Use trauma-informed behavioral supports before escalating to suspension, supported by willful-defiance suspension bans¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 1 claim (1 against) · 1 study (1 review), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 1 claim rests on one study

Description¶

Professionals interviewed emphasized the need for more trauma-informed approaches in education, citing California Senate Bill 274 (effective July 1, 2024), which prohibits suspensions based on lower-level "willful defiance" offenses. They noted such changes can remind school staff of the unique experiences of students in foster care and encourage greater use of trauma-informed behavioral supports before escalating disciplinary action to suspension. Students in foster care were consistently three times more likely to be suspended than all other groups.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• School staff awareness of the unique experiences and challenges faced by students in foster care

Constraints¶

• The article reports professional opinion and cites the new law; it does not report a test of trauma-informed approaches' effects on outcomes

Target Learners¶

• K–12 students in foster care
• students in high-need groups subject to exclusionary discipline

Target Learning Goals¶

• Reduced exclusionary discipline and preserved learning time

Claims¶

• Suspension is associated with lower test scores in the suspended years, with more suspended days related to larger decreases [-W]

Related Strategies¶

• Provide schools, administrators, and teachers with supports and resources when curbing suspension use
• Empathic Discipline
• Follow-Up After Disciplining a Student

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Ximenes Barrat, V., Diercks, C., Berliner, B., Derby, K., Chen Gaddini, M., & Pivnick, L. (2025). Revisiting California's invisible achievement gap: Trends in education outcomes of students in foster care in the context of the local control funding formula. WestEd. https://www.wested.org/resource/revisiting-californias-invisible-achievement-gap/