Intra-District Student Mobility, School Discipline and Gender: Evidence from Clark County, Nevada

Format

Individual Presentation

Presenters

Richard Welsh, UGAFollow

First Presenter's Institution

University of Georgia

Second Presenter's Institution

NA

Third Presenter's Institution

NA

Fourth Presenter's Institution

NA

Fifth Presenter's Institution

NA

Location

Harborside East & West

Strand #1

Academic Achievement & School Leadership

Strand #2

Safety & Violence Prevention

Relevance

This study fits neatly at the intersection of the “Head” and “Hands” strands given the focus on student mobility related to school discipline. The empirical analysis examines the role gender plays in predicting the patterns of assignment to alternative schools due to disciplinary reasons. The focus on the often overlooked student mobility associated with alternative schools aligns well with the theme of the “Head” strand. The overarching focus on school discipline issues fits well with the “Hands” strand.

Brief Program Description

This paper evaluates the relationship between student mobility and school discipline by analyzing patterns of student mobility across gender and the timing of school changes within the Clark County School District (CCSD)

Summary

Student mobility, or the movement of students across schools, is a widespread phenomenon in the U.S. School discipline provides an important example of school policies and practices that may induce student mobility. Student mobility and school discipline are two prominent challenges in urban school districts. The interaction of gender with school discipline in shaping patterns of student mobility has received little attention. School discipline is a central mechanism for school-initiated student mobility and may play an important role in explaining differences in student mobility patterns between different student subgroups. Examining the relationship between school discipline policies and student mobility is salient and timely as policymakers at the local, state and federal level rethink the use of exclusionary discipline practices. A better understanding of the relationship among the extent and nature of discipline-related mobility, the timing of school changes and the gender of mobile students may offer insights on why mobility affects different students in different ways and can help policymakers shape appropriate solutions.

This paper examines student mobility patterns across gender and the timing of school changes in Clark County, Nevada. Using student-level data from 2007-08 through to 2012-13, this study compares the exit patterns and examines the destination schools of male and female mobile students categorized by the timing of non-structural school changes and discipline-related mobility in CCSD. The findings draw attention to discipline-related mobility or the placement of students in alternative schools, especially during the school year. Male students are more likely to switch schools mid-year than female students and the disproportionate rates of student mobility between male and female students can be explained by disciplinary incidents. Gender is a significant predictor of the destination school quality of discipline-related movers. Policy implications and areas for future research are discussed.

Evidence

The empirical analysis consists of two parts: an exit analysis and a destination analysis. First, this paper examines the probability of a student making a non-structural and discipline-related school changes based on the gender of the student, students’ demographic and achievement characteristics and the characteristics of the school they exit. Second, this study investigates the role of the quality of origin schools and students’ gender and other characteristics in predicting the quality of the destination schools of non-structural movers across the different timing of school changes as well as discipline-related moves.Non-structural movers are categorized by the timing of school changes and school-initiated student mobility due to disciplinary reasons is also differentiated. Discipline-related mobility is classified as all school changes to and from behavior or continuation schools or juvenile detention centers. The data on school discipline is as reported by the schools.

In order to examine the relationship between exiting patterns and student and school characteristics, I use a linear probability model. To evaluate whether students are switching to higher quality schools, I use a multinomial framework to predict the quality of the destination school for non-structural movers and discipline-related movers.

Biographical Sketch

Richard O. Welsh is an Assistant Professor in the Program of Educational Administration and Policy. Dr. Welsh specializes in the economics of education and K-12 education policy. His research interests entail examining school choice policies such as the portfolio management model and key mechanisms such as student mobility using quasi-experimental methods.

Keyword Descriptors

Student mobility, School discipline, Educational equity

Presentation Year

2017

Start Date

3-7-2017 4:00 PM

End Date

3-7-2017 5:30 PM

Recommended Citation

Welsh, Richard, "Intra-District Student Mobility, School Discipline and Gender: Evidence from Clark County, Nevada" (2017). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 118.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2017/2017/118