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Ironically, school budgets are often less of a problem in low income areas, because residents tend to vote less and be much less vocal/involved. There are also more renters unaffected by property taxes. In the district I was in, a fairly suburban district, they'd fill the school auditorium to scream about the budget.
You have any supporting evidence that there are more renters in rural areas or that people in rural areas vote less? I have not seen any such statistics. I also do not see how renting or owning ones home (paying taxes directly or indirectly) influences anyone's interest in the local school budget. Perhaps in increasing property taxes.
Rural areas will have a lower budget due to lower housing values and lower tax rates so they have less money to devote to special needs. As well federal Title I funding has allocated the largest amount of funding to larger school districts. Less funding, less resources.
You have any supporting evidence that there are more renters in rural areas or that people in rural areas vote less? I have not seen any such statistics. I also do not see how renting or owning ones home (paying taxes directly or indirectly) influences anyone's interest in the local school budget. Perhaps in increasing property taxes.
Rural areas will have a lower budget due to lower housing values and lower tax rates so they have less money to devote to special needs. As well federal Title I funding has allocated the largest amount of funding to larger school districts. Less funding, less resources.
I wasn't talking about rural areas, I was thinking more of city areas.
I wasn't talking about rural areas, I was thinking more of city areas.
Ok but your response was to: Keep in mind not all schools are created equal and as you stated funding/budget is always a problem, more so in low income more rural school districts.
Not so sure there would be much difference in the points I made between low income rural and low income urban.
The law says he is entitled to a “Free and Appropriate Public Education.†His IEP team believed that his current placement provides that. It is likely that he is in the most restrictive setting that the school/district offers. If he is placed in an “institution,†the school district pays for it… to the tune of $100,000+ a year.
$100,000 + a year? This is rather difficult to believe, but now, I understand it better. Thanks
Last edited by glenninindy; 03-16-2022 at 08:35 PM..
You don't think a school would be sued if they let an autistic child run out the doors to get hit by a car, or if they let an out of control student hurt their child? They are going to restrain him if he's a danger to himself or others. Your links don't say they are being sued just for restraining the student, but that A. they never developed a behavior plan for the child's behavior and B. the excessive nature of the restraints. In your first link, they restrained him for 49 minutes, rather than until the immediate emergency was over.
There are no laws against restraining students who are in danger or posing a danger. But in special ed, we would know if a child had the kind of issues that result in aggressive behavior, because they are extensively assessed before they enter school, and they also would have their early intervention records and of course from the parents. A behavior plan would be established that the parents sign off on at the initial IEP meeting. There would be interventions detailed that are designed to prevent the child from being triggered in the first place (safe spot to go be alone, weighted vests, allowing him to sit on a ball instead of chair, OT for sensory issues, etc. But it would also include interventions for behavior that is out of control. There are annual meetings for each child, in which the parent signs off on the intervention plan. But their first duty is to protect the students, and that might include restraints of some type. It is to me very different than regular ed in this way. If this child was in a classroom that had a cool-down room, I'm sure they knew he was a behavior problem and may have been a classroom for kids with behavior challenges. IDK, they don't give much detail.
Look at Cochristie's son. He is restrained on a regular basis out of neccessity, and I'm sure there are parameters for that in his IEP plan. Parents know if their child is at a level of disability that he can be a danger to himself or others. Those behaviors and the steps to take when it occurs is fully discussed in each child's IEP meeting with the parents.
It's not much different than nursing homes (where I work now). Restraints are illegal, even bedrails are being removed now because they can be considered a restraint (I hate this, because many patients need the bedrails to move around or sit up in bed, and some like my mom, were afraid of falling out of bed) But if a family or patient wants bedrails, they can sign a waiver for them. Seat belts aren't allowed, unless the patient can show she/he is able to remove them. When patients fall repeatedly, the first step is intervention. OT and PT referrals, getting the patient out of bed early and into an area where the nurses or activities can see them, putting them on a toileting schedule, mat outside the bed, etc.
But if the patient keeps falling, they have to start using more restraining things. The state will get involved. They have to stop the falls. So they lower the bed to the floor so the patient can't stand up. They put them in a very low wheelchair (Broda chair) so they can't stand up. They aren't allowed in their room alone and must be kept in activities room even if they are crying that they want to lay down. They medicate them. All of these things are restraints per the state, and you can't use them without a behavioral intervention plan. But once you have tried them and they haven't worked, you are allowed to go down the list to more extreme measures.
We have a fairly big and mobile patient with dementia who, right before he came to us, attacked a nurse in the hospital trying to escape. The security guard had to call the police, who had to tackle him. He was okay for the first couple weeks with us, but attacked a staff member twice last week. So now he is medicated to the point that I would consider it a restraint, but you can't just allow other residents or staff to be hurt. They have to care for the guy, change his diaper, feed him, give him medicine, take blood pressure. And the family was called after each incident, and informed of what the doctor was going to change. The state was sent a behavioral intervention plan including the medications.
It's really not the same as a school police officer handcuffing a 5th grader for disobeying someone in the lunchroom.
They just have to do it step by step. They have to show "here are the interventions we tried first", the family must be informed of every step, the doctor must sign off on every step. So it doesn't just come out of nowhere.
That's not how the linked incidents happened. One kid in the article was handcuffed. One girl was just sitting and not out of control.
Schools get sued all the time, regardless what they do or don't do. I think there was always a few in special ed at my school.
Again, you're still being vague about what you think is acceptable restraint.
I know personally of a teacher fired for taking a student into a science work room and using duct tape to tape the child into a chair.
You've done a lot of talking here, but you haven't defined specifically what levels of restraints are and are not acceptable.
Exactly, thank you. I don't understand why this is so hard for people to understand. I currently have 10 formal "Restraint & Seclusion" reports from the last month at school sitting on my file cabinet. These notifications are required by law & they are extremely structured documents. The entire events are timed & sequenced & re-analyzed to adjust for more appropriate interventions. This one from 02/17/2022 reads like this (edited to be brief):
Then follows several signatures, because this was a 1 student to 6 staff incident. People here seem to think these are isolated incidents with staff running around clutching their pearls, not knowing what to do & fighting for their lives. That's not how this works. Restraint & Seclusion is used every day on SPED students across the country. They are usually well regulated & documented events & they are very necessary. My son should absolutely not be allowed to plow through 6 staff, punching them & trying to break windows. I would be very upset if proper restraint was not used to keep my child safe.
They aren't fired for restraining SPED students properly; they are fired for improper restraint, or restraining students not identified as SPED. George Floyd style take downs are never appropriate.
Such as this event, where 3 teachers killed an autistic 13 year old for "spitting", by using an improper hold that caused him to aspirate & go into cardiac arrest.
Teachers are not fired or sued, if they engage proper restraint tactics. Just like this teacher of the 5 year old wouldn't have been hurt, if proper training was used. Proper training = Safe students & safe staff, period & it happens every day. Now, try restraining a non-disabled child & that's a totally different scenario.
You should not be publishing even that redacted report.
Again, you're still being vague about what you think is acceptable restraint.
I know personally of a teacher fired for taking a student into a science work room and using duct tape to tape the child into a chair.
You've done a lot of talking here, but you haven't defined specifically what levels of restraints are and are not acceptable.
Teachers are trained on how to properly restrain a student. They go through the training each year. Obviously duct taping a child to a chair was not part of the training that teacher went through when learning or to properly restrain a child.
Teachers are trained on how to properly restrain a student. They go through the training each year. Obviously duct taping a child to a chair was not part of the training that teacher went through when learning or to properly restrain a child.
I don't know where you're from, but you're wrong in thinking that teachers in all locations are trained on how to restrain students.
I don't know where you're from, but you're wrong in thinking that teachers in all locations are trained on how to restrain students.
Or even subs. I was asked to sub for a SPED class and I refused on the grounds that I was not trained for SPED teaching. This was a small rural school and there were 2 rather large students who wore harnesses and had to be escorted to and from their buses. Someone else subbed and they were not SPED trained.
But, in a small rural school district one has to make due with what you have.
Or even subs. I was asked to sub for a SPED class and I refused on the grounds that I was not trained for SPED teaching. This was a small rural school and there were 2 rather large students who wore harnesses and had to be escorted to and from their buses. Someone else subbed and they were not SPED trained.
But, in a small rural school district one has to make due with what you have.
Exactly. I think some of these poster live in large districts that receive a lot of funding and believe all schools are equal to theirs.
"teachers are trained" what does that mean. We see teachers (as well as people in other positions) who are trained in their jobs but that does not prevent them from not doing their job correctly nor does it guarantee their training was sufficient or even the best way to handle a situation.
Are these teachers who give out questionable assignment and exercises trained, how about the ones who have sexual relations with students. I assume they are trained. Ones that loose it and lay hands on students. I assume they went through training and workshops as well.
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