A Qualitative Analysis of Teachers and Counselors perceptions of the Over Representation of African Americans in Special Education

Shippen, M. E., Curtis, R., & Miller, A. (2009). A Qualitative Analysis of Teachers’ and Counselors’ Perceptions of the Overrepresentation of African Americans in Special Education A Preliminary Study. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 32(3), 226-238.

The study took a unique approach and evaluated the perceptions of general education teachers, special education teachers, and school counselors on overrepresentation of African American students in Special Education programs. The study was conducted in rural Alabama, which was selected due to its history of higher levels of overrepresentation. The district in which the survey was conducted in contained 2843 students enrolled at the time of the survey. Of the 2843 55% were African American, 43% were European American, and 2% were considered other including Hispanic and Native American. Of this demographic 90% of the students identified as being mentally retarded were African American. Of the students considered developmentally delayed, 79% were African American. Of the emotionally and behaviorally disturbed population, 50% were African American. These demographics indicate there is clearly an overrepresentation of African Americans in special education programs.

The teachers and counselors in this district were surveyed with questions that revealed their perceptions of the issue of overrepresentation, the pre-referral and referral process including the intervention steps and barriers. They found general education teachers were unaware of the overrepresentation. On the contrary they found special education teachers were aware of the overrepresentation but believed this was simply due to the susceptibility of their environment. General education teachers felt the referral process and intervention steps were ineffective taking far too much time, and special education teachers felt it was an effective process. General education teachers and special education teachers both felt the assessment process and timeline was concerning. Both groups felt parents were a contributing factor in overrepresentation. This research is key in understanding the overrepresentation of African American students in special education programs, if teachers believe that children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are more susceptible to learning disabilities this leads to teacher bias in the referral process.

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