AUGUSTA, Maine — A major overhaul of regulations regarding physical restraint and seclusion of students in public schools appears destined for adoption by the Legislature if it can overcome questions about the financial impact it will have on school districts.
LD 1838, which overhauls Chapter 33 of the Department of Education’s rules on student restraint and seclusion, received unanimous approval Thursday from the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee. Committee clerk Ryan Boyd said the panel voted 8-0 Thursday in favor of the bill and that the six legislators who were absent for Thursday’s vote have until Monday to weigh in.
In essence, the new regulations include clearer definitions of restraint and seclusion in cases of extreme behavior by students, require teachers to be trained, and lay out an extensive documentation and review process.
Boyd and others said given the long consensus-based rulemaking process undertaken by a range of stakeholders and officials from the Department of Education, as well as scant opposition during a public hearing, the bill is expected to move forward to the Legislature.
The process of rewriting Chapter 33 has been building for years since parents began to object to instances of physical restraint and isolation used on their children. The Department of Education, along with various interested parties, entered into a special and somewhat rare yearlong process called “consensus-based rule-making” to develop the new regulations.
Diane Smith Howard of the Maine-based Disability Rights Center said the committee process allowed a range of concerns to be brought to the fore and for the most part to be resolved.
“In the end we had a great product and we’re really pleased about the outcome,” said Smith Howard. “We’re thrilled.”
But debate over the measure might not be over. According to a fiscal note published late Thursday by the Legislature’s Office of Fiscal Program and Review, the bill represents an unfunded mandate for school districts and municipalities.
An unfunded mandate is a law passed by the Legislature that is not supported by at least 90 percent state funding. According to the fiscal note, such laws are open to challenges from municipalities unless two-thirds of both houses of the Legislature approve what is called a “mandate preamble.”
According to Office of Fiscal Program and Review analyst Rachel B. Tremblay, who wrote the fiscal note, the cost that would be borne by school districts under the new Chapter 33 rules could not be quantified. The measure would require new reporting methods, a debriefing process that involves educators and parents, and a mechanism through which parents can lodge complaints.
“If the Legislature passes it without a mandate preamble, whoever is affected by this bill can challenge it … because the Legislature didn’t provide 90 percent of the funding,” said Tremblay, who said such language can be added anywhere in the process, including in the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee or on the House or Senate floor.
Richard A. Durost, executive director of the Maine Principals’ Association, said his organization did not oppose the proposed Chapter 33 changes in concept but he did raise concerns about the impact on school districts during workshops on the bill. He said he is concerned that the bill might reach too far in terms of what kinds of incidents are considered restraint and seclusion and that it might end up costing schools money for training and implementing the reporting process.
“The costs were part of it, but we were also concerned that some of these situations might not be all that serious, like breaking up a simple altercation between second-graders,” said Durost, who said he didn’t have an estimate about what the bill would cost a typical Maine school district. “We don’t oppose the concept but we just wanted to raise what might be some unintended consequences that no one was talking about.”
Smith Howard said the end result of the Chapter 33 changes will be better for students, parents and teachers.
“Regular people who aren’t in the trenches every day probably don’t understand why we would ever restrain students in a public school, but this was necessary,” she said.
Consideration of the measure by the full Legislature has not yet been scheduled.
Parents upset about how their kids are restrained? OMG- my kids come home with stories about little “Johnny” tossing chairs and screaming swear words, (in grade school). I know people working in the schools and they say they can barely touch these kids.
I say grab little “Johnny” and toss him outback never to return. Home school your uncontrollable losers.
I’m even willing to refund your portion of taxes that would go to the school. Assuming you pay any.
Way to go!!
I feel the same way.
“Johnny” Disrupts more education than he will ever gain at school.
Teachers are teachers, they dont get paid to babysit and repremend your kids.
Im old school, wack the little jerks with the ruler.
I know at our school, it would reduce the Special Ed staff by 1/2!!!
At that rate, we could afford to refund the taxes!!
Sorry, I know a lot of people that read this will be so upset, its never their kids fault.
Sounds like corporal punishment for you is the answere to everything
Or in your mind is it all hugs and kisses?
My kid gets in trouble at school, she is in trouble at home.
If parents back up the teacher, then over 1/2 the brats wouldn’t act the way they do. My favorite form of punishment is chores!! 2nd favorite is apology notes. Corporal punishment always did work.
That’s right, corporal punishment works in other countries! Behavior certainly is a cultural thing…they are held accountable in other countries. You screw up, you pay. Daisycat is living in a dream world.
No I live in the real world, it just has to have people like you in it.
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_tot_cri-crime
When you allow young people to ignore rules and protocols, don’t hold them accountable, don’t discipline them appropriately, they quickly learn that they
can get away with things, and the small things turn into big things…see crime
rates from website above.
So sad that you would call young children with neurological, mental and/or physical conditions as “losers.” Rather ironic actually.
Ok, keep the little chair flingers at home. Better yet, stop the medicating and coddling and make them accountable..aka treat them like people.
Neck tattooed meth heads don’t just appear in the paper they are made.
Also, I don’t remember saying anything about physical disabilities. If you call early drug addiction a physical disability then I’ll give ya that one.
Autism? Is he/she endangering my children? if no, then no problem. Problem is with school is it’s really the only place you are forced to go daily and have almost zero control over who you are with. Add to that a well behaved child has not fully developed the skills to see and or deal with “johnny chair flinger”. Later on even in jobs you have some control even if it’s by where you apply. If the shoe was on the other foot and I had a “Johnny chair flinger” I’m sure parents wouldn’t really appreciate “Susie rose-peddle” having chairs flung around her and being called names from an X rated video. Just sayin…
Based on your attitude and the over-generalizatons that you are making here, I’m glad that you don’t have any control over what happens in the classroom.
Love it! Good post!
Makes me wonder how you were raised?
My child who has Autism is HARDLY an uncontrollable loser. What a close-minded awful post.
The principal I had could handle autistic kids too. It didn’t take more than a few trips to the principals office to get even the most stubborn students to behave. Times have changed and now we have to let these out of control kids ruin the educational experience for everyone. I have always said we should be separating the kids that want to learn from the ones that don’t care.
Autistic children are a different matter in that they may not have control over their behaviour. The child with a behaviour “Problem” is all together a horse of a different color, and should be handled in a different manner.
Agrred. I think there is a big differenc between kids with learning and social disabilities that need the extra support and those kids who are just unruley. I remember my elementary school was big on integrating the special eduation kids as much as possible in the mainstream activities. With the support of the teachers and techs, a lot of us (myself included) wrapped ourselves around these kids to help them develop socially appropriate behaviors. I think the article is addressing the little a**holes who like to push buttons and have no sense self control/respect for others.
I think the big problem is that everyone is constantly trying to find excuses/made-up diseases to explain why some of the kids are a**holes, thereby labeling them as having learning and social disabilities and throwing THEM into the same category as the kids that are GENUINELY disabled.
I agree with that too. The difference between a disbility and an attitude/social problem is becoming thinner and thinner.
It sure is. We have two kids in my school with Asberger’s and their father is so supportive. Yes, the kids (brothers) are disruptive and often disrupt the class and cause much angst, but he will work them and us to continue positive progress…but then you get the opposite parents; those who purport that it’s all our fault. When ‘Johnny’ has a fight, gets kicked out of class because he is affecting the learning of other students, doesn’t bring his books to class (ever) and is failing every class, do you think we see the parents? Nope. The poor kid has no support at home and in a case like this, he is learning what he lives with…sad.
In today’s world students who are sent to the Principal’s office think it’s just another joke and place to act out. The sad part is they are right. Why is this so? Because short of harming themselves, others, or extream property damage there isn’t a soul in any public school building that is ever going to touch any student for any reason (With some acceptations for those who’s physical or mental needs require one on one attention) and the kids know this. That’s all well and fine but there has to be some consequence for antisocial/or oppositional defiant behavior that reduces the educational process to zero, right? Well there really isn’t.
These same kids know that they need not worry about getting kicked out of school. A. Because it almost never happen (Principals are afraid of parental reprisals…and of course it would violate the basic lie that every principal likes to tell, that “Everything’s fine in my school, no problems at all” and B. Even if they have to stay home whoever is there will just ignore them by allowing them to play their video games for days on end. Why not remove repeat offenders from public schools? Well, they really can’t without both losing funding and having to spend even more money for placement in an even more expensive “Specialized” school setting. No one wants to pay more to greatly improve the quality of education within publicly funded schools right?
It’s all not really as complicated as it sounds. Basically all you need to know is that badly behaving students pretty much run every school, and there’s not a darn thing anybody is willing to do about it.
Oh, and if I didn’t make it clear above, I’m no proponent of touching students. I’d propose something along the lines of “Quick, harsh and expected consequences” for students who consistently display that they have no social skills and no desire to positively engage in the educational process. Alternative schooling needs to be strongly considered outside of the public setting and the cost of which needs to be lowered.
No touching needed, just say goodbye and good luck.
Does it all come down to money?
Sadly just like most things that do or don’t happen in this country, yes. The few people who really care about kids, their society, or their planet will always be overruled and shouted down by those who care more about their wallets.
I truly believe that we need to seperate people that have your mentality from people that know how to treat children.
Well, maybe the fear of it will help bad children be good. I NEVER heard of a school shooting from my Parents, Grandparents or my generation!
I would have to agree with you. While my child is only 3 and not yet in the school setting, I worry about this constantly. And alas, I apologize for not being able to HOMESCHOOL my child. My full time job, while being a single mother, tends to get in the way of that. And while I’m sure that most of you would jump for joy if I just decided to be a stay at home mom and live off the taxes you so diligently put in, I prefer to earn my living.
Umm, maybe get the father to help.
Maybe the rest of us could track him down for you.
I must have missed something because I don’t see any mention of autism in East_Mosquitoville’s post at all, unless (s)he edited out.
I work at a private, residential treatment school and, though that is a bit off subject from this BDN story, I can tell you that some kids do indeed fling chairs and worse.
Some of you talk about these children as if they are less than animals. It’s really sad to read some of these posts. If you could live a day in someone elses shoes you might think about some of the cruel things you say. Indeed some of you have missed something, we’re talking about our children. You know the saying it takes a whole community to raise a child, well pointing the finger at the parent or belittling the child that is in need of help is not the answere. Come on ,with all of the educated people out there that work with our children you would think they would be able to see what is right in front of them. Don’t just try to fix the problem, try to prevent it from happening in the first place. COMPASSION, UNDERSTANDING goes a long ways. Lets get on the same page.
You should see the movie “The Good Son” some day. Circ. 1993
Yes, I can see the similarities between the Good (really bad) son and some of these posters who lack compassion and understanding. They do resembled the young child in the movie.
Well, you might not want to hear this, but preventing the problem would start with SOME people getting sterilized. Most kids WILL BEHAVE if given the proper parameters, the time and care (not texting and playing on their freaking i-phones, i-pads, Blackberry’s while they’re supposed to be parenting. It all starts at home; when parents start parenting and stop trying to be their kids’ friends and ‘buying their love’ then things might change. And of course, this is a minority…but, it’s that small group that make life he** for not only the teachers but the other students as well.
Half of the cause of this behavior is that parents now-a-days can’t seem to learn how to discipline their children. And they seem not to fathom how this is only hurting their children. Wake up people!!!
So now there are so many experts on parenting!
I assume this means principals, teachers and staff will actually be able to rid themselves of these nasty, loud, abusive, violent bullies. Many may actually have a mental disease and should never have been in school. Getting these kids out of the regular classroom will be a BIG help to teachers.
You seem to be saying that children with psychiatric disorders must not be allowed to get an education. I would disagree with that.
But if you are saying that kids with psychiatric disorders who tend to be disruptive should receive comprehensive special education services within the school, I agree.
willardjohn, and the rest of you who want to “get these kids out of the classroom”…have any of you heard of the American with Disabilities act that requires all children be given the opportunity to the same education regardless of their disability? Disabilites include everything from the autistic child whose frustration may cause him to act out or the child with Down Syndrome who may hide under a desk or the child with a learning disability who may cry when he/she can’t get what is being taught. If any of you were familiar with the proposal that is being passed you would know that it has been updated to protect these children as well as the children in the classroom as well as the teachers and administrators. I agree, no “normal” kid should be subjected to a chair flinger, but no child with or without a disability should be treated in a way that is potentially harmful to themselves. For those who say “they can’t touch the kids” try reading the series of articles in the Falmouth Forecaster that revealed a number of children who were being improperly restrained and secluded repeatedly and suffered injuries and emotional scars as a result. Go ahead, google “Forecaster seclusion and restraint” and see what you get.
The attitude of “toss them out” helps no one. How about working together to make the child successful in the school environment so they don’t have to act out in the classroom or get tossed out and added to the pool of criminals and drop outs who really are just kids who never learned the skills they needed and became losers because they were told they were (just as some of the above comments have so thoughtfully pointed out.)
As for these diseases being “Made UP” I can’t even handle that kind of ignorance. Until one of you has a special needs child, no matter what the degree of his or her emotional, behavioral or physical disability why don’t you try imagining for a second what that might feel like as a parent. If you don’t think you wouldn’t do every single thing you could to make sure that child gets the education he/she deserves in an environment that is safe and nurturing then maybe that’s a good thing, because you probably couldn’t handle that kind of responsibility.
I have experienced that many do not want to see the potential some of these children have. The system gives up on them,teachers, principals,friends, relatives and communities where they live. People just turn the other cheek unless you have a voice and can advocate for these children. I have personally gone round with the school system and have had to become a very defensive person to make sure my child was not being hurt anymore,because she has been hurt ,physically and emotionally. It’s sad that all the school system is worried about is their performance testing. They really don’t listen when you are trying to tell them what works for your child, just might be different from what they are willing to do to help.Let’s put your child in a HOLD and see if that helps her /him conform.
Maybe some of the teachers need to be forced out of the classroom.
Kids. Kids who go to school, behave themselves, study hard, obey the rules, and are as trying to learn as well as they can under the rules imposed by adults who are supposed to know what they are doing. Every day these kids, who do what they are supposed to do and are trying their best to cope with a disruptive classroom, bullied by abusive students who are schooled that they are “special” and cannot be denied their place no matter how spastic they act. If that is not bad enough they are abused further by parents who insist and demand that “their child” is the one being abused. Get a life parents. When it is your kid who is the problem, work to help solve the problem. Don’t make it worse by demanding “rights”. It’s the rights of the classroom that is being denied. Behavioral problems are hard enough without parents being an even worse problem than the kids themselves. It’s no wonder that teachers, students, school boards, principals and parents are so frustrated. More rules, and it’s always the “good students” who a deprived as a result.
Having worked in education for over 20 years…..I have to say, schools should not be put in the position of restraining any child. It is not right. We need to be allowed other measures than putting hands on a child. It is just not right.
That sounds good.
I’d be interested in hearing what some of those “other measures” are, however.
Rarely do I see so many common sense comments on this type issue. The ‘everybody gets a trophy’ syndrome of teaching/parenting is doing nothing but enabling future entitled brats.
Parenting is so much more than housing and feeding; it’s about molding good citizens that can be part of a ‘civil’ization.
Some of you talk about these children as if they are less than animals. It’s really sad to read some of these posts. If you could live a day in someone elses shoes you might think about some of the cruel things you say.
It’s pretty simple, when a child is 5 he/she should know how to sit down and shut up and listen to the teacher. Why is that so hard? It is hard for some kids that have never had discipline, but by 7 or 8 they should have it figured out. If they are 7 or 8 and can’t sit down and be quiet then you have to wonder if there is something wrong with them or they need a talk with the principal.
Wondering what’s wrong with them is an excellent first step.
Some may have serious psychiatric illnesses. Some are being viciously abused at home and can’t settle down because they’re having so many flashbacks, plus they’re hypervigilant–every passing shadow has them ready to lash out to protect themselves. Some kids as young as 6 or 8 are being fed alcohol and drugs by relatives. Some have undiagnosed brain damage from head injuries nobody in a dysfunctional family thought to double-check at the time. Some have serious undiagnosed learning disabilities and are extremely frustrated and unable to figure out their schoolwork.
They do need to be sorted out, and each child’s unique problems need to be addressed. In most cases, it will take a whole lot more than a tlak with the principal.
The problem is that children at 5 are not wired to sit down and shut up. They are 5. Their energy and interaction is how nature programmed them, so they could learn things.
I don’t know what the answer is; I do know that it is not physically restraining the child. That only creates an enviornment that will exacerbate the original problem by creating more anger, fear, fight or flight, etc.
One thing I do know, as was touched upon in an earlier post, schools have become very boring. An outcome perhaps of our nation’s willingness to solve all economic problems by cutting school funding; which was never funded fairly to begin with. Even the most disruptive child, unless that child is struggling with an impairment, has something they are interested in. If the day ever comes back when a teacher can take a few minutes to help connect each child with each lesson, assuming that they would even deign to do so, I believe we will see far less problems in the classroom.
Also, more physical activity would go a long way to calming some over active children. They do nothing but sit in front of the TV at home and then go to school to sit for another eight hours. Let’s get our children moving again. You know it couldn’t hurt.
To me, the perfect way to start the school day would be for students and teachers to take a 2-3 mile walk every morning followed by a healthy breakfast of fresh fruits and vegetables with no human made processed foods.
Common -since there is none .
Can’t help but wonder if you were one of those kids who bullied those who were different.
When I was in grade school, our principal had a very good “punishment”, I didn’t like it at the time, but as an adult I realize it worked. Pushups and wind sprints, get the excess energy out through exercise, he was an ex-marine, stern but respectful, I had a lot of respect for him, because he gave a lot of respect to his students. That was almost 30 years ago and times have changed, I guess.
I’m a teacher–taught everything from second grade to college, long career.
Our schools are jails whose main product is boredom. They are deeply unserious: they somehow turn a child’s inborn desire to know, learn, and understand into a series of tedious exercises and, further, convince many students that they are stupid and hate books, ideas, and so on.
They’ve let loose on the land an epidemic of doubtful diagnoses of autism and ADHD rather than take responsibility for their failure. It can’t be us, so it must be you.
I imagine that when the dust has settled over the new rulemaking, it will be easier to drug students into submission, possibly harder to slap on the cuffs. That change will have more to do with lawsuits than with any new introduction of sanity or decency into schools
Reading through these comments helps one understand why schools are such unpleasant places. Look at how many of the commenters are hostile to children, quick to demonize and blame and sneer, eager to fantasize their punishment and pain.
I assume that those commenters feel that way about the world generally, but that only children are helpless enough to be their victims. And those same commenters all become experts in education in their comments, all as voting citizens help to design our classrooms, and all seem to think that schools need to be a race with winners and losers, reward and punishment, glory and shame.
I find it sad that the wills of a few will end up overriding the majority. Why should normal kids have to deal with the ones who can’t or won’t behave? Sure, these “special” kids are entitled to an education, and should get it, but I don’t think they should at the expense of the others. I’m tired of seeing those normal kids have to “deal with it” every day.
Who is to say what is normal? I’m tired of seeing all the normal kids getting away with things ,such as bullying,teasing,ignoring,making others feel less than them, and as I see it they aren’t any more special than anyone else ,they just might not have a label.
When I was in high school we had a vice principal that would grab you by the back of the neck when you screwed up we all respected him. God bless his sole. Today they suspend kids for the smallest reasons instead of addressing real problems like why the kid lips off? Was he bullied problems at home? I never got suspended But was let to know who the boss is and had great respect for that.
The staged photo adds a lot . . .
willardjohn, and the rest of you who want to “get these kids out of the classroom”…have any of you heard of the American with Disabilities act that requires all children be given the opportunity to the same education regardless of their disability? Disabilites include everything from the autistic child whose frustration may cause him to act out or the child with Down Syndrome who may hide under a desk or the child with a learning disability who may cry when he/she can’t get what is being taught.
If any of you were familiar with the proposal that is being passed you would know that it has been updated to protect these children as well as the children in the classroom as well as the teachers and administrators. I agree, no “normal” kid should be subjected to a chair flinger, but no child with or without a disability should be treated in a way that is potentially harmful to themselves. For those who say “they can’t touch the kids” try reading the series of articles in the Falmouth Forecaster that revealed a number of children who were being improperly restrained and secluded repeatedly and suffered injuries and emotional scars as a result. Go ahead, google “Forecaster seclusion and restraint” and see what you get. The attitude of “toss them out” helps no one. How about working together to make the child successful in the school environment so they don’t have to act out in the classroom or get tossed out and added to the pool of criminals and drop outs who really are just kids who never learned the skills they needed and became losers because they were told they were (just as some of the above comments have so thoughtfully pointed out.)
As for these diseases being “Made UP” I can’t even handle that kind of ignorance. Until one of you has a special needs child, no matter what the degree of his or her emotional, behavioral or physical disability why don’t you try imagining for a second what that might feel like as a parent. If you don’t think you wouldn’t do every single thing you could to make sure that child gets the education he/she deserves in an environment that is safe and nurturing then maybe that’s a good thing, because you probably couldn’t handle that kind of responsibility.
Your comment is Selfish period.. To put a child who disrupts a classroom so nobody else can learn should not be allowed in school.. It’s that simple. Not everyone is going to make it in life and by allowing a child to disrupt a teacher, when that Teacher is trying to teach is wrong.. Wake up and see the distructive forces at play here.. Selfish People ruining my grandkids chances for an education is wrong … Wait a minute, I’m not politicaly correct… When my grandkids play ball I keep score for them, so they know if they won or loss, just like real life.. Selfish/selfish/selfish people are the doom of our schools….. Not everyone is intitled to an education, If that were true, please someone pay my daughters school loans off.
There are kids that are so bad in class that the Teacher has to remove all of the other students from the class just to keep them safe. So one child can and has destroyed the classes chance to learn that day.. I guess this is what they mean by everychild has the right to be in a classroom setting … Parents ought to have the right to sue the school/teachers and the parents of disruptive students for taking away their childs rights to a education and safe enviroment. The real problem is some people shouldn’t be allow to breed.. sterilize idiots.
Having worked in education..specifically with high needs students over the past several years, there are many comments here that hold SOME validity. Years ago, we were taught to sit down, listen, raise our hands, and many other things. The system then allowed for corporal punishment. So what changed? People realized that is was NOT ok to allow someone in authority other than a parent to BEAT a child.
The change in attitude over the last 30 years, allowing disrespect to become the standard; allowing children to do whatever they want whenever they want.. as well as the decline of parental involvement all have their piece in this puzzle. We went from parents actually having support of extended family, friends and neighbors; to people that live in “that house over there.” Then, there was the generation of giving children everything, with no limits or consequences. We now deal with THEIR children, who have no boundaries, no manners, and a sense of entitlement that would put a Rockefeller or a Kennedy to shame.
It is not the fault of the child when they need to be assisted with staying safe, even from themselves. THAT is what we are trained to do. Offering a child a safe, quiet place to regain their composure, with supportive adults who can model appropriate behavior is not wrong. We see the headlines when something goes wrong (they absolutely should be addressed) ..what about all the times these supports work the right way, and ALL the students benefit? Funny how those never make the news.
Making sure proper systems and training are in place, wonderful idea. For the limited hours a week we spend with a child, it really does make a difference… eventually. Now, what about the many many hours they spend outside of school? I have seen far more offensive behavior from *normal* kids, with ‘respectable upstanding parents’ than the students who have higher needs. Consistent, clear expectations and boundaries are something we grew up with. Those lines often no longer exist in today’s families. It takes much more than writing legislation, it takes people getting involved with people again, face to face. Listening, understanding, and working together to support others is not some antiquated notion..its exactly whats needed.
Legislation to ensure safety, absolutely. But be very careful to think through the rest, you may do more harm than good.
To those who say the issues rest with the special needs students, move them out.. come spend a day or two in my world. You will see differently if you open your eyes.
As a foster parent to special needs’ teens, I’ll be the first to tell you that most of them do not belong in regular public school. We all made a serious mistake decades ago by mainstreaming kids who before that would have been educated in small programs that are tailored to their specific needs. Of course, this is more expensive and requires more instructors – often a one to one relationship. No ordinary teacher should be required to deal with abusive, aggressive, disrespectful children, and no child should be expected to try to get an education in such an atmosphere. It’s time to rethink separate schools or classrooms for special needs kids.
I think this is a relevant point. Many of these kids don’t have the skills to function in a regular classroom and that is why they get stressed out. They would actually often be better served in a smaller class until they gain the skills to function in the mainstream. That’s what they did when I was growing up. But the law is written for inclusion so we have to put measures in place to protect all while including all.