Referral Biases in the Schools

Biases influencing teachers\u27 referral decisions for special education services were examined. Specific biases identified and addressed pertained to students\u27 type of problem behavior, gender and socio-economic status (SES). Subjects included 120 regular elementary school teachers from the western Chicagoland area. A total of 8 vignettes describing a child with varying behavior difficulties, gender and SES, along with 2 questionnaires were utilized. An Analysis of Variance revealed that teachers are less tolerant of students who are disruptive and are more apt to refer them than students with emotional difficulties less overt in their manifestation. The effects of SES on referral decisions approached significance, but gender as well as the interaction among the variables did not sway teachers\u27 perceptions. Results suggest that teachers are frequently unaware of the legal and emotional necessity to refer children suffering from anxiety or depression