Still Restrained

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http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2010/jan/12/still-restrained/

Still Restrained

by Ramshaw

January 12, 2010

Texas educators forcibly pinned down students with disabilities as many times in

2009 as they did in 2008, despite efforts to curb the practice in public

schools.

The static numbers hide dramatic drops in restraints in many large school

districts. Because many smaller school districts reported restraints for the

first time in 2009, statewide numbers remained virtually unchanged.

School districts like Leander and Garland, which had some of the most restraints

in 2008, cut their numbers in half in 2009, according to data collected by the

Texas Education Agency (TEA). But some tiny school districts reported dozens of

restraints, even when they had just a few disabled students.

Of the 10 school districts that reported the most restraints of disabled

students in 2008, all but one saw fewer restraints in 2009. The Northside school

district in San reported 1,604 restraints in 2009 — up almost 13 percent

from the previous year. Meanwhile, Leander's restraints dropped by 55 percent.

Austin's fell by 22 percent. And Garland more than halved its restraints.

Some school districts that didn't make the top 10 in 2008 crept in during 2009.

Fort Worth had 294 restraints in 2009, up 84 percent from 2008. 's

restraints rose 40 percent, to 265.

Advocates for children with disabilities say it's a good sign that restraints

appear to be dropping in many large school districts — though they question

whether the practice is being phased out, or whether districts have simply

changed their reporting method.

" If there are some drops, I think it's entirely random, " said Steve Elliot, an

attorney who reviews school districts restraints for the non-profit Advocacy,

Inc. " There is no evidence the state has been doing anything about it. "

And they say restraints, which are dangerous and are supposed to be used only as

a last resort, are still far too prevalent in Texas schools. In both 2008 and

2009, Texas educators restrained students with disabilities roughly 18,000 times

a year — an average of 100 times a day. In some cases, the children were

injured, suffering everything from bruises and black eyes to broken bones.

TEA officials attribute the drop in restraints in large districts and the

increased reporting in small districts to the same factor: their focus on the

issue.

" We have put a lot of attention on these numbers, nationally and across the

state, " said Kathy Clayton, state director of special education. " We have talked

a lot about the importance of looking really closely at how they are reporting

the data. "

School districts that saw their restraint numbers drop attributed the change to

a combination of factors: efforts to use behavioral methods to calm students

down, and clearer rules on when teachers must report classroom restraints. Some

district officials, like those in Leander, said they had been over-reporting

restraints in previous years. Austin officials attribute their drop to the

hiring of a full-time student aggression specialist, who emphasizes calming

unruly students without getting physical.

In Fort Worth, officials said restraint numbers rose because administrators did

a better job reporting them — not because there were more incidents in 2009 than

in 2008.

" We've done a much better job within the last year and a half in training

administrators and teachers on what incidents of restraint need to be reported, "

said grazia Sheffield, the district's executive director for special

education. " We're getting a more accurate report of the actual incidents. "

Northside ISD in San , which had more restraints than any other school

district in both 2008 and 2009, saw its numbers rise slightly last school year.

Don Schmidt, the district's assistant superintendent, said restraints probably

grew in 2009 because the student body population continues to swell. He said

it's also possible that a handful of the district's most aggressive students

with disabilities accounted for most of the additional restraints.

" We've had a 22-year-old autistic kid who has gone ballistic on the bus several

different times, who has swung at employees, " Schmidt said, speaking from a

special education conference in Fort Worth. " One particular child can really

cause it to go up over a period of time. "

Clayton said the TEA is giving school districts better tools to combat

restraints, which, by statute, are only to be used in emergencies. The agency

has provided better data collection, so districts can track their own restraint

trends. It has also provided guidance on behavioral alternatives to physical

pin-downs.

But Advocacy's Elliot said the reality is that academics and disability experts

are the ones approaching school districts about reducing restraints — and that

the TEA's role has been minimal.

" Any reduction is related to the academics out convincing districts, " Elliot

said, " and they're not necessarily affiliated with the TEA. "