DFE: The unequal representation of ethnic minorities for different types of special educational needs: Extent, causes and consequences

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Representative research in the US has established that Black students are substantially more likely to be identified with Special Educational Needs (SEN) than the majority White group. The only nationally representative studies in England in the last 25 years (Strand & Lindsay, 2009; 2012) report a more nuanced picture across different types of disability, with for example Black Caribbean pupils being twice as likely as White British pupils to be identified with Behavioural and Emotional and Social Difficulties, but Asian pupils being only half as likely as White British pupils to be identified with Autistic Spectrum Disorders. There are concerns this over-representation reflects social bias in school identification processes and results in inappropriate special education provision, while under-representation reflects cultural or economic barriers to accessing services and results in unmet need. These results have important implications for Government, Local Authorities and schools as the Equalities Act (2010) places a general duty on all public bodies to eliminate unlawful discrimination and advance equal opportunity.However relatively little is known about the factors which contribute to ethnic disproportionality, largely because of methodological limitations. Studies in the UK have often been small scale and unrepresentative while studies in the US are typically large but based on aggregate data that do not allow the sophisticated analyses possible only with student level data, or based on longitudinal surveys but with samples that are small relative to the incidence of special education. Methodologically, this project will provide three innovations. First it will use national census data on over 6 million students aged 5-16 years to build a nuanced picture across all ethnic groups for every category of SEN. Second it will be the first to utilise multilevel statistical models to estimate the relative influences of student, school and local authority (LA) factors on SEN identification. Third it will move beyond static models of SEN identification at a single point in time to build a dynamic model of the development of SEN by tracking two cohorts, each of 575,000 students, as they progress over time, one through primary school (from Reception to Y6) and the other through secondary school (from Y6 to Y11). Theoretically, the research will allow the evaluation of competing hypothesises about the possible causes of unequal representation, for example by determining whether socio-economic factors such as poverty and economic deprivation can account for the ethnic disproportionality in different types of SEN. The impact of other factors including age, gender, early educational attainment, attendance and behaviour will be explored, as well as school and LA factors such as size, type and social and ethnic composition. The project addresses published DFE research priorities (2014) around the accurate identification of SEN, the ESRC strategic priority to promote a Vibrant and Fair Society and the Equalities Act (2010) duty to eliminate unlawful discrimination. It is timely given the introduction of a new SEN and Disability Code of Practice in September 2014 and the fact that ethnic minority students now constitute over one-quarter (28%) of the age 5-16 school population.The project will have wide impact mediated by a strong advisory group comprising practitioners and policy advisers as well as notable academics in the fields of education, psychology and sociology. The outputs will be tailored to maximise impact by: (i) communicating through short accessible summaries and reports; (ii) targeting outputs through practitioner and professional networks; (iii) producing a comprehensive Local Authority (LA) data pack identifying levels of disproportionality for all 150 LAs in England allowing benchmarking and comparative analysis, and; (iv) holding a user-focussed national dissemination event.