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GAO report: Special-needs kids abused in schools

Investigators in Utah say a teacher left Garrett Peck in an isolation cubicle for at least two and a half hours.

(CNN) — Congressional auditors have uncovered widespread abuse of techniques use to restrain or discipline special-education students in U.S. schools, with some deaths linked to the practices, a top congressman says.

The findings are among those expected from a Government Accountability Office report scheduled to be released Tuesday. The report documented serious problems with the way children with disabilities are being treated in public schools, including cases of children being held face-down on the ground.

The GAO report was prepared for the House Education and Labor Committee, which is considering new laws governing what actions teachers can take to rein in disruptive special-needs students.

“I think what we’re going to hear from the GAO is that very often, special-need children are subjected to the policies of seclusion and policies of restraint that have turned out to be lethal in a number of circumstances,” said Rep. George Miller, D-California, the committee’s chairman.

In other cases, children as young as 6 have been locked away “for hours at a time,” Miller said.

“What the GAO is telling us is that that policy is fairly widespread,” he said. “The state regulations about how to handle these incidents don’t exist in about half the states, and in other states you have kind of a patchwork of regulations.”

The GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, found that state laws governing the treatment of the more than 6 million children classified as having “special needs” — conditions including autism and Down syndrome — are patchy at best. Teachers and school staff frequently lack training in correct restraint methods, and in some cases, where improper restraints led to injuries, teachers often kept their jobs.

Only five states keep track of incidents where special-needs students are separated or restrained. Parents contacted by CNN commonly said they were not told their child was being disciplined until he or she began to behave badly at home — a sign of trouble at school.

[FULL STORY]

Related:

• The Coalition for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports … Abuse
• USA Today: Restraint can dispirit and hurt special-ed students

GAO in 2007 investigated similar allegations in residential treatment facilities.

Often in schools, investigators found, teachers aren’t fully trained in the techniques. Only seven states even require training, and 19 have no laws or regulations on restraint or seclusion in school.

• USA Today: GAO: Schools restrain, confine disabled children

A new report from the Government Accountability Office, Congress’ investigative arm, also out today, finds “widespread” allegations of abuse involving the practices in schools — even when students aren’t physically aggressive or dangerous to themselves or others.

• Hearing About Restraints and Seclusion Today

Today at 10am (EDT) is a live webcast of hearings on the “abusive and deadly use of seclusion and restraint …

• Disability News | PatriciaEBauer.com

Records reveal more abuse at Texas institution - ‘Fight club’ abuse apparently was not an isolated case From the Dallas Morning News: State records say dozens of employees at Texas institutions were fired…

• Mother Records Autistic Child’s Alleged Abuse - 11Alive.com | WXIA
• GAO Report Says Children with Disabilities Abused | Autism Disorder
• GAO Report Says Children with Disabilities Abused « A Time for Change

Filed under: Abuse, Autism in the news, Education, Ignorant About Autism, Safety, Schools, Special Needs Abuse