An overview of the history and scope of the problem of disproportional representation.
Martha Coutinho and Donald Oswald (2006) National Center for Culturally Responsive Educational Systems.
Highlights some of the common policies, practices, and beliefs that place racial/ethnic minorities and low-income students at risk.
Edward Fergus (2010) NYU Steinhardt Technical Assistance Center on Disproportionality.
Considers promising practices for ensuring that all students from racial and ethnic minorities are given every opportunity to succeed in school.
Matthew Deninger (2008) Massachusetts Department of Education.
This document contains a table that outlines three distinct requirements around equity: Disproportionate Representation, Significant Discrepancy, and Significant Disproportionality. This resource can help clarify the differences and similarities among the three equity requirements and enable users to compare and contrast these various equity requirements in key areas such as methodology, data sources, and reporting considerations.
Nancy O’Hara, and Bollmer, Julie. 2020. Equity Requirements in IDEA. https://www.ideadata.org/resources/resource/1590/equity-requirements-in-idea (accessed September 16, 2022).
A collaboration between South County SELPA, the Equity, Disproportionality & Design Project, and the National Center for Urban School Transformation (NCUST), featuring teachers and school leaders from award-winning schools. In this five session series, NCUST Executive Coaches Cara Riggs, Dr. Rupi Boyd, and Dr. Joseph Johnson will teach about five important practices successful schools have used to elevate learning to new levels for all students.
Equity, Disproportionality & Design, (2021).
This research article demonstrates that racial/ethnic disparities continue to exist for minoritized communities, noting that White students were overrepresented as having autism in special education. Caregiver perspectives were gathered and the data showed that English speaking parents were more likely to identify early signs of autism.
Paul Luelmo, Hall, Laura J., and Estrellado, R. 2022. Examination of Racial/Ethnic Disproportionality of Autism in California.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1750946722000885 (accessed September 16, 2022).
Describes a local change process, LEAD, which is grounded in cultural competence that addresses disproportionality in special education and other equity issues facing Indiana schools.
Shana Ritter and Russell J. Skiba (2006) Center for Evaluation and Education Policy.
The resource is a technical guide for understanding how disproportionality is calculated and what the benefits and drawbacks of each method are. It is useful to practitioners that seek to understand the mathematics and logic behind a numerical citation for disproportionality.
Methods for Assessing Racial/Ethnic Disproportionality in Special Education: A Technical Assistance Guide. (Westat). 2014.
This law commentary article examines if and how overrepresentation in special education might violate the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Miles, Alana. 2016. “NOTE: Overrepresentation in Special Education: Does the IDEA Violate the Equal Protection Clause?” Rutgers Race & the Law Review 17 (245).
Click on each of the regulation titles to find questions for leading dialogue.
