Water Is Wet, and the Sky Is Blue

Only someone in higher education would need a study to convince themselves of this truth:

Students of color are suspended at disproportionately higher rates than white students and, on average, perform more poorly on standardized tests. But no peer-reviewed nationwide research has documented a link between the two disparities—until now.

A new Stanford-led study finds that an increase in either the discipline gap or the academic achievement gap between black and white students in the United States predicts a jump in the other. Similarly, as one gap narrows, so does the other.

“Prior research has suggested that achievement gaps and discipline gaps may be two sides of the same coin,” said Francis Pearman, an assistant professor at Stanford Graduate School of Education and lead author of the study. “This is the first study to document this relationship at the national level.”

So, as the achievement gap narrows, teachers get less raaaaaaacist? Is that how I should interpret this?

Here's another stake in the heart of the "racist teachers" argument:

The researchers also saw a significant association between the Hispanic-white achievement and discipline gaps. But they were surprised to discover that other factors—such as local poverty and education levels—accounted for the relationship. Once they controlled for these differences at the community level, the relationship between the two gaps disappeared. 

Hm.  You don't say.

Then the authors go off the rails:

For instance, educators might adopt ethnic studies programs and culturally relevant teaching to alleviate achievement disparities—efforts that could address the racial discipline gap as well. Using non-punitive discipline practices such as positive behavior interventions and supports, instead of practices that exclude students from school, could also help raise the academic achievement of racial and ethnic minority students.

Whenever I read something like this, I always ask, "why does this help only ethnic minority students?"  Do white students not benefit from non-punitive discipline practices?  (Next question:  does the school as a whole benefit from non-punitive discipline practices?  Ask teachers and well-behaving students if they want undisciplined students in the classroom.  Ask them if having them there adversely affects the learning of everyone else in the class.)

Anyway, I'm not at all surprised there's a relationship between the two areas.  No matter what ethnicities or races are involved, you'll always have fewer and less severe discipline problems in a calculus class than in a high school elementary arithmetic class.