Abuse in Schools Turns Deadly

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http://www.momlogic.com/2008/07/who_is_abusing_your_kid.php

Abuse in Schools Turns Deadly

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

filed under: special needs

Isolation rooms and chairs with restraining straps are the new

tactics for keeping school kids in line.

A new type of teacher-child abuse is surfacing in the classroom--and

it's not sexual. More and more educators are resorting to physical

violence to discipline unruly kids--ending with some children even

dying. Could this happen in your child's school?

Tim , 12, told his father he didn't want to go to school

because his teachers were trying to kill him.

Tim, who has Asperger's Syndrome, was often rowdy in class--on

several occasions, his teachers held him on the floor for 20 minutes

to calm him down. Tim's parents sued the school district for costs of

therapy for their son as a result of the incidents, but the school

insisted their teachers acted appropriately.

One teacher wrote: " Tim was screaming down the hall. He ran past me

and began to double his fist to punch the locker. At this point, I

scooped my arm underneath his and directed him into my room. "

The teacher and another " laid him onto the mat, where he was held

approximately 20 minutes, " the report stated.

This is a growing problem as more parents of children with

psychiatric problems are getting their kids into mainstream schools.

Just last year, the public school system granted entrance to 600,000

more special education students than it did a decade ago, many in

regular classrooms. And researchers say teachers just aren't trained

to handle such severe behavior issues. As a result, educators are

using dangerous discipline techniques like isolation rooms and

restraining kids in chairs with straps.

Just consider a case in April where a 9-year-old Montreal student

with autism suffocated to death after a special education teacher

wrapped him in a weighted blanket to calm him down. Two Michigan

autistic kids also died in school from similar forms of restraint.

One Dallas-based 11-year-old with ADD was picked up by his mom at a

police station after being taken from the school in handcuffs for

cursing at a teacher.

" I didn't hear about it for hours and had to go get him at jail, " his

mother said. " He was hysterical, obviously, and he's had his ups and

downs since then. It's hard to know what a thing like that does to a

child that age. "

One major problem is that states and school districts get to decide

when to use physical restraints and isolation, and the definition of

such is pretty broad. However, some states like Tennessee,

Pennsylvania, and Michigan are instituting stricter policies on the

use of isolation and restraints. While New York, California, and Iowa

are in talks to tighten their rules.

Experts say the use of force in schools is increasing at a rapid pace-

-at least one or two cases a week-with hypocrisy surrounding the

situation. " It's an awful combination, because many parents expect

restraints to be used -- as long as it's not their kid, " said Reece

L. , a professor of special education at the University of

Nebraska.

Teachers feel overburdened by other duties and caring for one child

with a disability can consume his or her attention and throw off the

entire class (usually 35 children). Currently, federal law states

teachers must develop a plan for every disabled student (tricks to

ease a child's temper, or solutions for time-out), but if the child

becomes violent, it's common for educators to resort to aggressive

solutions.

Investigators studied cases of school abuse in California and found

during the 2005-2006 school year, an 8-year-old with attention

deficit disorder and mental retardation was repeatedly locked in

a " seclusion room " alone at least 31 times in a single year. His

parents only heard about the incident from another parent, who saw

the boy trying to escape.

In another school, a teacher held a 12-year-old with ADD " face down

on the floor, straddling him at his hips, and holding his hands

behind his back, " according to the investigation.

Parents are furious, but also reluctant to report the school for fear

of retaliation. As for the children, they often don't understated

what is going on or why they are being punished--after all, many lack

communication skills, even to tell their parents why they return from

school with bruises. And the ramifications of the public humiliation

and psychological abuse are usually unknown until later.

But with parents hesitant to report the school and teachers feeling

powerless, a certain dichotomy presents itself. The parents of an 11-

year-old who died while being held down called for a ban on

restraints. But in another case, the parents sued the school for not

restraining their son who ran away from teachers and ultimately

drowned.

Some companies offer programs to teach management techniques to

school staff, but until states designate exactly what techniques are

acceptable, the use of force on children in schools will continue.

Do you think teachers should discipline with physical restraint, or

should parents of special needs children send their kids to special

education schools?