Discipline in High School and Elementary Education
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Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION
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Discipline in High School and Elementary Education Cassandra Cash Grand Canyon University SPE 350 Special Education Litigation and Law August 12, 2013
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION Discipline in High School and Elementary Education On Tuesday, August 13, 2013, I went to Oak Hill School to interview a high school
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administrator and an elementary administrator. During the interviews there were many questions asked and answered. I was introduced to Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks. The both have been around special education for many years and they enjoy their jobs. They were excited to have someone visit the school and to get a chance to be interviewed. The interview started out with Mr. Pete, because he had been in the profession longer. The first question was: What are the discipline issues that often arise with special needs students? Mr. Pete replied that the main issues were putting special needs students in the same classroom as the regular students, and that some teachers had problems with trying to discipline the special needs students. But the disciplines had to be according to the students IEP. Mrs. Hicks was asked the same question and she replied the same as Mr. Pete with following the right discipline from the IEP and that some students acted out because of their disabilities and needed to be in a special classroom and not a regular setting. What challenges, if any, do administrators and teachers face in regard to special needs students? Mr. Pete replied that the challenges that he face are lack of appreciation, not getting enough support from the parents and there are plenty of paperwork that must be filled out on a daily basis. Dealing with the special needs students is very challenging and it takes plenty of time to deal with them. Mrs. Hicks replied also that the challenging that she face is the considerable amount of work. Having to collaborate with the special education and general education teachers can be challenging. The curriculum must be meet to support the students and their needs. The teacher has to pay attention to all of the characteristics of the special needs students. This need to be done so that instructions and behavioral problems can be avoided. All special needs students must be educated in a least restrictive environment . This can sometimes cause inconveniences for administrators, teachers and regular education students. The next question that was asked was, How do disciplinary decisions and actions vary between special need
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION
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students and regular education students? Mr. Pete said that most of the time, the special needs students are talked to and not disciplined as fast as the regular students. The special needs students have to have a certain amount of time spent in the classroom setting and not denied services according to the IEP. Mrs. Hicks answer had a little similarity. She said that a teacher must consider the students IEP first to see what their needs are and then can follow with disciplinary actions. Most students will have a Behavior Intervention Plan within their IEP that must also be followed. This could be the reason why the student is acting out in the classroom. Another question that was asked was Do special needs students understand that disciplinary decisions and actions may vary between themselves and regular education students? According to Mr. Pete, some special needs students may not understand the situation. But Mrs. Hicks said that with most behaviors that take place in the classroom, the parents are informed of the behavior and they get together to come to a conclusion for discipline. Further on in the interview, more questions were asked. Do parents of special needs students understand that disciplinary decisions and actions may vary between their children and regular education students? On the other hand, Mr. Pete replied that parents do understand that the teachers can't discipline the special needs students like the regular education students. The special needs students have more needs than the regular students. Some parents want to be involved in their children education and how they act in the classroom. While Mrs. Hicks reply was a little different. She said that some parents do not believe that their children have a behavior problem and doesn't act up in the classroom. The parents will say it's the disability that cases the reactions of the student. How do parents of special and regular education students react to the differences? Furthermore, Mr. Pete replied that some parents understand that no two special needs students can be discipline alike because of different disabilities while regular students can receive the same discipline. Mrs. Hicks had a different reply. She said that parents may understand and are hesitant when it comes to disciplining their children. What role does the district play with regard to decision making? Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks had
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION the same reply with this question. The both said that the role that the district play with regards to
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decision making is that it varies with each district. The district's governing board must prepare a course of action for discipline rules that are consistent with the state and federal laws for the schools. School board members must also prepare policies and regulations for safety issues. Who provides directions and training to the administrators and teachers to ensure they are following IDEA regulations about discipline? According to Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks, the training is provided by the head director of special education or coordinator is responsible for providing updated information on discipline. The principal or assistant principal can sometimes provide information from previous workshops that they have attended and then bring the information back to share with the administrators and teachers. Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks both had some differences and some similarities with discipline. The court cases that appear to have influenced the school districts decisions was Honig v. Doe, 484 U. S. 305. This court case said that disabled children can not be excluded from the classroom for dangerous or disruptive conduct growing out of their disabilities (Wrights Law, 1988). In the Education of the Handicapped Act (EHA or the Act), 84 Stat. 175, as amended, Congress made sure that all handicapped students have a free appropriate public education with regards to special education and related services designed to meet the students unique needs, and to make sure that the rights of the handicapped students and their parents or guardians are protected (Wrights Law, 1988).
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION References Wrights Law (1988). HONIG, California Superintendent of Public Instruction v. DOE, et al. http://www.wrightslaw.com/law/caselaw/ussupct.honig.doe.htm
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Discipline in High School and Elementary Education Cassandra Cash Grand Canyon University SPE 350 Special Education Litigation and Law August 12, 2013
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION Discipline in High School and Elementary Education On Tuesday, August 13, 2013, I went to Oak Hill School to interview a high school
2
administrator and an elementary administrator. During the interviews there were many questions asked and answered. I was introduced to Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks. The both have been around special education for many years and they enjoy their jobs. They were excited to have someone visit the school and to get a chance to be interviewed. The interview started out with Mr. Pete, because he had been in the profession longer. The first question was: What are the discipline issues that often arise with special needs students? Mr. Pete replied that the main issues were putting special needs students in the same classroom as the regular students, and that some teachers had problems with trying to discipline the special needs students. But the disciplines had to be according to the students IEP. Mrs. Hicks was asked the same question and she replied the same as Mr. Pete with following the right discipline from the IEP and that some students acted out because of their disabilities and needed to be in a special classroom and not a regular setting. What challenges, if any, do administrators and teachers face in regard to special needs students? Mr. Pete replied that the challenges that he face are lack of appreciation, not getting enough support from the parents and there are plenty of paperwork that must be filled out on a daily basis. Dealing with the special needs students is very challenging and it takes plenty of time to deal with them. Mrs. Hicks replied also that the challenging that she face is the considerable amount of work. Having to collaborate with the special education and general education teachers can be challenging. The curriculum must be meet to support the students and their needs. The teacher has to pay attention to all of the characteristics of the special needs students. This need to be done so that instructions and behavioral problems can be avoided. All special needs students must be educated in a least restrictive environment . This can sometimes cause inconveniences for administrators, teachers and regular education students. The next question that was asked was, How do disciplinary decisions and actions vary between special need
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION
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students and regular education students? Mr. Pete said that most of the time, the special needs students are talked to and not disciplined as fast as the regular students. The special needs students have to have a certain amount of time spent in the classroom setting and not denied services according to the IEP. Mrs. Hicks answer had a little similarity. She said that a teacher must consider the students IEP first to see what their needs are and then can follow with disciplinary actions. Most students will have a Behavior Intervention Plan within their IEP that must also be followed. This could be the reason why the student is acting out in the classroom. Another question that was asked was Do special needs students understand that disciplinary decisions and actions may vary between themselves and regular education students? According to Mr. Pete, some special needs students may not understand the situation. But Mrs. Hicks said that with most behaviors that take place in the classroom, the parents are informed of the behavior and they get together to come to a conclusion for discipline. Further on in the interview, more questions were asked. Do parents of special needs students understand that disciplinary decisions and actions may vary between their children and regular education students? On the other hand, Mr. Pete replied that parents do understand that the teachers can't discipline the special needs students like the regular education students. The special needs students have more needs than the regular students. Some parents want to be involved in their children education and how they act in the classroom. While Mrs. Hicks reply was a little different. She said that some parents do not believe that their children have a behavior problem and doesn't act up in the classroom. The parents will say it's the disability that cases the reactions of the student. How do parents of special and regular education students react to the differences? Furthermore, Mr. Pete replied that some parents understand that no two special needs students can be discipline alike because of different disabilities while regular students can receive the same discipline. Mrs. Hicks had a different reply. She said that parents may understand and are hesitant when it comes to disciplining their children. What role does the district play with regard to decision making? Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks had
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION the same reply with this question. The both said that the role that the district play with regards to
4
decision making is that it varies with each district. The district's governing board must prepare a course of action for discipline rules that are consistent with the state and federal laws for the schools. School board members must also prepare policies and regulations for safety issues. Who provides directions and training to the administrators and teachers to ensure they are following IDEA regulations about discipline? According to Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks, the training is provided by the head director of special education or coordinator is responsible for providing updated information on discipline. The principal or assistant principal can sometimes provide information from previous workshops that they have attended and then bring the information back to share with the administrators and teachers. Mr. Pete and Mrs. Hicks both had some differences and some similarities with discipline. The court cases that appear to have influenced the school districts decisions was Honig v. Doe, 484 U. S. 305. This court case said that disabled children can not be excluded from the classroom for dangerous or disruptive conduct growing out of their disabilities (Wrights Law, 1988). In the Education of the Handicapped Act (EHA or the Act), 84 Stat. 175, as amended, Congress made sure that all handicapped students have a free appropriate public education with regards to special education and related services designed to meet the students unique needs, and to make sure that the rights of the handicapped students and their parents or guardians are protected (Wrights Law, 1988).
Running head: DISCIPLINE IN HIGH SCHOOL AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION References Wrights Law (1988). HONIG, California Superintendent of Public Instruction v. DOE, et al. http://www.wrightslaw.com/law/caselaw/ussupct.honig.doe.htm
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