Date of Conferral
2023
Degree
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
School
Education
Advisor
Terri Edwards
Abstract
Schools have reported disparities in the use of discipline on a nationwide scale. The problem for this study was that early childhood teachers referred Black students for disciplinary action or exclusionary discipline at higher rates than their peers.The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore early childhood teachers’ perspectives of referring Black students for disciplinary action. Weinstein, Curran, and Tomlinson-Clarke’s model of culturally responsive classroom management formed the conceptual framework that guided this study. The research question focused on teacher perspectives about referring Black students for disciplinary action. A basic qualitative design was used to capture the insights of 10 early childhood teachers through semistructured interviews conducted by telephone; a purposeful sampling process was used to select the participants. The criteria for participation were teachers who have taught racially mixed groups of kindergarten through third grade students and who were familiar with the discipline process. Emergent themes were identified through open and axial coding, and the findings were developed and checked for trustworthiness through member checking, rich descriptions, and researcher reflexivity. The findings revealed that (a) cultural awareness can mitigate discipline disparities, (b) diverse faculty members help mitigate discipline disparities, (c) teacher intervention can positively influence student behaviors, and (d) student home life can influence behavior. This study has implications for positive social change by cultivating a professional development approach to address the specific needs of a school population.
Recommended Citation
Johnson, Adriuna, "Early Childhood Teachers’ Perspectives on Referring Black Students for Disciplinary Action" (2023). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 11727.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/11727
