ERIC Number: EJ1200678
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 3
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0164-775X
EISSN: N/A
The Use of Time-Out and Seclusion with Students with Disabilities: An Update of the Case Law
Zirkel, Perry A.
Communique, v45 n1 p12-14 Sep 2016
The use of seclusion and restraints on students with disabilities has been a major legal issue in recent years. Congress has repeatedly considered bills to limit and prohibit such use in K-12 schools, but the movement against such aversive procedures appears to have shifted to the state legislative level, with several states adding or strengthening laws restricting restraints in the wake of proposed federal legislation. As a companion to the recent update in "Communiqué" (Zirkel, 2016) of Zirkel and Lyons' (2011) case law analysis concerning restraints, this article updates of Bon and Zirkel's (2014) case law analysis concerning timeout and seclusion. This update is limited to court decisions found for the most recent 3-year period, which ended in mid-2016. The results and recommendations mirror, albeit with blurrier edges, those for the parallel analysis of the restraints case law (Zirkel, 2016). Although professional opinion has shifted rather markedly against the use of seclusion and time-out in common connection to, but imprecise differentiation from, restraints (e.g., Freeman & Sugai, 2013; Nishimura, 2015), district leaders do not share the same sense of restrictiveness (e.g., Pudelski, 2012). Although these conflicting views are reflected at the policy making level in terms of failed Congressional bills but increasingly restrictive state laws, the primary legal battleground has been in court. This systematic update of the case law shows that the previous pattern continues with only minor variations.
Descriptors: Discipline, Punishment, Disabilities, Legal Responsibility, Court Litigation, Behavior Problems, Educational Legislation, Equal Education, Federal Legislation, Teacher Behavior, Behavior Modification, Civil Rights Legislation
National Association of School Psychologists. 4340 East West Highway Suite 402, Bethesda, MD 20814. Tel: 301-657-0270; Fax: 301-657-0275; e-mail: publications@naspweb.org; Web site: http://www.nasponline.org/publications/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act; Rehabilitation Act 1973 (Section 504); Americans with Disabilities Act 1990
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A