Education and The Caged Bird: Black Girls, School Pushout and the Juvenile Court School

By Monique W. Morris

According to this article written by Monique Morris, "

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While UCLA researchers found that patterns of exclusionary discipline are similar between Black females and Black males, studies have shown that Black female disengagement from school is also a function of intersecting structures of inequality associated with their status as girls. For Black girls, exclusionary school responses may be informed by historically con- structed, stereotypical memes that negatively impact and reflect public perceptions about Black femininity.

While academic underperformance and zero tolerance policies are certainly critical components of the pathways to confinement for Black girls, a closer examination reveals that Black girls may also be criminalized for qualities that have been long associated with their survival. For example, to be “loud” or “defiant”—two “infractions” that may lead to the use of exclusionary discipline in schools—are qualities that have historically underscored Black female resilience to the combined effects of racism, sexism, and classism. Previous research has found that Black girls who are depicted as “loud, defi- ant, and precocious” are often most vulnerable to reprimand by their teachers for subjectively being determined “un- ladylike.” Assignments of this nature affect not only these girls’ ability to complete school in their communities; they may also affect their marginalization from juvenile court schools.

According to the California Department of Education, more than 42,000 youth were educated in “juvenile court schools” (i.e., schools in correctional and detention facilities) in 2012—a disproportionate number of them Black girls. Statewide, Black girls experience the highest rates of exclusionary discipline and dropout among girls in secondary schools. In the state’s 10 largest districts by enrollment, Black females experience school suspension at rates that far surpasses their female counterparts of other racial and ethnic groups. Still, little has been shared about the educational histories and experiences of these girls, inside of the state’s juvenile correctional facilities or out in the community." Please see attached pdf download.