Segregate, Discriminate, Signal: Proposed Framework and Model for Understanding Policy Drivers of Educational Inequality
Open AccessDecades after the Brown v. Board of Education ruling, school segregation and inequality in the United States are increasing rapidly. While residential systemic school segregation (RSSS), which refers to school segregation based on neighborhood separation, is responsible for much of this increase, existing explanations for the growing segregation in diverse residential areas are unsatisfying. In this dissertation, I define educational systemic school segregation (ESSS) as school segregation that is rooted in educational policies, and suggest that attention should be given to educational policies that may contribute to segregation in otherwise diverse settings. I propose a model for explaining how ESSS and inequality are formed in urban and suburban school systems. The model describes segregation as a component in the discriminatory education policy processes: segregation, discrimination, and signaling (SDS). Signaling, which refers to school evaluation and rating policies, acts as a connector between segregation and discrimination. It is used to communicate differences in school quality to parents, but often relies on standardized testing and proficiency-based indicators that reflect school demographics more than actual quality. This process creates lower expectations for schools serving students of color, which are then communicated through additional signaling, further exacerbating segregation. I test the model using a case study of Washington DC. Results reveal significant levels of ESSS, a significant correlation between this segregation and signaling, and some limited evidence of a causal effect where ratings contribute to segregation. The cyclical model adds to the existing literature that has explained discrimination through a causal process where segregation drives discrimination. This idea of a multidirectional and interconnected process of SDS, where segregation, discrimination, and signaling support and reinforce one another, creates a strong triangle of discriminatory education policymaking and inequality. This helps explain why, despite the ban on mandated school segregation, outcomes of segregation and inequality continue to flourish throughout the United States.
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