Buffering Effects of Racial Discrimination on School Engagement: The Role of Culturally Responsive Teachers and Caring School Police.
Jessika H Bottiani, Heather L McDaniel, Lora Henderson and 2 others
PMID 33184890WHAT IT FOUND
Students experiencing more racial discrimination had lower engagement and worse attitudes toward teachers.
Culturally responsive teachers were linked to more engagement. Police caring did not predict outcomes overall, but discrimination was linked to poorer school attitudes only when police caring was low.
Key findings
01Students reporting more frequent racial discrimination had lower academic engagement and perceived less equitable school culture.
02Students who perceived teachers as more culturally responsive had higher academic engagement, more equitable school culture, and better attitudes toward teachers and school.
03Discrimination was linked to poorer attitudes toward school only when students perceived school police caring as low.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The data are cross-sectional and self-reported, so the study cannot show that discrimination, teacher cultural responsiveness, or police caring caused changes in engagement. Students were selected through teacher screening for elevated aggression, which may have been biased or missed students needing support. The discrimination measure did not specify whether experiences happened at school or elsewhere. The sample was predominantly Black, urban, high-risk ninth-graders, so findings may not generalize to other student groups. The analysis did not account for measurement error or differences between proactive and reactive aggression profiles. Officer demographic data for the schools were unavailable; district-level data suggest officers were mostly Black and local, which may not generalize.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. Funding came from the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Institute of Justice, and the William T. Grant Foundation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that culturally responsive teachers or caring school police cause better school engagement. These are cross-sectional self-report associations from students screened for elevated aggression, and reverse associations are possible.