Racial disproportions in a North Carolina exceptional children's program : a case study

WCU Author/Contributor (non-WCU co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Kieran Danielle Foxx (Creator)
Institution
Western Carolina University (WCU )
Web Site: http://library.wcu.edu/
Advisor
Candace Boan-Lenzo

Abstract: For several decades research has documented the overrepresentation of minorities in special education programs. The public school system in Wayne County, North Carolina, has been plagued by accusations of racial inequality, such as segregation of school district lines to seclude children in the Goldsboro City district which is within the Wayne County school system and primarily African American, from attending schools in higher- SES districts, where the children are primarily white. Even though the racial inequity has been identified with regard to the school district lines, researchers have not explored additional acts of racial inequality in the public school system of Wayne County. This study compared the racial composition of children in the Wayne County special education program and their eligibility categories to the racial composition of the entire Wayne County Public School student population to identify any potential issues of minority overrepresentation in their special education program. Chi square analyses revealed statistically significant results with African American students being the most overrepresented minority group in the analyzed high-incidence special education categories, such as mild intellectual disability, moderate intellectual disability, serious emotional disturbance, and specific learning disability. They were also overrepresented in the category of severe intellectual disability. Implications of these results for the county as they try to unravel possible discriminatory practices and policies that result in unequal education experiences will be discussed.

Additional Information

Publication
Thesis
Language: English
Date: 2013
Keywords
disproportionality, ethnicity, minority, overrepresentation, race, special education
Subjects
Minorities -- Education -- North Carolina -- Wayne County -- Case studies
Discrimination in education -- North Carolina -- Wayne County -- Case studies
Special education -- North Carolina -- Wayne County -- Case studies

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