GAO report details school abuse of students with disabilities
May 20th, 2009From the Washington Times, Media News:
A Government Accountability Office report reveals that the use of seclusion and physical restraint in schools disproportionately impacts students with disabilities and has resulted in hundreds of possible abuse cases and at least 20 deaths.
House Education and Labor Committee Chairman George Miller, who requested the report and held a committee hearing Tuesday to highlight the findings, said, “This behavior, in some instances, looks like torture. The current situation is unacceptable and cannot continue.”
Some findings of the report:
- More often than not, according to the report, teachers and staff who used seclusion and restraint in abusive ways had not been properly trained. The practices were often used as a routine disciplinary tactic rather than as a response to an emergency, the report said.
- Just two states – California and Texas – require reporting of restraint or seclusion, and those two states alone report 30,000 incidents during the current school year.
- GAO found instances of 5-year-olds tied to chairs with bungee cords, children gagged with duct tape, and a 13-year-old who hanged himself after being held in seclusion for a lengthy amount of time.
- Half the teachers involved in cases that were investigated by the GAO are still employed as educators.
- In the cases investigated by the GAO, children were restrained or secluded for minor offenses like being “uncooperative,” getting out of their seats, or slouching in their chairs. The cases did not involve physically aggressive children.
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May 20th, 2009 at 8:55 am
I attended the Congressional hearing on behalf of National Down Syndrome Congress. The testimony from parents of kids who had suffered and died as a result of these practices was heart wrenching.
It’s important to remember that these practices touch ALL people with disabilities as evidenced in the outrageous Texas institution fight club.
We need to continue to work constantly to improve the quality of life, services and choices for adults and children with disabilities in schools, the community through systems reform.