Understanding Academic Achievement and Exclusionary Discipline: The Role of Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Sex Over Time
Type
Prior research indicates that Black students and students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to receive exclusionary discipline and are at risk of low academic achievement. However, the association between academic achievement and exclusionary discipline over time is not as well understood. With data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, the study uses structural equation modeling to investigate the relationship between exclusionary discipline and academic achievement over time and the predictive roles of race, socioeconomic status, and sex in these domains. Results indicate that Black children and children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds were more likely to receive exclusionary discipline and to have lower academic achievement when they were nine years old. Academic achievement at age nine was positively associated with academic achievement at age 15 and negatively associated with receiving exclusionary discipline at age 15. Similarly, receiving exclusionary discipline at age nine was predictive of low academic achievement at age 15 and a heightened risk of receiving exclusionary discipline at age 15. This study highlights disparities that exist in exclusionary discipline and academic achievement both in the short and long-term. More research is needed to address opportunity, discipline, and academic achievement gaps experienced by racially and economically marginalized children to ensure all can realize their full potential.