Clarifying the Social Roots of the Disproportionate Classification of Racial Minorities and Males with Learning Disabilities
Year: 2018
Type: article
Abstract: The disproportionate placement of racial minorities and males into special education for learning disabilities (LDs) raises concerns that classifications occur inaccurately or inequitably. This study uses data from the Education Longitudinal Survey of 2002 to investigate the social etiology of LD classifications that persist into adolescence. Findings suggest the overclassification of racial minorities is largely consistent with (clinically relevant) differences in educational performance. Classifications may occur inconsistently or subjectively, with clinically irrelevant qualities like school characteristics and linguistic- immigration history independently predictive of disability classification. Finally, classifications may be partially biased, with male overclassification largely unexplained by this study's measures and racial minorities' risk of classification increased in schools with fewer minorities (the latter not statistically significant).
Source: Sociological Quarterly
Author: Dara Shifrer
Institution: Portland State University
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Awards: Population Research Center, RDE-FRI Collaborative Research: Students with Learning Disabilities: STEM Pathways in the Social Context, RDE-FRI Collaborative Research: Students with Learning Disabilities: STEM Pathways in the Social Context, Postsecondary Pathways into STEM for Students with Disabilities, Population Research Center, Training Program in Population Studies
OpenAlex ID: W2884355291