Nearly half of all suspensions and expulsions of California students were due to ‘willful defiance,’ an overly broad and subjective term used by schools to discipline students for disruptive behavior that could be as minor as not paying attention or failing to do homework. Research on implicit bias shows that teachers are more likely to associate challenging behavior with students who are Black and Latino, resulting in disproportionate suspension rates among these students. Students in special education are also disproportionately suspended for willful defiance.

These unfair, punitive discipline policies result in the loss of valuable learning time and increases the likelihood that students will fall behind in school.