WASHINGTON — Tens of thousands of students, most of them disabled, are strapped down or physically restrained in school, and disability advocates hope that a new Education Department report detailing the practice of “seclusion and restraint” will spur federal action to end it.
The report, compiled and made public for the first time by the department’s civil rights arm, shows that 70 percent of students subjected to the techniques have disabilities. There are no current federal standards on the use of the techniques in schools.
The American Association of School Administrators says they are a last resort in protecting students and faculty from physical harm and keeping some children with behavioral problems in schools who might otherwise go into residential institutions.
Advocates for the disabled say the use of seclusion and restraint is too accepted in schools and has led to abuse. They want Congress or the department to help curtail the practice.
They point to news reports and a Government Accountability Office study in 2009 illustrating cases of children as young as preschool age who were duct-taped to chairs and locked alone for hours. That report by Congress’ investigative and auditing arm did not determine whether these types of allegations were widespread, but investigators did find “hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and death related to the use of these methods on schoolchildren during the past two decades.”
Sasha Pudelski, government affairs manager at the school administrators association, said except in rare cases, school workers use seclusion and restraint safely and only when necessary. She said federal action isn’t appropriate because the issue should be addressed at the local and state level, which is happening.
“We would never defend the heinous practices that are sometimes highlighted,” Pudelski said.
The Education Department’s data from the 2009-10 school year showed tens of thousands of instances in which the techniques were reportedly used. It also showed that that while black students represent 21 percent of students with disabilities, they account for 44 percent of students with disabilities who are subjected to mechanical restraints. It’s unclear the circumstances or exact methods used in the cases.
People on both sides of the debate said the new numbers don’t show a complete picture.
Because they are based on a survey that relied on self-reporting in about 85 percent of schools, activists said there are likely many more cases. Pudel ski said it was the first time that schools were asked to compile the statistics, so there was confusion about how to count some situations, and therefore probably over-reporting.
