Disproportionality In Education
Too Many Minorities in SPED: Disproportionality is Present
Special Education has been a widely-debated topic by many different accounts from its very beginnings in the mid-1970s. Still, one component of this topic that often goes overlooked is the issue of disproportionality, sometimes known as overrepresentation, in Special Education. Today in American Public Schools there is a disproportionate representation of minority groups vs the majority Caucasian groups of students that make up our Special Education classes in public schools.
So, what does it mean to be disproportionate? In general terms, to be disproportionate means something is too large or too small in comparison with something else. In terms of this paper, when the concept of disproportionality …show more content…
The real problem comes in when the implications of disproportionality come into play. If the special education program conflicts with the academic growth of a student and the quality of education being provided is poor, disproportionality is a problem. Additionally, per Klingner and Harry (2014) there have been past attempts to underscore the views of disproportionality, such as a study done in 2004. Besides this one outlined outlier the overall presence of disproportionality is predominantly accepted by many of the present-day educational …show more content…
The truly formalized definition of a “minority found in the dictionary is “a number or part of something, especially a number that is less than half of the whole.” Aside from this come a set of darker variations on how to describe a minority group. Richard T. Schaefer (1993), describe in his book Racial and Ethnic Groups two different ways to define a minority; “A subordinate group whose members have significantly less control or power over their lives than members of a dominant or majority group” and “A group that experiences a narrowing of opportunities (success, education, wealth, etc.) that is disproportionately low compared to their numbers in the society” (pp. 5-10). In addition to defining a minority come different types or categories of minority groups; these categories include, racial, ethnic, gender, and religion based. All of these groups, both share components and have individualized components on what make them a “minority
Special Education has been a widely-debated topic by many different accounts from its very beginnings in the mid-1970s. Still, one component of this topic that often goes overlooked is the issue of disproportionality, sometimes known as overrepresentation, in Special Education. Today in American Public Schools there is a disproportionate representation of minority groups vs the majority Caucasian groups of students that make up our Special Education classes in public schools.
So, what does it mean to be disproportionate? In general terms, to be disproportionate means something is too large or too small in comparison with something else. In terms of this paper, when the concept of disproportionality …show more content…
The real problem comes in when the implications of disproportionality come into play. If the special education program conflicts with the academic growth of a student and the quality of education being provided is poor, disproportionality is a problem. Additionally, per Klingner and Harry (2014) there have been past attempts to underscore the views of disproportionality, such as a study done in 2004. Besides this one outlined outlier the overall presence of disproportionality is predominantly accepted by many of the present-day educational …show more content…
The truly formalized definition of a “minority found in the dictionary is “a number or part of something, especially a number that is less than half of the whole.” Aside from this come a set of darker variations on how to describe a minority group. Richard T. Schaefer (1993), describe in his book Racial and Ethnic Groups two different ways to define a minority; “A subordinate group whose members have significantly less control or power over their lives than members of a dominant or majority group” and “A group that experiences a narrowing of opportunities (success, education, wealth, etc.) that is disproportionately low compared to their numbers in the society” (pp. 5-10). In addition to defining a minority come different types or categories of minority groups; these categories include, racial, ethnic, gender, and religion based. All of these groups, both share components and have individualized components on what make them a “minority