Abstract
In an effort to better understand the roots of contemporary school punishment practices, this study compares policy discourse and practice of school punishment and security in the United States and England. American policy discourse is predominantly punitive, harsh punishment strategies are favored, and policy makers have centralized decision-making power outside of the classroom. Contrastingly, English policy discourse about and policy responses to student misbehaviour focus more on reducing social exclusion, improving student behaviour, and returning the locus of control over rule enforcement to teachers. However, despite these substantial differences, suspension and expulsion rates are fairly similar in the US and England. Several hypotheses to explain these findings are offered.
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