“These cases are not the norm, but they are not isolated either.”
An incident in which a boy with autism was placed inside a cage at a Canberra primary school is just one example of a more ubiquitous problem, according to the peak body for children with a disability. It came as reports of other similar cases emerged on social media.
READ MORE: Autism experts condemn ACT school’s “classroom cage”.
Children with Disability Australia (CDA) chief executive Stephanie Gotlib said her organisation had received an increased number of reports of students with disability being subjected to restrictive practices in schools.
“These cases are not the norm, but they are not isolated either,” she said.
The comments were made in response to reports a 10-year-old boy with autism was placed in a two-metre by two-metre, cage-like structure made of pool fencing termed a “withdrawal space” by authorities, at a school in Canberra.
RELATED: The incredibly scary thing Australian parents are doing to “cure” their kids of autism.
In the wake of the news an investigation was launched by the ACT Government and the school principal was stood down.
Parents who said their children had experienced similar incidents took to social media to share their stories.
Responding to an ABC News story posted on Facebook, one Canberra woman told of a similar incident experienced by her son.
“My son was locked in a broom closet at a high school here in Canberra and we were asked to pay for the window that he broke. He has autism. And the school did not think that it was wrong. I pulled him out very quickly!!!!” the Facebook post said.
Another woman told of a situation in which her child was strapped into a chair bolted to the floor.
“Disappointing. I saw a pool fenced small area being used the same way in the playground of a special school in Melbourne years ago. Only recently stopped my son’s special school using a time out chair in a separate room – chair bolted to the floor and my son belted in,” she said.
There were also calls for police charges when such incidents occurred:
“The police need to lay charges against the cruel people that did this. No amount of training could help someone with this mentality. My heart goes out to the children and families that have experienced this.”
Ms Gotlib said it was a clear indication that the system was not adequately meeting the needs of students with disability.
IN OTHER NEWS: Nine-year-old Tyrone might be deported. Because he has autism.
“CDA hears about students with disability’s poor education outcomes and experiences on a daily basis,” she said.
“It is absolutely vital that teachers and schools can access the expertise and resources needed to ensure a quality education can be provided to students with disability.
“Cultural change is also needed so that there is no longer a culture of low expectations for students with disability. None of this reform can occur without a much needed boost in funding.”
Other autism experts also lamented reports of the cage incident in Canberra, saying it signals a national standard for autism education in mainstream schools was urgently required.
This article was originally published by ABC online. It has been republished here with full permission.
Top Comments
I have a challenging special-needs child. It's easy to blame the school, but this problem occurs when children attend a mainstream school regardless of the severity of their disability.
This school is probably trying to a) keep other students safe and b) provide a non-stimulating space for the child to cool down without hurting anybody. Throwing severely-challenged students into mainstream and expecting everyone to cope (and be safe) is unfair to everyone concerned.
There are several problems:
1) There are not enough special classes.
2) There are not enough special schools.
3) Some parents insist their child should be mainstreamed.
4) Some parents are forced to mainstream their child due to lack of places in special unit/schools.
In my view, it is not discriminatory for every child to be unable to attend a mainstream school. It IS discriminatory for every child not to be offered the opportunity reach their full educational potential. The critical issue is there are not enough places available outside of mainstream, for those that need it.
Thanks to all the amazing, dedicated teachers in special units/ schools that have helped our child so much.
I would think that if your child broke a window, you would have to foot the bill as the parent. Why not? As for being locked in a broom cupboard, that is appalling, was there any attempt to explain the reasoning???
Thing is though, and this doesn't just apply to parents of autistic children, but all special needs families, sometimes there is a ''my child needs yxz and this must and must not happen, and he needs... he needs... he doesn't like... '' with not a vast amount of thought as to all the other people in the environment, the other snowflakes in the blizzard... if a child is violent for whatever reason, what should a teacher do to protect him or herself or the other students? Or must they put aside their own education because this one unfortunate child requires 100% all the time?
I can imagine it generates all sorts of unsuitable and seemingly very cruel situations, but surely if a child is such a problem that they require physical restraint often enough that there is a fixed-down chair and restraints built for purpose... they need to be removed from that school.
If one of my children ever was on the receiving end of an uprovoked violent outburst, I don't care what disabilities and issues the other child has, I would sue up and down and make sure the violent child was removed, because MY child is just as worthwhile of protection. I pity the teachers and assistants, Imagine the dilemma?
Many autistic kids can't abide sudden changes of routine or loud/unexpected noise, so classrooms must be a difficult environment for them.
But unless the child requires the absolute maximum support to function, they cannot be admitted to a special school. Most children in my son's special schools were non-verbal, multiple-disabled or had physical conditions such as severe epilepsy plus autism.
All but the most needy have to be mainstreamed.
Maybe this varies by state, but when I was teaching a vocational course in a high school where students came from other schools to attend, one of my students came from the local specialist school and was open about the fact that he had Asperger's. Apart from that, I don't know that there was anything else wrong with him that warranted attending the special school. He was the complete opposite of non-verbal, he was extremely chatty, and was not physically disabled. I often wondered why he was at the special school (but as an external person brought in to teach this specific course, I wasn't really privy to students' records or private information about them unless absolutely necessary).