risk due to zero tolerance.
could lead to a 10-day suspension and place-
ment in an alternative school, and the potential
consequences for “physical displays of affection” What about More Significant Incidents?
and dress code violations include expulsion.59
Even behavior that may be regarded as more serious
• In Houston, Texas, district policy permits the now typically leads to inappropriate reactions by school
placement of a student in an alternative school for personnel. For example, in many school districts across
smoking, defiance of authority, fighting, “disre- the country, common fights between children now au-
spect,” use of profanity, or name-calling.60 tomatically result in a lengthy out-of-school suspension
14
and frequently lead to expulsion or referral to the po- no evidence that the over-representation of students of
lice.67 Yet this approach has not been shown to result in color among suspended students is due to higher rates
fewer fights; on the contrary, it has led to more students of misbehavior.72 If anything, studies have shown that
getting punished more harshly for fights.68 In effect, students of color are punished more severely for less se-
by ratcheting up the consequences for such behavior, rious or more subjective infractions.73
young people are set up for failure. A more appropri-
ate response to fights in which no weapons were used At the systemic level, it is also frequently the case that
and no one was seriously hurt would be to assess what schools with large populations of students of color rely
led to the fight, address those underlying problems, and more on exclusionary discipline than predominantly
help the students learn how to resolve their differences White schools.74 As a result, it is not uncommon for the
without fighting. same behavior that triggers little to no response in many
predominantly White communities to result in severe
Similarly, the punitive approach is ill-suited – though consequences in communities of color.
very common – for many alcohol or drug offenses. Cer-
tainly, the sale of drugs on school grounds threatens the The combined effect is that because of unconscious bi-
well-being of other students and demands a swift, firm ases, discriminatory treatment, and systemic racism, the
response. However, evidence that a student is using or already unjust system of zero tolerance is particularly
intending to use drugs or alcohol should be a sign to devastating for the educational opportunities of students
intervene with guidance or support, not cast the young of color.
person out of school.69 The zero-tolerance approach ig-
nores students’ well-being, likely alienates them even Turning Schools into Prisons
further, and does little if anything to address the underly-
ing behavior.70 In fact, pushing them out of school and In schools across the country, young children – almost al-
into the street or an unsupervised home may increase ways Black and Latino children – are made to walk around
the likelihood of additional alcohol or drug use. It is also the school with their hands folded across their chests, along
a missed opportunity to help a young person address a straight, painted lines, one after the other down the hall.
problem early on, rather than potentially having it haunt There is only one other place where people are treated this
them into adulthood. Alternatively, strategies such as pa- way: prison.
rental outreach, referral to a counselor or social worker,
and treatment services can actually help reduce the fre- Metal detectors; security cameras around every corner;
quency of drug and alcohol abuse without unnecessarily and armed police patrolling the halls. For most of us,
cutting off students’ educational opportunities.71 these descriptions evoke images of prisons. For many
young people, however, this describes their daily ex-
While behavior such as fighting and drug or alcohol use perience in an American public school. School dis-
should have consequences, the standard punitive re- tricts have increasingly adopted sophisticated security
sponses in many school districts needlessly jeopardize measures and invited law enforcement personnel into
students’ futures. It is simply not a winning strategy to their schools, spending millions of dollars to turn public
push students out of school – and even criminalize them schools into well-policed fortresses. For example:
– for their youthful mistakes.
• In 2005, 68% of students around the country
Race and the Pipeline between ages 12 and 15 reported the presence of
security guards and/or assigned police officers in
While school districts have made dramatic changes to their schools (an increase from 54% in 1999).75
their disciplinary practices over the last two decades,
leading to huge increases in the use of out-of-school • In North Carolina, the number of school resource
suspensions, expulsions, and school-based arrests, one officers has nearly doubled over the last decade.76
thing has remained constant: students of color dispro-
portionately bear the burden of harsh school discipline. • In Texas, 163 school districts now have their own
There are two key components to that inequity: unequal police departments.77
treatment at the individual level, and unequal use of
zero tolerance at the systemic level. • Los Angeles Unified School District has its own
police department with a staff of 530 personnel,
At the individual level, investigations of student behav- including detectives and canine patrols.78
ior, race, and discipline around the country have yielded
15
• New York City’s budget for police and security their responsibility for school discipline to the police.
equipment in schools has increased by 65% since The frequent result is that students are criminalized for
2002, to more than $221 million.79 As of 2008, minor incidents that would formerly have been handled
the New York City police department employed by school personnel, not the police and juvenile courts.
and supervised more than 5,000 school safety
agents (SSAs) in the public school system, 1,600 When police are in a school, they bring with them the
more than 10 years ago.80 It supplied an addi- power to arrest and the power to intimidate. Their mere
tional 200 armed police officers to patrol presence makes them more likely to become involved
schools.81 This immense presence has resulted in in disciplinary matters that they otherwise would have
the police department’s school safety division never known about. In fact, for a large percentage of
being larger than the entire police force of Wash- school-based arrests, it is inconceivable that the student
ington D.C., Detroit, Boston, and Las Vegas.82 would have been arrested if not for the close relation-
ship between school staff and law enforcement person-
Students’ perception of school as an increasingly puni- nel. Having police nearby transforms the daily school
tive and unwelcoming environment is also fed by the experience into a minefield of potential crimes: fighting
expanded use of metal detectors, surveillance cameras, in the hallway becomes a “battery” or even “aggravated
locked campuses, and other techniques associated with battery”; swiping a classmate’s headphones can be clas-
prisons. For example, between 1999 and 2006, the per- sified as “theft” or “robbery”; and talking back to an offi-
centage of schools nationwide using one or more video cer or a teacher is “disorderly conduct.” Because there is
surveillance cameras increased from 19% to 43%.83 now often an officer present and available, and criminal
Outfitting schools with extensive safety infrastructure is laws are so broad and vague, school discipline merges
especially common in schools attended by students of seamlessly into arrest.
color:
In fact, schools are increasingly utilizing the police to
• In New York City, on any given day, over 93,000 enforce even the most basic student infractions, such as
children – predominantly students of color – have tardiness and school attendance. In many communities,
to pass through security stations with metal detec- students and/or their parents are ticketed by police – re-
tors, bag-searches, and pat-downs administered sulting in fines or other sanctions – for skipping school
by police personnel before getting to class.84 or arriving late to school.88 For example, in Los Ange-
les, students are given $225 truancy tickets not only if
• Nationwide, schools with large populations of they skip school, but if they are even one minute late to
students of color are far more likely than other school.89 If students are caught being tardy three times,
schools to employ metal detector checks.85 the ticket rises to $985.90 These students are also often
suspended from school, and then must miss additional
• Schools with large populations of students of class time to go to court.91 In short, because of the close
color are much more likely to lock their doors relationship between schools and law enforcement, the
during the day.86 simple act of being late to school can bring students into
contact with the juvenile justice system, lead students to
The inescapable fact is that our public schools – and fall behind in school, and result in economic hardship
particularly those in communities of color – look more to their families.
like prisons with each passing school year.
Consequences of the Zero-Tolerance Approach
The Intersection of Harsh School Discipline Policies
and Expanded School Security Zero-tolerance policies operate under the assumption
that removing students who engage in misconduct will
“At first glance, it appeared that crime in the schools skyrock- deter such behaviors and allow others to continue learn-
eted, but after further study it became evident that the major ing, making schools safer and creating an improved
cause of the increase in reporting was a result of law enforce- climate for those students who remain. However, that
ment (SROs) within the schools.”87 assumption has not been borne out by the research. In
- Clayton County (GA) Blue Ribbon Commission on School 2006, a task force of the American Psychological As-
Discipline sociation (the “task force”) published an evidentiary
review of studies over the last 10 years evaluating the
As the presence of law enforcement and security officials impact of zero-tolerance school discipline. They found
has expanded, school personnel have delegated more of that zero-tolerance policies had not been shown to im-
16
prove school safety.92 In fact, according to the study, being fined, having to agree to other sanctions such as
schools are not any safer or more effective in disciplin- probation, and possibly being suspended or expelled by
ing students than they were before zero-tolerance poli- their school.104 They may also find that a juvenile record
cies were implemented.93 will haunt them when they apply to college, apply for
financial aid or a government grant, try to enlist in the
Additionally, schools with higher rates of school sus- military, or attempt to find a job.105 These ramifications
pension and expulsion had less satisfactory ratings of can be devastating, as can the psychological effects re-
school climate.94 While it is commonly assumed that sulting from school-based arrest: public humiliation, di-
out-of-school suspension and expulsion deter future minished self-worth, distrust of the police, distrust of the
misbehavior, there are no data showing that the use of school, and further alienation. Not surprisingly, research
these practices reduces the likelihood of future student shows that students who are arrested in school and ap-
disruption.95 Indeed, disciplinary removal appears to pear in court are more likely to drop out of school.106
have negative effects on future student behavior.96 In ad-
dition, zero-tolerance discipline can make students feel The evidence is clear: zero-tolerance school discipline
less “connected” to school, which is linked to increased exposes all students to great risk for personal hardship
likelihood of engaging in risky behaviors, violence, and and academic failure.
alcohol or substance abuse.97
Is Adding Security Worth the Cost?
The task force also found that zero-tolerance school dis-
cipline can have a negative impact on academic per- “Schools that rely on security guards and metal detectors to
formance. Their research showed that suspension and create safety may end up creating an environment that is so
expulsion are associated with a higher likelihood of repressive that it is no longer conducive to learning.”107
school dropout and failure to graduate on time.98 In fact, - Pedro Noguera
other research has found that students suspended three
or more times by the end of their sophomore year of There are also important questions to be asked about the
high school are five times more likely to drop out than role of law enforcement personnel, security guards, and
students who have never been suspended.99 security equipment in schools. Although many schools
have been calling for more school resource officers, met-
The impact of harsh school discipline is felt not only by al detectors, and surveillance cameras in recent years,108
the students being disciplined, but by the whole school. research has not demonstrated that such initiatives result
Research indicates that the use of school suspension and in safer schools or a more satisfactory school climate.109
expulsion is associated with lower school-wide academ- On the contrary, in some communities, they seem to be
ic achievement, even when controlling for demograph- having the opposite effect. For example, in New York
ics such as socioeconomic status.100 City, 64% of teachers reported that school-based police
officers rarely or never make students feel safe.110 Only
In short, zero-tolerance school discipline can turn 6% believed that police officers always make students
schools into inhospitable environments that, not surpris- feel safe.111
ingly, fail to promote either school safety or academic
success. Zero tolerance is also linked to even more seri- The presence of police, security guards, security cam-
ous outcomes. For example, suspension and expulsion eras, and metal detectors can negatively affect learning
increase the likelihood that the affected children and environments. This is particularly true in communities
youth will become involved with the juvenile or crimi- in which there already may be a strained relationship
nal justice systems.101 In fact, a study in Texas found that with police.112 By building up the fortress of schools,
the single most important predictor of involvement in and outfitting them with personnel and technology that
the juvenile justice system is a history of disciplinary re- is better at catching students committing a crime than
ferrals at school.102 In Kentucky, state officials report “it preventing crime, the message to students is that their
is unusual to find a youthful offender among the state’s schools are afraid of them or expect them to do some-
population of incarcerated youth who has not been sus- thing wrong. Quite reasonably, students can grow to re-
pended from school.”103 sent that fear and distrust, which can make them feel
as if they are viewed as criminals-in-waiting. Therefore,
The effects can be even more disastrous when students decisions such as whether to assign police officers or se-
are arrested or referred to law enforcement for incidents curity guards to a school and whether to outfit a school
in school. Students who are arrested or ticketed by law with metal detectors and other security equipment de-
enforcement can face a variety of consequences, includ- mand careful inquiry and extensive input from all stake-
ing being detained, having to miss school to go to court, holders, especially parents and students.
17
Some Arresting Data
The magnitude of the school-to-prison pipeline becomes • In Colorado, there were 9,563 referrals of stu-
apparent upon examination of data from around the dents to law enforcement in 2006-2007.117 The
country. Prior Advancement Project reports have exten- vast majority of these referrals were for relatively
sively documented the overuse of school-based arrests, minor offenses such as “detrimental behavior”
yet excessive reliance upon this form of punitive disci- and “violations of codes of conduct.”118
pline continues, especially for minor incidents. For ex-
ample: • Just in the School District of Philadelphia, there
were 4,361 individuals taken into police custody
• In Pennsylvania, the number of school-based in 2007-08.119
arrests almost tripled from 1999-00 to 2006-07,
from 4,563 to 12,918.113 • Within Baltimore City Public Schools, a district of
just over 80,000 students, there were 1,699 ar-
• In Florida, there were 21,289 arrests and referrals rests and referrals to law enforcement in 2007-
of students to the state’s Department of Juvenile 2008.120 Well over half of the arrests and referrals
Justice in 2007-2008.114 Almost 15,000 of them – were in elementary and middle schools.121 Again,
or 69% – were for misdemeanor offenses.115 most of the incidents did not involve serious mis-
conduct.122
• In North Carolina, there were 16,499 delinquen-
cy referrals to juvenile court directly from school
in 2008-09.116
18
This data depicts mass criminalization of relatively com- • In Colorado, Black students were over twice as
mon childish and adolescent behavior. To be sure, students likely as White students to be referred to law en-
of all races and socioeconomic statuses are being affected forcement.124 Latino students were 50% more
by these policies and practices. Nevertheless, the burden likely than White students to be referred to law
on students of color is particularly acute. For example: enforcement.125
• In Florida, Black students were two-and-a-half • In Philadelphia, a Black student was three-and-a-
times as likely as White students to be arrested half times more likely to be taken into police cus-
and referred to the state’s Department of Juvenile tody than a White student.126 Similarly, a Latino
Justice in 2007-2008.123 student was 60% more likely to be taken into
police custody than a White student.127
19
While police involvement may be necessary for truly seri- NCLB was signed into law.128 During that timeframe,
ous conduct that threatens the safety of other students or the number of students expelled across the country also
staff, it simply makes no sense to arrest students for acting increased by 15%.129
their age when the implications for students’ futures are so
severe. Nevertheless, many districts continue to rack up Additionally, the impact of out-of-school suspensions
huge numbers of arrests, particularly of students of color. and expulsions is clearly falling most heavily on stu-
dents of color. In 2006-07, Black students were over
Suspensions, Expulsions, and Referrals to Alternative three times more likely to be suspended out-of-school
Schools than their White peers.130 Latino students and Native
American students were 42% and 66% more likely than
Arrests in school are the most direct route into the school- their White peers to be suspended out-of-school, respec-
to-prison pipeline, but as discussed above, there are oth- tively.131
ers, such as out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, and
referrals to alternative schools. Like arrests, they are of- The disparities are even worse for expulsions. Black
ten unwarranted and frequently result in young people students were almost three-and-a-half times as likely to
getting pushed out of school. be expelled as White students in 2006-07, and Latino
and Native American students were over one-and-a-half
An analysis of available data from across the country re- times as likely to be expelled.132
veals two key findings: (1) the use of punitive disciplin-
ary measures has risen over time at the national level, The disparate racial impact of these policies and practic-
and has increased dramatically in many communities; es is also worsening. While the number of suspensions
and (2) racial disparities in school discipline continue to per Black student from 2002-03 to 2006-07 increased
exist across the country, and are getting worse. by 8% and the number of suspensions per Latino stu-
dent rose by 14%, the number of suspension per White
Not coincidentally (and as will be discussed in Part student actually decreased by 3%.133 Similarly, while
Four), the increased use of punitive discipline has co- the number of expulsions per Black student increased
incided with the passage of NCLB and other test-driven 33% in just four years, and expulsions per Latino student
policies. For example, at the national level, there were increased by 6%, the number of expulsions per White
almost 250,000 more students suspended out-of-school student decreased by 2%.134
in 2006-07 than there were just four years earlier, when
20
Examining state-level data confirms that racial disparities where Black students were between four-and-a-half and
are indeed a national problem. In fact, in 2006-07, there six times as likely to be suspended as White students.137
was no state in which Black students were not suspended
more often than White students.135 The worst disparities Similarly, for Latinos, there were racial disparities in 40
were in Wisconsin, where Black students were over sev- states and the District of Columbia, with the worst dis-
en times more likely to be suspended than their White parities evident in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Wiscon-
peers.136 The other states with the worst racial inequi- sin, and Utah, where Latino students were almost three
ties were Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, and Pennsylvania, times as likely to be suspended as White students.138
21
In many states and districts, the rise in the use of punitive of-school suspensions per White student de-
disciplinary measures in recent years is simply staggering. creased by 3%.142 The resulting difference is that
by 2007-08, Black students were nearly five-and-
Pennsylvania a-half times more likely to be suspended out-of-
school than White students.143
• From 1999-00 to 2006-07, the number of expul-
sions in Pennsylvania schools increased by 30% • The other sub-group that has been particularly
and the number of out-of-school suspensions rose affected in Ohio has been students with disabili-
by 117%.139 ties. For example, statewide these students were
twice as likely to be suspended out-of-school as
• Referrals to alternative educational placements their peers in 2007-08.144
during that timeframe jumped 164%, from 2,956 Texas
to 7,809.140
• In Texas, the use of punitive disciplinary measures
Ohio has reached extremely high levels. From 2002-
03 to 2007-08, the number of expulsions from
• Like the country as a whole, racial disparities in Texas schools increased by 23%, and the number
Ohio have gotten worse in recent years. The num- of out-of-school suspensions increased by 43%.145
ber of out-of-school suspensions per Black student In just one academic year, 2007-08, there were
increased by 34% in just three years, from 2004- 9,899 expulsions and 644,853 out-of-school sus-
05 to 2007-08.141 During the same period, out- pensions in Texas.146
22
• Students in Texas are also frequently referred to infamous for the use of punitive discipline.152 In
alternative schools called Disciplinary Alternative fact, in just six years, from 2001-02 to 2007-08,
Education Programs (DAEPs) for alleged school the number of out-of-school suspensions in the
misconduct. In fact, in 2007-08, there were over district nearly quadrupled, from 23,942 to
128,000 removals of students from their regular 93,312.153 Even more dramatic was the increase
schools into a DAEP.147 in longer suspensions (4 to 10 days) from 5,468
to 25,140.154
• This punitive discipline has hit students of color
especially hard. In 2007-08, compared to their • There were also significant racial disparities in
White peers statewide, there were over 50% more Chicago. By 2007-08, Black students were more
out-of-school suspensions per Native American than three-and-a-half times as likely to be sus-
student, over twice as many per Latino student, pended as White students.155
and over five times as many per Black student.148
These disparities are also getting worse over Other
time.149
The examples above are emblematic of trends all
• Students with disabilities also are disproportion- across the country. For example:
ately affected by exclusionary discipline. For ex-
ample, in 2005-06, students enrolled in special • In New York City, between 2000 and 2005, the
education in Texas accounted for 11% of the stu- number of superintendent suspensions (lasting
dent population but 26% of all out-of-school sus- between six days and a year) rose by 76%, from
pensions.150 8,567 to 15,090.156
Illinois • In California, the number of suspensions in-

creased by almost 85,000 in just two years, from
• In Illinois, the number of out-of-school suspen- 739,290 in 2005-06 to 824,231 in 2007-08.157
sions increased by 38% from 2001-02 to 2007-
08.151 • In 2006-07, Latino students in Colorado were
more than twice as likely as White students to be
• The punitive approach to school discipline was suspended out-of-school.158 Black students were
especially acute in Chicago Public Schools, under more than three-and-a-half times as likely as
the direction of then-Chief Executive Officer and White students to be suspended out-of-school.159
current U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.
During that time, Chicago Public Schools became
23
The existence of the school-to-prison pipeline raises ba- comes much more expensive to use this approach. For
sic questions of morality, fairness, and justice. Simply some communities, those funds may be better spent in
put, depriving young people of their education for ex- other ways, such as by hiring additional teachers or sup-
tended periods of time and pushing them into the ju- port staff, or investing in proven prevention and inter-
venile and criminal justice systems for their youthful vention programs, among many other possibilities.
actions is morally indefensible and unjust. Yet the stag-
gering numbers of young people being removed from More broadly, there are huge long-term costs to commu-
school is also holding back academic progress by cre- nities that exclude students from school through the use
ating unhealthy school climates and unnecessarily ex- of these policies and practices.160 When young people
cluding students from the learning environment. Thus, are disposed of through punishment, pushout, and pris-
in order to improve student learning, it is critically im- on, it is taxpayers who are left with the unseen costs of
portant to curtail the overuse of these harsh disciplinary supporting them. These communities will ultimately col-
measures. lect less tax revenue and face more government spend-
ing on health, crime, and welfare than communities that
Moreover, not only is zero-tolerance school discipline do a better job of educating their youth.161 Thus, zero-
unjust and educationally unsound, it represents poor tolerance policies are bringing communities across the
economic policy. As the security infrastructure in many country down a road to ruin, and are simply no longer
schools becomes even more sophisticated, it also be- sustainable.
24
part three: high stakes testing circa 2009
As with zero tolerance, the use of high-stakes testing has • During the same period, the number of states
exploded in recent years, fundamentally transforming that threatened conversion of low-scoring schools
the educational experiences of countless students and into charter schools rose from 4 to 15.164
educators. It is simply startling that this dramatic change
has occurred when there is overwhelming evidence • From 2002 to 2008, the number of states whose
of the damage caused by high-stakes testing and scant sanctions include the option of “reconstituting”
evidence of its effectiveness in achieving sustained im- schools (such as by firing everyone on staff) in-
provements in teaching and learning. creased from 15 to 29.165
Rising Stakes In short, the number of educators whose very livelihood

rides on the outcomes of standardized tests has surged in
Not only are more standardized tests being used than recent years. However, they are not the only ones affect-
ever before, the stakes attached to them have been ratch- ed by this radical shift in philosophy; the consequences
eted up across the country. In this respect, the impact of faced by students have also increased dramatically.
the No Child Left Behind Act is undeniable. From 2001
until 2008, the number of states that used test results to For example, the number of states requiring the passage
sanction schools rose from 14 to 32.162 Because of the of high-stakes exit exams for high school graduation
new federal law, those sanctions also became increas- has risen dramatically over the last 20 years. In 1981,
ingly severe. For example: there was only one state that was using a high school
exit exam.166 By 2008 that number had shot up to 23
• From 2003 to 2008, the number of states that states, with another three planning to implement their
sanctioned schools by turning them over to pri- exit exams by 2012.167
vate management increased from 6 to 16.163
25
Notably, the states using exit exams constitute most of in a sustainable way. Additionally, the high-stakes testing
the lowest-performers nationally with regard to gradu- approach has not been shown to close the achievement
ation rates.168 Nevertheless, the trend continues to be gap between White students and students of color.178
toward broader use of these policies.
Additionally, the overwhelming focus of NCLB and state-
The Impact of High-Stakes Testing on Teaching and level high-stakes testing systems on reading and math
Learning appears to have had a negative effect on students’ perfor-
mance in other subjects. For example, the NAEP science
The impact of high-stakes testing on the classroom has scores of 8th-graders dropped from 1996 to 2005.179
been well-documented.169 Test-driven reforms have had Additionally, in an international assessment of science,
a significant narrowing effect on school curricula, lead- American 4th- and 8th-graders both scored lower than
ing to un-tested subjects like science, social studies, art, they had prior to NCLB.180
and physical education being excluded or de-empha-
sized.170 Because so much is riding on the outcome of Perhaps more important is the damage done by high-
standardized tests, meaningful instruction that supports stakes testing to the student experience in school. Not
the development of higher-order skills like critical think- only do formulaic, test-driven reforms neglect the impor-
ing is suffocated and often replaced by “drill and kill” tant role schools have to play in helping students become
techniques, rote memorization exercises, and teaching well-rounded citizens, they also turn school into a much
to the test.171 In fact, the impact of testing on the class- less engaging, and even hostile, place for youth by elimi-
room has become so great that some teachers report nating the components of education they find most inter-
spending a quarter of their time or even more than half esting.181 Additionally, too many children continue to be
their time preparing for and administering standardized labeled academic failures even though they are making
tests.172 progress. These students are shamed by their peers, their
teachers, and their communities because of the impact
High-stakes testing also has a stultifying effect on teach- their test results can have on school assessment.182 The
ers. Indeed, a recent national survey of teachers found effect of these reforms has been that students are often
that testing was the most cited cause of job dissatisfac- viewed as little more than test scores, which has had a
tion.173 Because of the emphasis on test scores and profoundly alienating and dehumanizing effect on many
strictly-regimented curricula, teachers have many fewer young people.183
opportunities to offer in-depth instruction, tailor curricu-
la to meet individual needs, build on students’ interests, The effects can accumulate even more when additional
make connections to students’ cultures or communities, consequences are attached to the tests. For example,
or engage in community building activities.174 As Arthur there is a long record of research demonstrating the
Costa has said: “What was educationally significant but consistent association of high-stakes exit exams with de-
hard to measure has been replaced by what is educa- creased graduation rates and increased dropout rates.184
tionally insignificant but easy to measure.” This has the Nevertheless, these policies continue to spread and
effect of draining the joy out of teaching and learning, states have even been moving to make their exit exams
producing a classroom climate in which it is exception- more difficult. While many early exams purported to test
ally difficult to engage students and create real and sus- “minimum competency,” more rigorous comprehensive
tained learning.175 exams have become common in recent years.185 Those
comprehensive exams have even more of a negative ef-
These changes are justified on the ground that mastery of fect on graduation rates, as demonstrated by recent stud-
subjects like reading and math is the first priority of K-12 ies out of California, Massachusetts, and New Jersey.186
education. However, high-stakes testing has not even
been proven effective at improving student achieve- Additionally, the results from standardized tests are often
ment in the subjects on which it focuses. While reports used to retain students in grade. Yet grade retention has
of dramatic gains in state test scores are quite common, been shown to be the single largest predictor of student
they are usually illusory, as scores on independent, rel- dropout.187 Unless accompanied by targeted and inten-
atively low-stakes exams such as the National Assess- sive supports and interventions, student retention fails to
ment of Educational Progress (NAEP) do not show simi- produce academic gains for the retained students and
lar increases.176 In fact, with few exceptions, the rate of makes it more likely that the students will experience
improvement in reading and math scores from 2004 to future behavioral problems.188 Nevertheless, many states
2008 slowed compared with previous, pre-NCLB peri- continue this practice on a large scale.189
ods.177 This indicates that real learning has not improved
26
While high-stakes testing continues its ascendance in In fact, the punitive consequences can often pile on a
the world of education policy, the undeniable fact is that third dose of punishment since the schools attended by
it has had a devastating effect on teaching and learning students of color and low-income students are also those
in many schools, driving teachers out of the profession that are most likely to be sanctioned under high-stakes
and students out of school.190 testing systems.196 Of course, narrowly-tailored inter-
ventions may be appropriate if the school is truly under-
Disparate Impact performing. However, too frequently, the interventions
used are not customized for the challenges individual
The disparate impact high-stakes testing has on students schools face.197 Moreover, punishing schools on the ba-
of color, low-income students, English language learn- sis of their test scores may be quite inappropriate if those
ers, and students with disabilities is also well-document- schools are educating their students well but those gains
ed. While less than half of the nation’s states – 23, to do not translate into improved performance on standard-
be exact – currently impose high school exit examina- ized tests.198 Standardized tests are simply inadequate
tions on their students, those states contain 74% of the to fairly assess the quality of education being offered at
country’s students of color.191 Thus, solely on the basis a school, yet the reforms schools are forced to adopt on
of where they live, students of color are more likely than the basis of test scores often work to the detriment of
their White peers to have their educational opportunities students in those schools, meaning students of color and
limited by high-stakes exit exams.192 low-income students often receive the most narrowed
and least engaging educations.199
These same groups of students are also disproportionate-
ly affected because they are more likely to be in under- ***
resourced schools, less likely to have highly qualified The shift toward high-stakes testing across the country
teachers, and more likely to be affected by out-of-school has been dramatic, and shows no signs of abating. In
factors that significantly affect health and learning op- fact, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has been
portunities.193 Thus, these students are at a comparative promoting the broader use of standardized test scores,
disadvantage in taking high-stakes tests, and are more including using them to determine teacher pay.200 Based
likely to be retained in grade and have their diploma on the experience of the last two decades, and partic-
withheld.194 This reinforces underlying resource inequi- ularly the years since the No Child Left Behind Act, it
ties, causing these students to receive a double dose of can be expected that such a change would lead to even
punishment for policymakers’ failure to address educa- more educators feeling forced to forego providing their
tional inequities.195 students with full, rich, engaging learning experiences in
favor of focusing on test preparation.
27
part four: working in tandem to push students out of school
While zero-tolerance school discipline and high-stakes Likewise, zero tolerance becomes the tool used to ad-
testing have each experienced a meteoric rise in recent dress the inevitable student backlash from the daily grind
years, it would be a mistake to view them as being unre- of filling in test-booklet bubbles and being subjected to
lated. As discussed in Part One, these two policies share a narrowed, lackluster curriculum.201 Just as the surest
the same origins and are both products of the same mis- way to avoid student misbehavior is to engage young
placed corporate principles. They are also intimately people with rich course material, perhaps the quickest
related in the ways they change the dynamics between path toward classroom disruption is to bore students
schools and the communities they serve. Indeed, zero with practice tests and rote memorization exercises.202
tolerance and high-stakes testing have become inter- Thus, zero tolerance allows schools under test pressure
twined and even mutually reinforcing, with each help- to quickly remove students who are unwilling or unable
ing the other to thrive. to sit quietly in their seats.
For example, the pressure to improve test scores applied These punitive policies have combined to change the
by the No Child Left Behind Act and the high-stakes incentive structure for educators, putting many teachers
testing movement makes the public more tolerant of and administrators in the unenviable position of having
widespread use of zero tolerance and the criminaliza- to choose between their students’ interests and their own
tion of young people by their schools. These policies cre- self-interest. Education has become, more than ever, a
ate the perceived imperative to remove the “bad kids” “numbers game.” The clear message from high-stakes
who prevent the “good kids” from learning. Moreover, testing policies is that educators’ focus should not be
there appears to be a direct relationship between the on nurturing and educating each child to reach their full
consequences attached to test results and the severity of potential; their focus should be on getting as many stu-
school disciplinary practices, meaning districts that face dents as possible to reach the level of “proficiency.”203
the most test pressure will be the most inclined toward The message sent by zero-tolerance policies is that edu-
punitive measures. cation is not for everyone; rather, it is for those students
28
who “deserve” it. The combined effect is that, within The Many Roads to Student Pushout
this new system of incentives, individual students matter
little. The combined effect of these dynamics is that countless
students are entering the “school-to-prison pipeline” ev-
Because of the focus on test scores and the severe conse- ery day. The criminalization of youthful actions in school
quences attached to them, if a student acts up in class, it described above in Part Two represents a direct linkage
is no longer in educators’ self-interest to address it by as- between schools and prisons. But there are also indirect
sessing the student’s unmet needs or treating the incident linkages, caused by zero tolerance and high-stakes test-
as a “teachable moment.” Within this business model, it ing driving students to drop out of school,208 at which
is much easier and more “efficient” to simply remove the point they become more than eight times as likely to be
child from class through punitive disciplinary measures incarcerated as high school graduates.209 This can hap-
and focus on the remaining students. With so much rid- pen in a variety of ways, such as:
ing on these tests, being able to transmit as much of the
test material as possible often overrides concerns about • Students are suspended or expelled and then
the impact such practices have on students.204 become more likely to fall into additional trouble
and less likely to stay on track academically;
As a result, the practice of pushing struggling students
out of school to boost test scores has become quite com- • Students are discouraged and ashamed by their
mon.205 There are a number of widely used strategies for low standardized test scores and act out in school
manipulating test scores, such as withdrawing students until they are removed through suspension, ex-
from attendance rolls, assigning students to alternative pulsion, or referral to an alternative school;
schools, coercing or encouraging students to drop out
or enroll in General Educational Development (GED) • As a result of their standardized test scores, stu-
programs, along with using suspensions, expulsions, dents are retained in grade, making them more
and referrals to alternative schools.206 These practices likely to drop out;210
are contemptible, but not surprising when one considers
that those educators’ future employment or salary may • Students are simply bored by the test-driven curri-
be determined by the results of a single test. cula and disrupt class, leading to removal from
school through punitive discipline; and
The upshot is that because of zero tolerance and high-
stakes testing policies, there is simply no academic safe- • Students are denied a diploma because of a high
ty net for many students. Instead, the existing incentive school exit exam.
structure encourages educators to allow huge numbers
of students to fall through the cracks of the school sys- Through a variety of means, the get-tough approaches to
tem.207 discipline and accountability can put students on a path
29
toward academic failure that is often difficult to interrupt tion rates.216 Twenty-four of those districts achieved dou-
and has devastating long-term consequences. ble-digit increases in their graduation rates, while only
four had double-digit drops during that period.217
The National Picture
From that point on, however, the trends have been in
Beyond the undeniably negative impact of zero tolerance the opposite direction. From 2002 until 2006, seventy-
and high-stakes testing policies on individual students, three of the 100 largest districts experienced declining
families, and schools, evidence of more widespread graduation rates.218 Seventeen of those districts expe-
systemic effects is accumulating rapidly. For example, rienced at least a double-digit drop in their graduation
recently-released data show that the nation’s graduation rates.219 Only two districts experienced a double-digit
rate in 2006 – 69% – was the lowest it has been since increase.220
before NCLB was passed.211 Of particular concern is
that the rates for Black and Latino students – 51% and Not only are these districts trending in the wrong direc-
55%, respectively – dropped significantly from 2005 to tion, their overall graduation rates are now shamefully
2006.212 Additionally, in 2008, the number of persons low. Only 10 of those 100 districts graduated even 80%
taking the GED test was at its highest level since before of their students in 2006.221 Sixty-seven out of 100 failed
NCLB.213 These are all strong indicators of a rampant to graduate two-thirds of their students, and twenty-five
student pushout problem. of the districts graduated less than half of their students.222
Thus, the national disgrace represented by these dismal
Focusing just on the 100 largest school districts in the graduation rates has gotten progressively worse during
country (for which there is now comparable graduation the NCLB years.
rate data for 1996 through 2006214) provides an even bet-
ter sense of the devastating effects recent policies have While these developments cannot be solely attributed
had on many communities.215 These large, mostly urban to zero tolerance and high-stakes testing, the impact of
districts together serve about 40% of the nation’s Black, “get-tough” policies do become apparent when examin-
Latino, and Native American students. While graduation ing individual states. There is a familiar pattern that has
rates in most of these districts were improving up until developed in many states in recent years: first, the im-
NCLB was signed into law, since then they have dete- plementation of greater “accountability” in the form of
riorated. high-stakes tests; followed by dramatic increases in the
use of zero-tolerance school discipline; then the appear-
From 1996 until 2002 (when NCLB was signed into law), ance of “collateral damage” such as more students being
sixty-eight of the 100 districts experienced rising gradua- enrolled in special education programs, more students
30
being retained in grade, more high school dropouts tak- those arrests and referrals were for misdemeanor offens-
ing the GED exam, and declining teacher morale; and fi- es,230 and the impact of these policies was particularly
nally, the pushout of huge numbers of students, exempli- severe for students of color.231
fied by plummeting or abysmally low graduation rates.
Florida’s high-stakes testing system has affected the edu-
While the most well-known example of testing and cation system in a variety of ways. For example, research
zero tolerance combining forces to push students out of has demonstrated that the use of high-stakes tests in Flor-
school happened during former U.S. President George ida led schools to classify more students as having dis-
W. Bush’s tenure as Governor (the so-called “Texas Mir- abilities to avoid having those students’ low scores affect
acle”223), the same pattern has been repeated elsewhere. overall school performance.232 Additionally, following
the 2002 passage of a state law requiring 3rd-graders
Florida to pass the state test before advancing to 4th grade, the
number of students retained in 3rd grade more than qua-
After campaigning on tough school accountability and drupled immediately, to more than 27,000 students.233
zero tolerance,224 Jeb Bush was elected Governor of The number of retained students is still more than twice
Florida in 1998 and immediately instituted a dramatic as high as it was prior to the law’s passage.234 In fact,
expansion of high-stakes standardized testing in Flori- holding so many students back may have itself contrib-
da’s public schools.225 The use of punitive school dis- uted to the rise in suspension rates.235
cipline proceeded to rise dramatically: from 1999-00
through 2003-04, the number of out-of-school suspen- Some other troubling indicators may also be the indirect
sions in Florida schools rose from 385,365 to 453,403, result of the high-stakes testing system. For example, a
an 18% increase.226 There was a clear link between the 2006 survey in Florida found that 52% of teachers re-
increased use of harsh discipline and the expansion of ported considering leaving the profession in the previous
the testing system, as research found that schools sus- year.236 Additionally, the number of Floridians who took
pended low-scoring students for longer periods around the GED test increased by 25% from 2003 to 2007.237
the time of the test.227
The end result of Florida’s education reforms is that by
During Bush’s tenure, the state also passed its highly pu- 2006 it had the fourth-lowest graduation rate of any state
nitive zero-tolerance law, and Florida became perhaps in the country at 57%.238 The graduation rates for Black
the most notorious state in the country for criminalizing and Latino students were even worse: 43% and 54%,
its students.228 For example, in 2004-05, over 28,000 respectively.239 Nevertheless, Governor Jeb Bush won
students were arrested and referred to the Florida De- national awards for his education reforms, and Florida’s
partment of Juvenile Justice.229 Sixty-three percent of policies have been cited as models for other states.240
31
North Carolina
North Carolina introduced high-stakes tests at the ele- reported spending more than 60% of their students’ time
mentary and middle school levels in 1996,241 and has practicing for tests.248 And schools have eliminated time
since developed a massive testing system.242 The conse- devoted to other subjects, such as social studies and sci-
quences riding on the results of these tests are extensive, ence, along with physical education and recess.249
including: grade promotion; student grades; monetary
awards for schools; monetary awards for staff; wheth- After the passage of NCLB, the pressure on teachers and
er schools are identified as “low performing”; whether students increased even more, with predictable results.
schools can be closed, have their accreditation revoked, The number of short-term suspensions (10 days or fewer)
or be taken over by the state; and whether school per- rose by 41% from 2000-01 to 2007-08.250 The increase
sonnel can be fired.243 in the number of long-term suspensions (more than 10
days) statewide was even more dramatic; from 1999-00
It was clear from the beginning that North Carolina to 2007-08, suspensions shot up by 135%.251 Also, as
teachers were aware of the negative effects of testing. mentioned above in Part Two, there were 16,499 refer-
For example, a 1998 survey of teachers found that 70% rals to the juvenile court from schools in 2008-09, and
did not believe the testing program would improve edu- the number of school resource officers across the state
cation in their schools, and many reported that their col- nearly doubled during the last decade, thus reinforcing
leagues had developed negative attitudes toward low- the punitive disciplinary approach to complement the
performing students.244 punitive testing approach.252 The effects of these policies
were felt by all students, but especially by students of
Students also immediately felt the effects of the new sys- color. For example, racial disparities in out-of-school sus-
tem. Following the introduction of high-stakes testing, pensions have worsened over time, such that by 2007-
the number of students retained in grade increased dra- 08, Black students were three-and-a-half times as likely
matically, from 44,504 in 1994-95 to 67,971 in 2001- as White students to be given a short-term suspension.253
02, an increase of 53%.245
As in Florida, there have been additional signs of pos-
Over time, North Carolina classrooms have changed sible collateral damage caused by North Carolina’s high-
dramatically. In fact, according to some experts, North stakes testing system. For example, the state found itself
Carolina “seems to be winning the race toward having in the midst of a teacher shortage, as nearly half of new
schooling be only about test preparation, with school teachers in the state were leaving the profession by the
days devoid of genuine instruction.”246 Survey results end of their fifth year.254 Additionally, the number of
found that 80% of elementary teachers reported spend- state residents who took the GED test increased by 12%
ing more than 20% of their total teaching time practicing from 2003 to 2007.255
for high-stakes tests.247 Moreover, 28% of those teachers
32
After 10 years of test-driven reforms in North Carolina, High-stakes testing has also had a profound effect on
the State’s 2006 graduation rate was 63%, the ninth Virginia’s teachers, as many reportedly responded to the
worst in the country, and the lowest it had been since new system by seeking early retirement, transferring to
2000.256 For Black and Latino students, graduation rates private schools, or transferring to grades that are not test-
were even worse – 45% and 50%, respectively.257 Of ed.264 Additionally, the number of Virginians who took
course, those rates only measure students who begin the GED jumped 40% from 2003 to 2007.265
ninth grade, and there is strong evidence indicating that
there are far more North Carolinians who never even Virginia’s graduation rate began to decline in 2003, as
make it to high school than there are in any other state. the testing system became increasingly punitive. By
Indeed, more than 40% of those who took the GED test 2006 it had reached 69%, which is the lowest gradua-
in 2007 had not made it past middle school, which is tion rate for the state since at least 1993 (the earliest data
over twice as many as the next highest state.258 maintained by Education Week).266 For Black and Latino
students, statewide graduation rates were 55% and 57%,
Nevertheless, North Carolina’s testing system has been respectively.267 Yet Virginia has continued to increase
honored as “the best in the country.”259 And in spite of the rigor of its testing system, so that students who now
the declining graduation rates, North Carolina has con- wish to receive a standard diploma are required to pass
tinued to make its testing system more demanding. For six end-of-course exams, while students getting an ad-
example, students graduating high school in 2010 will vanced diploma are required to pass nine such tests.268
be required to pass end-of-course exams in Algebra I,
English I, U.S. history, civics and economics, and biol- More research on the relationship between zero toler-
ogy.260 ance and high-stakes testing is necessary, but it is none-
theless clear that these policies are working hand-in-
Virginia hand to create an education system in which test scores
are dramatically over-valued and it is considered accept-
High-stakes testing began in Virginia in 1995, but the able to exclude hundreds of thousands of young people
test pressure on schools was repeatedly increased so that from schools every year. Nevertheless, other states con-
by 2003 it had one of the most punitive testing systems tinue to adopt these policies, putting even more commu-
in the country.261 Simultaneously, Virginia also passed nities on this devastating “race to the bottom” in which
a number of severe school discipline laws,262 and the the trend has been to promote policies that track stu-
use of zero-tolerance school discipline rose accordingly. dents to prison, rather than expanding opportunity for
From 2002-03 to 2006-07, the number of short-term sus- all young people.
pensions went up 17%, the number of long-term suspen-
sions increased by 29%, and expulsions rose by 39%.263
33
part five: community pushback
The educational opportunities of millions of children As described above, these spirals are interlocking, and
across this country are continuously put at risk by zero- combine to move us farther away from the democratic
tolerance school discipline and high-stakes testing. This purposes of education. In fact, given the many ways in
new brand of punitive educational policy has brought which zero tolerance and high-stakes testing create un-
students of all races, in all 50 states, perilously close to healthy or even toxic learning environments, it is rea-
being high school dropouts and/or entering the juvenile sonable to ask how policymakers can expect students
and criminal justice systems. This is especially true for and educators to continually subject themselves to such
students of color and low-income students, who, too of- conditions.
ten, are being punished for losing a race in which their
peers were given a head start. Four key actions must be taken to address the problems
of zero tolerance and high-stakes testing and create sus-
To be clear, nothing in this report is meant to suggest tainable educational justice in our schools.These efforts
that violence and disruptive behavior are not real prob- require implementation of reforms at the local, state,
lems in schools, nor that public schools should not be and federal levels, including through the reauthoriza-
held accountable for their performance. On the con- tion process of the No Child Left Behind Act and the
trary, it is undeniable that many schools are plagued by implementation of the American Recovery & Reinvest-
unhealthy learning environments, and the public has a ment Act of 2009 (the “stimulus”). Fortunately, over the
right to know how schools are educating their children. last few years there has been a groundswell of grassroots
However, current efforts to address these challenges – advocacy for educational justice. Parents, students, and
namely, zero tolerance and high-stakes testing – have community leaders have educated policymakers on the
been misguided, resulting in: destructive impact of punitive education policies. To
their credit, many school districts and legislators have re-
• A downward spiral of punitive treatment and sponded to this community pressure and recognized the
alienation of students; and need for changing the policies and practices that have
led to student pushout and unhealthy learning environ-
• A downward spiral of measurement and assessments. Together, grassroots advocates and policymakers
ment that suffocates high-quality teaching and have worked hand-in-hand to forge a brighter future to-
learning. gether. This report highlights several promising changes.
ACTION ITEM ONE:

Create more caring and supportive learning environments for students by eliminating policies and practices that un-
necessarily push students out of school through the use of suspensions, expulsions, referrals to alternative schools,
referrals to law enforcement, and school-based arrests.
While zero-tolerance school discipline has not improved efforts had led to a 63% reduction in referrals to law
school safety or student behavior, there are a number of enforcement within Denver Public Schools, and a 43%
alternative prevention and intervention strategies being reduction in the use of out-of-school suspensions.272
implemented around the country that have been proven
successful.269 Los Angeles, California
Denver, Colorado Advocates and parents from Community Asset Devel-

opment Re-Defining Education (CADRE)273 have been
Since 2003, the parents, students, and community or- working to change the culture of discipline in the Los
ganizers at Padres y Jovenes Unidos,270 with assistance Angeles Unified School District from one of over-punish-
from Advancement Project, have led a campaign to ment to one that is based on student support and preven-
change disciplinary policies and practices within Den- tive discipline. In 2007, they were successful in getting
ver Public Schools. After years of organizing, research, passed a district-wide school discipline policy designed
public education, and advocacy, they convinced the to provide teachers, administrators, students, and parents
district to collaborate on the creation of new discipline the resources they need to prevent misbehavior from oc-
policies that eliminate the unnecessary suspension, ex- curring, and to resolve problems that arise, as much as
pulsion, and ticketing of students. The revised policies possible, without removing students from the classroom.
– drafted by a working group of teachers, principals, The new policy, based on Positive Behavioral Interven-
parents, community members, and staff from Padres y tions & Supports (PBIS), a research-based alternative to
Jovenes Unidos and Advancement Project – were imple- zero tolerance, is structured so that all district schools
mented at the beginning of the 2008-09 school year, and will have the support and tools to implement tailored,
include the following significant changes: site-based discipline plans that include the following
strategies:
• School officials are directed to handle minor acts
of misconduct within the school setting; • Teaching, modeling, and reinforcing appropriate
behaviors;
• Students may only be suspended out-of-school,
expelled, or referred to the police for serious mis • Involving all stakeholders, especially parents, in
conduct; collaborative and early intervention to de-escalate
inappropriate behaviors;
• Schools are required to eliminate racial disparities
in discipline; • Supporting students’ needs and addressing root
causes of misbehavior;
• The due process rights of parents and students are
clarified and expanded; and • Setting up consequences that are fair, age appro-
priate, and match the conduct being addressed;
• Individual schools and the district are required to and
report discipline data.
• Utilizing alternatives to suspensions and trans-
Padres y Jovenes Unidos and Advancement Project have fers.274
also worked with the school district to implement re-
storative justice programs – which are alternatives to Connecticut
zero tolerance that focus on developing community and
managing conflict by repairing harm and restoring re- In 2006-07, Connecticut students lost over 250,000 days
lationships271 – in middle and high schools across the of class time due to out-of-school suspensions, mostly
district. for low-level “school policy violations.”275 This affected
Black and Latino students in particular, as they were four-
Even before full implementation of the new discipline and-a-half and three times as likely, respectively, to be
policies and practices, the organizing and advocacy suspended out-of-school as their White peers.276 How-
35
ever, in 2007, the Connecticut state legislature passed c. Ensure that students are provided academic
a law intended to limit the use of out-of-school suspen- work during suspension periods and are not
sions. Though the law has not yet been implemented, it penalized academically for suspensions.
would require all student suspensions to automatically d. Limit the use of suspensions for conduct that
be in-school suspensions rather than out-of-school sus- occurs away from school.
pensions unless it is determined that the student poses e. Substitute in-school suspensions for out-of-
“such a danger to people or property, or causes such a school suspensions.
disruption of the educational process” that out-of-school f. Implement programs that are alternatives to
suspension is necessary.277 zero tolerance, such as restorative justice or
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports
Indiana (PBIS).284
g. Use data to develop alternative programs
Following years of research and advocacy around the de- tailored to the disciplinary issues that exist.
structive impact of zero tolerance on Indiana schools,278 (4) Hold school officials accountable for reducing the
in May 2009 the state legislature passed a law requiring use of out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, referrals
school districts to work with parents to develop disci- to alternative schools, referrals to law enforcement, and
plinary policies and practices that utilize positive behav- school-based arrests, such as by including such indicators
ioral supports, mental health services, and alternatives to in their evaluations.
punitive disciplinary measures. It also requires extensive (5) Hold school officials accountable for eliminating ra-
data collection, review, and reporting.279 cial disparities in disciplinary measures for students of
color, such as by including such indicators in their evalu-
*** ations.
a. Additionally, cultural competency training
Additionally, just within the last two years, there have should be made mandatory where racial dis-
been community-led discipline reform campaigns in parities exist.
the New Orleans Recovery School District,280 a ma- (6) Increase or divert funding for more guidance coun-
jor suspension-reduction program in Milwaukee Public selors, social workers, and school psychologists who are
Schools,281 and new regulations passed in Pennsylvania available to address students’ academic and behavioral
that require more supportive discipline of students with issues.
disabilities.282 Baltimore City Public Schools has also (7) Expand teacher training and professional development
adopted a new discipline policy – as a result of advocacy on classroom management, conflict resolution, disciplin-
by the Open Society Institute-Baltimore and its partners, ary alternatives, and student engagement through chal-
including Advancement Project – that produced 39% lenging and culturally relevant curricula.
fewer out-of-school suspensions in 2008-09 than just a. For example, the American Federation of
two years earlier.283 School Administrators supports the inclusion
of conflict resolution training in the certifica-
Specific Recommendations tion process of school administrators.285
(8) Emphasize the protection of parents’/guardians’ and
(1) At the local level, create working groups of stake- students’ due process rights during disciplinary proceed-
holders within the community – including parents, stu- ings, especially around parental notification, disciplinary
dents, teachers, principals, and other community mem- hearings, and appeals processes.
bers – to craft school discipline policies and alternatives (9) Collect and report school discipline data, including
that meet the community’s needs. referrals to law enforcement and school-based arrests, dis-
(2) Limit the use of expulsions, referrals to alternative aggregated by offense, age, gender, grade, race, ethnicity,
schools, referrals to law enforcement, and school-based disability, school, teacher/school staff, and disposition.
arrests to conduct that poses a serious, ongoing threat to (10) Establish school discipline oversight committees,
the safety of students and staff. which would include school personnel, parents, students,
(3) Limit out-of-school suspensions to serious miscon- and interested community members. The responsibili-
duct or to when low-level misconduct has become ha- ties of these committees could include: handling com-
bitual. plaints about school discipline practices; handling com-
a. Use a graduated approach to assigning con- plaints about the conduct of security and police officers;
sequences. reviewing discipline and arrest statistics; and evaluating
b. Place caps on the duration of suspensions, the school district’s efforts to maintain safety in a fair and
especially for low-level infractions. nondiscriminatory manner.
36
ACTION ITEM TWO:

Limit the involvement of law enforcement and security personnel in schools to conduct that poses a serious, ongoing
threat to the safety of students or staff.
A number of communities are pushing back on the Florida legislature amended the state’s zero-tolerance
criminalization of students by limiting the role of law law in April 2009. The new law is designed to cut down
enforcement personnel within schools and adopting al- on expulsions and referrals of students to law enforce-
ternative methods of addressing student behavior. ment and, instead, encourage schools to use alternatives
such as restorative justice.290 Even before the law had
Clayton County, Georgia taken effect, the years of advocacy on the issue of ex-
cessive school-based arrests has resulted in nearly 7,000
Over the last several years, Clayton County, Georgia has fewer referrals to the state Department of Juvenile Justice
made substantial progress in reducing the number of from schools in just three years, a 24% reduction.291
students being sent from schools to the juvenile justice
system. This improvement resulted from collaboration San Francisco, California
among members of the juvenile justice system, law en-
forcement, the local school system, and social services In response to advocacy by organizations such as La
groups. They adopted a cooperative agreement aimed at Raza Centro Legal and Legal Services for Children,292
limiting the number of school referrals to juvenile court San Francisco Unified School District changed their pol-
and reducing the disproportionate contact students of icy on law enforcement within schools because it recog-
color have with school discipline and the juvenile jus- nized “the serious potential consequences for youth of
tice system. juvenile court involvement” and wanted to avoid “un-
necessary criminalization” of its students.293 The policy
Consequently, there has been a 47% reduction in ju- limits police involvement to situations where it is: neces-
venile court referrals from schools in just three years. sary to protect the physical safety of students and staff;
The biggest drops have been for misdemeanor offenses required by law; or appropriate to address criminal be-
like fighting, disruption, and disorderly conduct to the havior of persons other than students.294 The policy also
juvenile court, and the referrals of Black students, in states that “[p]olice involvement should not be requested
particular, have decreased dramatically. There has also in a situation that can be safely and appropriately han-
been significant improvement in the relationships be- dled by the District’s internal disciplinary procedures”
tween police officers and students, and graduation rates and that “[d]isproportionate use of police intervention
in Clayton County have improved by 20% since 2004.286 in inappropriate situations shall be cause for corrective
action by the District.”295
Clayton County’s reforms have already served as a model
for Birmingham, Alabama, which has instituted a similar Additionally, there are many examples of schools that
effort to reduce the referrals of students – and especially are taking a different approach to building a safe learn-
students of color – to the juvenile court after minor in- ing environment. For example, North Lawndale College
cidents.287 Prep High School, located on the west side of Chicago,
diverted funding previously spent on metal detectors
Florida and security guards and instead hired counselors and
social workers.296 Students teach each other alternatives
Since 2005, the Florida State Conference of the to violence, and are expected to intervene if an alterca-
NAACP,288 in partnership with Advancement Project, tion occurs.297
has been working to eliminate Florida’s school-to-prison
pipeline. The NAACP and Advancement Project, along District of Columbia Public Schools has also been ex-
with the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, ploring alternative approaches. The Chancellor has con-
Inc., held a series of public hearings throughout the state sidered reducing school security staff, saying that stu-
to discuss the issue and call for reform. After publishing dents feel less safe in schools filled with armed guards.298
the findings,289 the NAACP and Advancement Project In her view, resources are better spent on peer mediation
worked with superintendents and senior staff from six and conflict management programs.299
large, urban school districts across the state to develop
solutions to the problems that had been identified. Specific Recommendations
Additionally, following advocacy by the NAACP, Ad- (1) Provide resources for the formation of local councils
vancement Project, and other allies at the state level, the comprised of parents, youth, and representatives from
37
school systems, juvenile courts, law enforcement agen- contingent on the reduction of racial disparities.
cies, social service agencies, and non-profit community a. Additionally, cultural competency training
organizations that would be charged with developing should be made mandatory where there are
comprehensive strategies for addressing the school-to- racial disparities.
prison pipeline in particular communities. The coun- (5) Reduce the use of school resource officers, security
cils should consider whether reallocation of resources guards, and security equipment within schools.
across agencies and programs would help reduce the a. Divert funding used for law enforcement and
over-criminalization and pushout of youth. security infrastructure to proven prevention
(2) Clarify the roles and responsibilities of school police and intervention programs like restorative
through a memorandum of understanding between the justice and other educational purposes, such
school district and police department. as additional guidance counselors, social
a. Limit police involvement to felony offenses workers, and school psychologists.
that pose an ongoing, serious threat to the (6) Train school staff and school resource officers on the
safety of students or staff. consequences of an arrest.
b. Require that school resource officers receive (7) Develop cooperative agreements between schools,
training on child and adolescent develop- juvenile courts, and local law enforcement agencies to
ment, conflict resolution, cultural compe- reduce the number of students who enter the juvenile
tence, and restorative justice. justice system for school-based offenses.
(3) Hold law enforcement officials accountable for re- (8) Increase communication with, and utilization of, so-
ducing the use of school-based arrests for school disci- cial service organizations, diversion programs, and other
plinary matters, such as by making funding for school- programs that are alternatives to school-based arrests.
based law enforcement contingent on reductions in (9) Collect and report data on referrals to law enforce-
arrests. ment and school-based arrests, disaggregated by offense,
(4) Hold law enforcement officials accountable for elim- age, gender, grade, race, ethnicity, disability, school, of-
inating racial disparities in school-based arrests, such as ficer, and disposition.
by making funding for school-based law enforcement
38
ACTION ITEM THREE:
Replace high-stakes testing with policies that will encourage schools to keep students in the learning environment and
develop enriched curricula that are engaging and intellectually challenging, ensure deep understanding of content, and
are focused on authentic achievement.
There are several proven strategies for avoiding the per- have developed a rigorous accountability system that is
verse incentives around high-stakes testing and making structured around high-level student learning, not stan-
school accountability more meaningful. For example, dardized tests.
research has found that states that use multiple-measure
assessment systems rather than systems based solely on New Jersey
test scores have improved instruction as well as student
performance.300 Research has also demonstrated that In 2008, after a year-long campaign by advocates and
portfolio and performance assessments are better able stakeholders, the New Jersey State Board of Education
to evaluate higher-order skills, like critical thinking, that passed a resolution to retain and reform the Special
are not adequately measured on multiple-choice and Review Assessment, the alternative high school assess-
short answer tests.301 Such systems can incorporate ment used in recent years by about 12% of New Jersey
more authentic tasks like extended writing assignments, students to earn a high school diploma (and which has
scientific inquiries, and in-depth research projects that contributed to New Jersey having the highest graduation
require planning, data collection, and analysis.302 These rate in the country).309 The Board’s action was a victory
assessments also encourage teachers to learn and use for efforts to keep multiple measures and alternative as-
formative assessment strategies, which have been shown sessments as part of New Jersey graduation and assess-
to offer a particularly powerful means of improving stu- ment policies, and not rely solely on standardized tests
dent learning, especially for low-performing schools.303 to make those decisions.310 Research demonstrated that
In contrast to states that rely solely on tests, states using preserving this additional pathway to graduation will
these types of multiple-measure approaches have also have positive effects on the state’s high school gradua-
experienced stable or increasing graduation rates.304 tion rates, especially for students of color, English lan-
guage learners, and immigrant students.311
Many jurisdictions have successfully implemented such
approaches, eliminating the over-reliance on standard- Florida
ized tests and ending the policies and practices contrib-
uting to student pushout. After many years of advocacy around the impact high-
stakes testing was having on Florida schools, in 2008,
New York the state passed a new law that changes the school ac-
countability system to put less emphasis on standardized
After an eight-year struggle against high-stakes testing test results and more on graduation rates and preparing
and the impact it was having on the educational pro- students for college.312 Schools are also to be assessed
cess, in 2005, a coalition of 40 high schools in New on the graduation rates for students who have previously
York State received an exemption for their students from scored poorly on standardized tests, thus decreasing the
the required battery of graduation exams.305 The group, incentive to push struggling students out of school.313
called the New York Performance Standards Consortium,
regards assessment as a complex, whole-school based Miami, Florida
accountability system that should be based on active
learning, a focus on professional development for teach- After extensive advocacy around the issues of zero-tol-
ers, and the provision of multiple ways for students to erance school discipline and low graduation rates, the
express and exhibit learning.306 Miami-Dade County Public Schools adopted an ac-
countability system that took account of these problems.
In these schools, each student must produce an analytic Under this system, the performance of school principals
literary essay, a social studies research paper, an origi- is based, in part, on progress in reducing the use of harsh
nal science experiment with an oral defense of research disciplinary measures like suspensions and improving
findings, and a real-life application of higher-level math- graduation rates.314 This creates incentives for schools to
ematics.307 Assessments of students’ work are done by take additional steps to keep students within the learning
teachers and by external evaluators, who also evaluate environment as much as possible.
the schools’ overall progress.308 Overall, these schools
39
Specific Recommendations well as their performance in relation to pre-

determined levels of academic proficiency.
(1) Design accountability systems that are aligned with f. Assessment systems should be valid and ap
the recommendations of the Forum for Education and propriate for a diverse student population,
Democracy315 and the Forum on Educational Account- including English-language learners and stu-
ability.316 dents with disabilities.
a. Accountability in public schooling should g. Decrease the testing burden on states,
flow in two ways: local, state, and federal schools, and districts by allowing states to as-
education policymakers should be held ac- sess students annually in selected grades in
countable for providing equitable, high-qual- elementary, middle, and high schools.
ity learning conditions for every student, and h. School-level interventions should be nar-
schools should be held accountable for stu- rowly tailored to meet clearly identified
dent growth and academic success. needs.
b. Provide a comprehensive picture of students’ i. Fund research and development of more ef-
and schools’ performance by using multiple fective accountability systems that better meet
indicators of student learning and school the goal of supporting high-quality learning
progress, across all subject areas. These for all children.
indicators should rely on classroom-based (2) Evaluate academic achievement based on the entire
evidence and actual student performances, cohort of students who entered school together, to avoid
and assess qualitative factors as well as quan- any incentive to retain students in grade and artificially
titative evidence (while still being disag- boost achievement levels.
gregated by race, ethnicity, gender, special (3) Ensure that accountability systems do not encourage
education, and English-language learner sta- the pushout of students by making the improvement of
tus). For example, as suggested by the graduation rates a significant factor.
Broader, Bolder Approach to Education Cam- a. The target graduation rates must be set at a
paign, states should institute an inspection reasonable level, with either excellent perfor-
program where well-trained experts visit mance or steady improvement required over
schools periodically to assess the many char- time.
acteristics of education that cannot be mea- b. Graduation rates should be disaggregated
sured on a standardized test.317 on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, special
c. Where standardized measures of student education, and English language learner sta-
success are utilized, they should not be used tus, so that school improvement benefits all
in isolation, or as final determinants of stu- students.
dent advancement or school-level interven- c. Consider following the lead of Florida and as-
tions. sessing schools and districts on the basis of
d. Standardized tests should be formative and graduation rates for students who have previ-
not punitive, meaning they should be used to ously scored poorly on standardized tests.
provide useful diagnostic information to (4) Hold schools accountable for reducing the use, or
improve teaching and learning, not to punish maintaining a low level of out-of-school suspensions,
low performers. expulsions, referrals to alternative schools, referrals to
e. Allow schools and districts to measure prog- law enforcement, and school-based arrests.
ress by using students’ learning progress as
40
ACTION ITEM FOUR:

Ensure that every student is provided a high-quality pre-K-12 education that includes a full and equal opportunity
to fulfill their potential, achieve their goals, improve the quality of their lives, become thoughtful and engaged demo-
cratic citizens, and become life-long learners.
Grassroots organizations around the country are taking (3) At the local and state levels, create Opportunity to
a stand against educational inequities and are working Learn Commissions, which would include parents, stu-
to ensure that students of color and low-income students dents, teachers, and other stakeholders in the commu-
have the same high-quality opportunities as their peers. nity. These commissions would be charged with identify-
ing and presenting recommendations to address policies
Los Angeles, California and practices that are leading to inequitable educational
opportunities for students, especially students of color,
A city-wide alliance of around 30 organizations called low-income students, English language learners, stu-
Communities for Educational Equity (CEE) – which in- dents with disabilities, and any other students that have
cluded youth-based organizations such as InnerCity been historically under-served. Special attention should
Struggle318 and Community Coalition319 – came together be paid to:
in Los Angeles to address the inequitable access to a a. Inequitable resource distribution (including
high-quality curriculum that prepares students for col- funding, as well as access to high-quality
lege and desirable jobs.320 The campaign galvanized school buildings and learning materials)
students, parents, and the broader community, and in among and within schools;
2005, they were successful in getting a school district b. Access to a rich, engaging, culturally rel-
policy passed that would provide all high school stu- evant, and college-preparatory curriculum;
dents access to a college preparatory curriculum.321 c. School disciplinary policies and practices;
d. The impact of high-stakes testing on teaching
Alexandria, Virginia and learning;
e. Academic tracking of students of color and
Tenants and Workers United (TWU)322 has been work- low-income students into low-level classes;
ing for several years to address inequitable educational f. English language acquisition programs that
opportunities provided to students of color and low-in- fail to provide both high-level language in-
come students within Alexandria City Public Schools. In struction and high-level academic content;
partnership with Advancement Project, TWU proposed g. Special education programs that fail to meet
implementation of “Personalized Educational Action students’ identified needs;
Plans,” under which every student would have an in- h. Under- and over-identification of students of
dividualized course of study to meet his or her goals. color and low-income students in special
These plans would: provide individualized attention to education programs;
students, ensure all students have access to high-level i. Excessive retention of students in grade;
academic opportunities, create a better academic “safe- j. Inequitable distribution of experienced and
ty net” for struggling students, and improve collabora- effective teachers;
tion among students, staff, and parents. After several k. Underrepresentation of students of color and
years of advocacy, the district is currently working with low-income students in high-level academic
TWU and Advancement Project to implement their rec- programs like Talented and Gifted programs
ommendations.323 and Advanced Placement classes;
l. Insufficient provision of academic supports
and information necessary to prepare stu-
Specific Recommendations
dents for higher education and careers;
m.Overcrowded classrooms and schools;
(1) Make high-quality public education the civil right of
n. Inadequate academic “safety nets” for stu-
every child.
dents who are struggling academically; and
(2) Address our “education debt”324 by eliminating the
o. Out-of-school factors such as comprehensive
country’s historic inequities in educational and econom-
health care, housing, employment, and com-
ic opportunities and ensuring that schools have sufficient
munity safety.
resources to provide high-quality learning experiences
(4) As recommended by the Forum on Educational Ac-
to every child. Equal outcomes cannot be expected from
countability and the Schott Foundation for Public Edu-
schools without making the resources they are provided
cation, create comprehensive indicator systems at the
more equitable,325 and stellar performance cannot be
state and federal level to provide evidence on a range
expected without sufficient investment.
41
of school factors such as those listed above in #3, along a. Invest in parent, family, and community en-
with; the distribution of school staff; class size; material gagement in schools, and enforce existing
resources; school climate; opportunities for parental en- laws (such as Title I of the Elementary and
gagement; learning outcomes; college readiness, enroll- Secondary Education Act) that require
ment, and progress; employment; and civic participa- schools and districts to involve parents, fami-
tion. This information should be reported publicly, and lies, and communities in school policy-mak-
should be used to develop strategies for overcoming any ing.
identified inequities and deficiencies.326 (8) Implement reforms aligned with those suggested by
(5) As suggested by the Forum for Education and De- the Broader, Bolder Approach to Education Campaign.328
mocracy, invest in a new “Marshall Plan” for teachers a. Provide developmentally appropriate and
and school leaders that will ensure there are educators high-quality early childhood, pre-school, and
who are well-prepared to effectively provide a high- kindergarten care and education to all chil-
quality education to diverse learners and foster a sup- dren.
portive learning environment in every classroom and b. Address children’s health, including routine
every school.327 pediatric, dental, hearing, and vision care for
(6) Work with all students and their parents/guardians all infants, toddlers, and schoolchildren,
to create personalized learning plans that ensure that through means such as full-service school
every student is provided individualized attention, has clinics.
access to a college-preparatory curriculum, is encour- c. Improve the quality of students’ out-of-school
aged to achieve their goals and fulfill their potential, and time by increasing investments in community
receives timely support if they encounter academic dif- schools and other after-school and summer
ficulties. programs.329
(7) Place increased emphasis on providing meaning-
ful opportunities for students, parents, families, and
communities to engage in school decision-making and
school improvement activities.
42
conclusion
Too many students – and far too many students of color treatment and racial biases. Together, schools and their
– are leaving our nation’s public schools without a diplo- communities must work to ensure that all students have
ma. Instead of designing our schools to meet the needs an educational environment in which they can feel safe,
of students, policymakers have implemented a series of cared for, and respected at the same time.
zero-tolerance and high-stakes testing policies that pun-
ish students and schools in the vain hope that they will So, too, must high-stakes testing, which has impover-
“shape up.” It is time to stop. After years of devastation ished the educational experiences of so many students
caused by these policies, we should have learned that and teachers, be ended. Educating a child must include
the solution is not to be “tough” on crime and schools, more than what is on standardized tests, and qual-
but to be smart. ity teaching must extend beyond endless drills and test
preparation. Student assessment should not contribute
We must not allow zero tolerance and high-stakes testing to the school-to-prison pipeline, and thus the “test-and-
to continue to pit students and families against teachers punish” approach must be replaced with systems that
and administrators, eroding the trust that is at the very provide more enriching instruction for every student and
heart of good schooling. By placing students, parents, more meaningful accountability for every school. The
educators, and law enforcement in adversarial positions, failure to do so would truly be “high-stakes,” bringing
these policies reinforce the “us vs. them” pathology in into question our nation’s ability to develop the engaged
which each group feels undervalued and under-respect- citizens necessary to sustain our democracy.
ed and blames the others. The reality, of course, is that
everyone has a stake in, and a responsibility toward, the We must move beyond the use of these policies that
success of our schools. Yet because of zero tolerance and have transformed schools into hostile environments for
high-stakes testing, it has become increasingly difficult youth, unnecessarily limiting their educational and ca-
for schools and communities to come together in pursuit reer opportunities. Just as President Obama has said that
of the same goals. “this country needs . . . the talents of every American”
and dropping out of school is not an option,330 so, too,
Thus the school-to-prison pipeline, which makes the should pushing students out of school through zero-tol-
journey through school increasingly punitive and isolat- erance school discipline and high-stakes testing not be
ing for its travelers, must be eliminated. Young people an option.
must be given the opportunities and provided the skills
to correct problematic behavior. Because of zero toler- There is no easy answer to our nation’s abysmal gradu-
ance, rather than being included in their community, ation rates, but the one thing that absolutely must hap-
students are being alienated from it. While there has pen for this problem to be solved is for every student to
been progress over the past few years in reducing the be given a full and equal opportunity to receive a high-
criminalization of students in many communities, in oth- quality education. The solution has to start there. We
ers, the problems continue to worsen. Schools must as- must eliminate the use of education policies that treat
sess whether harsh accountability systems are lowering students as if they are disposable, and, instead, make a
their tolerance for students and whether racial dispari- smart, long-term investment in our youth by creating a
ties in school discipline are the result of discriminatory more just educational system for all children.
ENDNOTES
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About Us

Advancement Project is an innovative civil rights law, policy, and

Advancement Project was founded in 1999 in Los Angeles and

We create change by:

• Promoting and supporting coalitions and organizations that bridge

• Effecting reform of public institutions responsible for providing

• PART ONE: HOW WE GOT HERE 9

• PART TWO: ZERO TOLERANCE CIRCA 2009 13

• PART THREE: HIGH-STAKES TESTING CIRCA 2009 25

• PART FOUR: WORKING IN TANDEM TO PUSH

• PART FIVE: COMMUNITY PUSHBACK 34

*** This report is intended to provide an overview of zero-

Third, in order for this competitive approach to avoid

Some Arresting Data

Illinois • In California, the number of suspensions in-

Rising Stakes In short, the number of educators whose very livelihood

ACTION ITEM ONE:

Denver, Colorado Advocates and parents from Community Asset Devel-

ACTION ITEM TWO:

ACTION ITEM THREE:

Specific Recommendations well as their performance in relation to pre-

ACTION ITEM FOUR:

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