Given that neurobiological context, it’s hard to argue that an out-of-school suspension will do much to improve that student’s ability to self-regulate.

Talking back and acting up in class are, at least in part, symptoms of a child’s inability to control impulses, de-escalate confrontations, and manage anger and other strong feelings — the whole stew of self-regulation issues that can usually be traced to impaired executive-function development in early childhood.

And suspension rates are substantially higher among certain demographic groups

In reality, though, many schools and school systems look at students who are struggling in those areas and instead think: How do we discipline them?

13. Discipline