Information Briefs

NEW RESOURCE
School Violence: Gauging its Pervasiveness and Assessing the Policy Response
Gail Sunderman and Alex Payne. June 2009

The public perception that school violence is pervasive or increasing is not supported by the evidence.  These perceptions often drive school policy, and have led to an increase in the use of “zero tolerance” policies.  To understand the reality of school violence, MAEC prepared this information brief.  It reviews available data to understand the nature and extent of school violence and summaries the literature on the consequences of zero tolerance policies, particularly for minority students. It identifies other school disciplinary polices that deter violence and provides a summary of well-vetted violence prevention programs and resources.
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KEY EQUITY AREAS
The Mid-Atlantic Equity Center's (MAEC) services and products are designed to address four priorities that are critical for the delivery of an equitable education.  The following information briefs describe the key equity issues in each of these four priority areas.
 

Drop-out Prevention and Reentry for High Risk Students
January 2009
Recognizing that reducing the dropout rate is a national priority, this information brief summarizes data on who is likely to graduate by gender and ethnicity, and describes some of the individual and institutional factors contributing to the dropout problem.
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Access to High Quality Education for English Language Learners
January 2009
English language learners often face numerous obstacles to receiving a high quality education.  To understand these issues, this brief summarizes the literature on the policies and practices that impact English language learners’ access to a high quality education.
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Access to High Quality Teachers for All Students
January 2009
There is substantial evidence, summarized in this brief, that teacher quality varies across schools and districts and that this uneven distribution adversely impacts high-minority, high-poverty schools.  This brief identifies some of the conditions contributing to the difficulty of attracting and retaining highly effective teachers.
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The Over-Representation and Under-Representation of Minority Students in Special Education and Gifted and Talented Programs
January 2009
The disproportional representation of culturally, linguistically, and ethnically diverse and low-income students in special education and gifted and talented programs is a persistent issue for many school districts. This brief suggests that a multiplicity of cultural and scholastic factors is at the root of the problem.
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