Papers by Alfredo J. Artiles
Afacan, K., Bal, A., Artiles, A. J., Cakir, H. I., Ko, D., Mawene, D., Kim, H. (2021). Inclusive knowledge production at an elementary school through family-school-university partnerships: A formative intervention study. Learning, Culture, and Social Interaction. Learning Culture and Social Interaction, 2021
Students from racially minoritized backgrounds have been disproportionately subject to exclusiona... more Students from racially minoritized backgrounds have been disproportionately subject to exclusionary school discipline in the United States. Utilizing cultural-historical activity theory and the formative intervention methodology, we conducted a yearlong formative intervention, Learning Lab, in an elementary school with significant racial disproportionality in school discipline. Teachers, family members, administrators, support staff, and community members with diverse and often opposing histories and goals worked together to critically examine their existing behavioral support system and racial disparities in practices, assumptions, processes, and outcomes from multiple perspectives. We utilized the method of expansive learning actions to analyze qualitative data from ten subsequent sessions. Our findings showed that local stakeholders successfully formed and sustained a diverse working group that represented families, educators, researchers, and community members. Learning Lab members worked collaboratively to question their existing school practices and to examine the root causes of racial disproportionality through historical and empirical analyses. We discuss both possibilities and challenges regarding inclusive knowledge production and the systemic transformation process at local schools.
Sociology of Education, May 2021
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ([IDEA] 2004; IDEA Amendments 1997) is a civil ri... more The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ([IDEA] 2004; IDEA Amendments 1997) is a civil rightsbased law designed to protect the rights of students with disabilities in U.S. schools. However, decades after the initial passage of IDEA, racial inequity in special education classifications, placements, and suspensions are evident. In this article, we focus on understanding how racial discipline disparities in special education outcomes relate to IDEA remedies designed to address problem behaviors. We qualitatively examine how educators interpret and respond to citations for racial discipline disproportionality via IDEA at both the district and the school level in a suburban locale. We find that educators interpret the inequity in ways that neutralize the racialized implications of the citation, which in turn affects how they respond to the citation. These interpretations contribute to symbolic and race-evasive IDEA compliance responses. The resulting bureaucratic and organizational structures associated with IDEA implementation become a mechanism through which the visibility of race and racialization processes are erased and muted through acts of policy compliance. Thus, the logic of compliance surrounding IDEA administration serves as a reproductive social force that sustains practices that do not disrupt locally occurring racialized inequities.
The Educational Forum, 2020
The purpose of this collection of manuscripts is to interrogate assumptions about inclusive educa... more The purpose of this collection of manuscripts is to interrogate assumptions about inclusive education that are generally regarded as stable or even canonical, particularly in the global North. My expectation is that this special issue will pose uneasy questions and cause epistemic distress as a means to animate a new generation of inclusive education scholarship (Grech & Soldatic, 2016). Before I describe the rationale and goals of the special issue, I explain my use of certain key terms. First, although there are differences in the conceptualizations of "inclusive education" and "inclusion, " I use these terms interchangeably for style purposes. In addition, I do not use the terms global North and South as expressions of a binary logic. I make this distinction "to delineate power, resource, epistemological and other differentials, that though not unshiftable, and though not localized, embrace a substantial portion of the world living in a scenario of profound geopolitical asymmetries, poverty and isolation confronting deeply entrenched centers of concentrated wealth and power accumulated historically and perpetuated in times of coloniality" (Grech, 2015, Terminology section, para. 3). Third, I use people-first language (i.e., students with disabilities) interchangeably with the term "disabled" which is favored in the social model of disability. This way, I acknowledge representations of this population that recognize individual, societal and historical dimensions of ability differences. A foundational assumption in need of scrutiny is that inclusive education is only concerned with the education of learners with disabilities. Another tenet of the inclusion orthodoxy is the reliance on a technical standpoint to effect change-e.g., train teachers, make accommodations in the curriculum and assessment procedures, adjust classroom spaces-which disregards longstanding structural inequalities that perpetuate stratified educational systems. Over time, these and other canonical ideas have become broken promises, unwittingly forged new inequalities and contributed to neocolonial developments in the global North and South. In the age of global norming, population displacements and cultural intermingling that simmers in deepening socioeconomic injustices, it is imperative to disrupt inclusion's common sense. For this purpose, I contextualize the articles in this issue by identifying a few primary tenets in the inclusive education scholarship that are problematic. The goal of this overview is not to present an exhaustive critique of the literature (see Artiles & Kozleski, 2016; Artiles et al., 2006). Rather, I highlight a few core notions in need of revision noting contextual similarities and differences between the global North and South. Of significance, I assume "there is not one global South, but there are indeed many global 'Souths. ' Furthermore, the global South is not only present in, but it also lives within the global North" (Grech, 2015, Terminology section, para. 3). Where appropriate, I indicate how the authors' contributions speak truth to inclusion's power. Keep in mind the scaffold of the following discussion is constituted by two interlocking themes, namely the fact that inclusive education has been intensely contested and it has expanded at different rates across the global North and South. Indeed, conceptual ambiguities
Multiple Voices, 2020
Equity assistance centers (EACs) have played key roles in fulfi lling the legacy of the Civil Rig... more Equity assistance centers (EACs) have played key roles in fulfi lling the legacy of the Civil Rights Act by providing technical assistance (TA) to districts and schools in addressing discriminatory behaviors on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, and religion for over 50 years. In 2002, the National Center for Culturally Responsive Education Systems (NCCRESt) was federally funded as an EAC offering a new model of TA. In a mere seven years, the NCCRESt played a pivotal role in shifting the discourse and efforts to address disproportionality. In this article, we provide an historical contextualization of policies and research that converged to shape the NCCRESt's TA, reframing and producing new forms of critical evidence on the racialization of disability and the required responses to tackle this long-standing equity problem. We close with refl ections on the promises and possibilities of building on the NCCRESt's disproportionality legacy.
Multiple Voices, 2020
Equity assistance centers (EACs) have played key roles in fulfi lling the legacy of the Civil Rig... more Equity assistance centers (EACs) have played key roles in fulfi lling the legacy of the Civil Rights Act by providing technical assistance (TA) to districts and schools in addressing discriminatory behaviors on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender, and religion for over 50 years. In 2002, the National Center for Culturally Responsive Education Systems (NCCRESt) was federally funded as an EAC offering a new model of TA. In a mere seven years, the NCCRESt played a pivotal role in shifting the discourse and efforts to address disproportionality. In this article, we provide an historical contextualization of policies and research that converged to shape the NCCRESt's TA, reframing and producing new forms of critical evidence on the racialization of disability and the required responses to tackle this long-standing equity problem. We close with refl ections on the promises and possibilities of building on the NCCRESt's disproportionality legacy.
Artiles, A. J., Rose, D., Gonzalez, T. & Bal, A. (2020). Biology and culture in learning disabilities research: Legacies and possible futures. In N. S. Nasir, C. Lee, R.Pea, & M. M. de Royson (Eds.), Handbook of the cultural foundations of learning (pp.160-177). Routledge. Handbook of the Cultural Foundations of Learning, 2020
Education Week, 2020
Engaging nuance and context is a tall order in the age of political polarization and growing into... more Engaging nuance and context is a tall order in the age of political polarization and growing intolerance. The very representation of truth and the value of evidence-including research-are being questioned. These trends have serious potential moral consequences for researchers.
Educational Researcher, 2019
I engage longstanding challenges and risks associated with conducting and using research on compl... more I engage longstanding challenges and risks associated with conducting and using research on complex equity problems. I engage these challenges in the context of research on disability identification disparities, which have been historically intertwined with particular identity markers (e.g., race, social class, gender, language). some of these tensions revolve around knowledge production, the nuances of representation, and the identities of oppressed groups. I critique traditional research on disability identification disparities and outline guiding principles for the next generation of equity research. First, future research on disability intersections must rely on historical epistemologies to honor the complexities of equity in worlds of difference. second, the next generation of research must produce alternative interdisciplinary representations of disability intersections.
Teachers College Record, 2019
Tefera, A.A., Artiles, A.J., Lester, A.M., & Cuba, M. (2019). Grappling with the paradoxes of inclusive education in the U.S.: Intersectional considerations in policy & practice. In M. Hartmann, M. Hummel, M. Lichtblau, J. Löser, & S. Thoms, (Eds.), Facetten inklusiver Bildung, Publisher: Klinkhardt Publisher: Klinkhardt; In book: Facetten inklusiver Bildung, 2019
Across the globe inclusive education has become a movement that stands for the advancement of qua... more Across the globe inclusive education has become a movement that stands for the advancement of quality schooling and access for all learners (Löser & Werning, 2011; United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 2017). Specifically, inclusive education aims to transform school cultures to "(1) increase access (or presence) of all students, (2) enhance school personnel's and student's acceptance of all students, (3) maximize student participation in various domains of activity, and (4) increase the achievement of all students" (Artiles, Kozleski, Dorn & Christensen, 2006, p. 67). Currently, however, policy guidelines, particularly in the U.S., narrowly focus on how many students are placed in general education settings, with little attention given to what students are learning and who the students are in terms of their racial, linguistic, gender, and economic backgrounds-indeed, inclusive education has been largely colorblind. Moreover, the literature rarely addresses how inclusive education policies and practices engage "the conflation of race and ability, the attendant stigmatization of racialized forms of disability, and the ways in which the body becomes the site where these historically charged difference markers intersect to perpetuate the marginalization of particular segments of the US student population" (Artiles, Kozleski & González, 2011, p. 3).
Tefera, A.A., Artiles, A.J., Lester, A.M., & Cuba, M. (2019). Grappling with the paradoxes of inclusive education in the U.S.: Intersectional considerations in policy & practice. In M. Hartmann, M. Hummel, M. Lichtblau, J. Löser, & S. Thoms, (Eds.) In book: Facetten inklusiver Bildung, Publisher: Klinkhardt, 2019
Across the globe inclusive education has become a movement that stands for the advancement of qua... more Across the globe inclusive education has become a movement that stands for the advancement of quality schooling and access for all learners (Löser & Werning, 2011; United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 2017). Specifically, inclusive education aims to transform school cultures to "(1) increase access (or presence) of all students, (2) enhance school personnel's and student's acceptance of all students, (3) maximize student participation in various domains of activity, and (4) increase the achievement of all students" (Artiles, Kozleski, Dorn & Christensen, 2006, p. 67). Currently, however, policy guidelines, particularly in the U.S., narrowly focus on how many students are placed in general education settings, with little attention given to what students are learning and who the students are in terms of their racial, linguistic, gender, and economic backgrounds-indeed, inclusive education has been largely colorblind. Moreover, the literature rarely addresses how inclusive education policies and practices engage "the conflation of race and ability, the attendant stigmatization of racialized forms of disability, and the ways in which the body becomes the site where these historically charged difference markers intersect to perpetuate the marginalization of particular segments of the US student population" (Artiles, Kozleski & González, 2011, p. 3).
International Journal of Early Childhood, 2018
Given the narrow scope and conceptualisation of inclusion for young children with disabilities in... more Given the narrow scope and conceptualisation of inclusion for young children with disabilities in research within low-and middle-income countries (LMICs) contexts, we draw on a bioecological systems perspective to propose the parameters for a broader unit of analysis. This perspective situates human development within a specific cultural context in which family, peers and schooling are regarded as key in responding to young children with disabilities in a given setting. We outline a new bioecological model to illustrate the proximal and distal factors that can influence inclusive early development for children with disabilities within LMICs. To illustrate the relevance of this model to early child development research, we consider its application, as a conceptual framework, with reference to a research study in Malawi. The study was designed to promote greater inclusive practice for young children with disabilities in Community-Based Childcare Centres (CBCCs) with a particular focus on the role of the CBCC volunteer 'caregiver' in rural Malawi. It has significance for educators, service providers and researchers concerned with facilitating inclusive early development across national boundaries and contexts. Keywords Early childhood development Á Inclusion Á Disabilities Á Bioecological systems Á Malawi Ré sumé L'étroitesse de la portée et de la conceptualisation de l'inclusion de jeunes enfants handicapés dans le corpus de recherche dans les pays à revenu faible et (PRFI) contextes intermédiaire, nous puisons dans une perspective de systèmes bioécolo-giques pour proposer des paramètres pour une unité d'analyse plus large. Notre perspective situe le développement humain dans un contexte culturel spécifique dans lequel la famille, les pairs et la scolarité sont considérés comme des éléments clés pour apporter une réponse à la question des jeunes enfants handicapés dans un contexte donné. Nous décrivons un nouveau modèle bioécologique pour illustrer les facteurs proximaux et distants qui peuvent influencer le développement des enfants 123 International Journal of Early Childhood https://doi.org/10.1007/s13158-018-0223-y(0123456789().,-volV) (0123456789().,-volV)
Review of Research in Education, 2016
The purpose of this chapter is to contribute a cultural–historical analytical perspective on disa... more The purpose of this chapter is to contribute a cultural–historical analytical perspective on disability and its intersections. We assume that disability is socially, historically, and spatially constructed. This standpoint enables us to understand and disrupt disparities in education that affect students living at the intersection of disability with race and other identity markers. We trace the evolution of disability as an object of protection and injustice from before 1916 to 2016. The chapter is divided into three sections: disability constructions and intersections before 1960, consolidation of the intersections of difference with disabilities between 1960 and 1990, and the protean nature of disability intersections and fragmentations in contemporary history between 1990 and the present. We review legal, social, and academic discourses and offer interdisciplinary conceptual tools to understand the technical and sociopolitical anatomies of disabilities. We end with a brief discus...
Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, 2014
The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with p... more The accuracy of the Content should not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to or arising out of the use of the Content. This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &
Educational Researcher, 2011
The author argues for an interdisciplinary perspective to study the complexities of educational e... more The author argues for an interdisciplinary perspective to study the complexities of educational equity and transcend the limits of previous research. He focuses on the racialization of disability as a case in point; specifically, he reviews the visions of justice that inform the scholarship on racial and ability differences and situates their interlocking in a historical perspective to illustrate how race and ability differences have elicited paradoxical educational responses. The author also examines how the convergence of contemporary reforms is creating fluid markers of difference that change meanings across contexts, thus having distinct consequences for students’ identities and schools’ responses. He concludes with an outline of guiding ideas for interdisciplinary research on inequities that emerge at the intersections of race and ability differences.
Artiles, A.J., Kozleski, E. B., Trent, S. Osher, D., & Ortiz, A. (2010). Justifying and explaining disproportionality, 1968-2008: A critique of underlying views of culture. Exceptional Children, 76, 279-299. Exceptional Children, 2010
S pecial education has made considerable improvements in policy, research, and practice in its sh... more S pecial education has made considerable improvements in policy, research, and practice in its short history. Students with disabilities were severely underserved prior to 1975. In contrast, services are now provided to more than 200,000 infants, toddlers and their families, and more than 6 million children and youth with disabilities (Schiller, O'Reilly, & Fiore, 2006). Since 1994, the number of students with disabilities served in general education classrooms has increased gradually from about 46% to about 57% (Sullivan & Kozleski, 2008). However, students from historically underserved groups are and have been disproportionately placed in special education (Artiles, Trent, & Palmer, 2004. We use the term historically underserved groups to describe "students from diverse racial, cultural, linguistic, and economically disadvantaged backgrounds who 279
Artiles, A.J., Kozleski, E. B., Trent, S. Osher, D., & Ortiz, A. (2010). Justifying and explaining disproportionality, 1968-2008: A critique of underlying views of culture. Exceptional Children, 76, 279-299 Special education has made considerable advances in research, policy, and practice in its short h... more Special education has made considerable advances in research, policy, and practice in its short history. However, students from historically underserved groups continue to be disproportionately identified as requiring special education. Support for colorblind practices and policies can justify racial disproportionality in special education and signal a retrenchment to deficit views about students from historically underserved groups. We respond to these emerging concerns through an analysis of arguments that justify disproportionality. We also identify explanations of the problem and critique the views of culture that underlie these explanations. We conclude with a brief discussion of implications and future directions.
Multiple Voices For Ethnically Diverse Exceptional Learners, 2009
... RE-FRAMING DISPROPORTIONALITY THROUGH A CULTURAL-HISTORICAL LENS ... and analytic foci are gr... more ... RE-FRAMING DISPROPORTIONALITY THROUGH A CULTURAL-HISTORICAL LENS ... and analytic foci are grounded on the assumption that actions and processes do not ... The pressure to change these inequities shaped the emergence of two parallel systems, namely regular ...
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Papers by Alfredo J. Artiles
Policymakers, researchers, and practitioners also face complex challenges that include:
•Tensions and contradictions created by multiple federal and state policies that constrain school leaders’ efforts to achieve equity agendas as part of school improvement plans.•Equity concerns resulting from the impact of high-stakes assessment systems on struggling learners and diverse students,•Fairness questions raised by current discipline policies and practices in urban schools, and•Sustainability demands to support teacher learning that results in better outcomes for students with disabilities in inclusive schools.
The Disability, Culture, & Equity Book Series will address this range of needs and issues across the educational community, as it charts new ground in offering an interdisciplinary approach to disability, culture, and equity. Authors with proposals that might be appropriate for the series should contact the series editor, Alfredo J. Artiles ([email protected]) or Brian Ellerbeck ([email protected]), Executive Acquisitions Editor, Teachers College Press, 1234 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027.
From Multi-tiered Systems of Support to the racialization of disabilities to proven strategies for inclusive classrooms, research and practice in the field is changing rapidly. The diversity of our nation’s schools will only continue to increase, and the need for educators to develop sound culturally responsive practices is greater than ever. Policymakers are eager to find ways to increase equitable outcomes for all learners. Researchers want to understand the ways in which culture, disability and other social markers intersect, and the impact of cultural and various forms of difference in educational outcomes. The Disability, Culture, and Equity Series will address this range of needs across the educational community, as it charts new ground in offering an interdisciplinary approach to disability.