The Role of School Context in Explaining Racial Disproportionality in Special Education

Research on racial disproportionality in special education has exploded, in part due to federal accountability related to over- or under representation of specific racial groups. Some recent research shifts the focus from the role of student characteristics in predicting special education classification to inquire whether school context moderates. We significantly extend this emerging literature using 8 years of elementary student-and school-level data from New York City public schools, examining more school contextual moderators, expanding racial categories, and distinguishing between cross-sectional and over-time differences. We find many more moderators than previous research identified, and these school context factors appear to be particularly salient for the classification of Black students. Results may inform future consideration by federal policymakers regarding assessment of disproportionality.