Integrating Teacher Well-Being into Legislative Efforts to Curb Exclusionary Discipline in Early Care and Education Settings

There are mounting efforts to curb high rates of exclusionary discipline, such as suspension and expulsion, from preschool settings through statewide legislation. Mandated bans or restrictions on exclusionary discipline in state-funded programs have been largely ineffective in reducing exclusionary discipline rates and associated gender and racial disparities. Prior reviews of existing legislation highlight ways in which this legislation largely ignores teacher well-being (e.g., stress, mental health), despite its known influence on children’s expulsion risk. This policy brief reviews the evidence regarding teacher well-being and exclusionary discipline, identifies empirically informed recommendations for centering teacher well-being in future expulsion prevention legislation, and discusses implications for social work and interdisciplinary practitioners.