The Senate version of the amendments, sponsored by Senators Sessions (R-AL) and Bonds (R-MO), provides for "uniform policies regarding discipline." That could mean that if schools expelled general education students with no services or limited services, students with disabilities could also be expelled with reduced or no services.
Both Senate amendments also weaken the "stay-put" provisions in IDEA. If these became law, school authorities could unilaterally remove any student who "assaults or threatens to assault a teacher, principal, or other school personnel, including independent contractors and volunteers." They could also remove any student who "threatens to carry, possess, or use a weapon, (including a threat to kill another person) to or at a school, on school premises, or to or at a school function…." The proposed legislation also changes the wording in the language regarding illegal drugs from "the child knowingly possesses or uses illegal drugs..." to "the child possesses or uses illegal drugs."
Like the teachers, parents, and citizens that we both are, we recognize public schools as being a reflection of the society in which they exist. We continue to call for the best and safest education that can be provided for all students and the staff who work with them. It doesn't appear that these proposed changes would increase learning or safety, however. We believe these changes would have many negative features for our students.
The language regarding threats to persons, threats to carry a weapon, and knowingly carrying illegal drugs raises enormous red flags for us when we consider many of the students we work with. The impulsivity we see in many of our students, combined with their desire to be accepted by typical peers, and compounded by problems they have with social perception, understanding and language put them at immediate risk for saying something or acting in a way that would place them at risk of expulsion under the proposed changes.
The legislation that would allow school authorities to apply the same disciplinary provisions to all students arises from concerns of "dual discipline" standards. Some school personnel outside of special education believe that students with disabilities do not receive the same consequences as general education students. We need to continue educating everyone involved about the fallacies of that argument and provide them with information about programs that work.
We have to persist in making sure everyone working with our students understands the dimensions of ASD and its effects on social cognition and communications, and we can all give examples of specific instances in which our students did not automatically acquire the basic behaviors their typical peers learned so easily. We can also provide success stories of long-standing behaviors that came under control when positive, preventive standards were applied. We must actively support the programs that promote better discipline for all students, including sound instructional strategies and well-implemented school-wide character education programs.
Following the September 11 attacks, Congress and our other elected leaders have had to act quickly and decisively to protect our country. Agendas and plans had to be re-prioritized on the spot to respond to the national emergency. As time passes, however, our government is returning its attention to more routine tasks, and the ESEA reauthorization will proceed in the form of a compromise bill. We need to thank our legislators for all they have done in the past but let them know we oppose amending the IDEA through the ESEA. Senator Hillary Clinton and Representative Major Owens are the New York members of the Conferees panel who will draft the compromise language. Let them or their staff people who deal with education issues know that the "uniform discipline policies" provisions are a threat to the progress we have made in special education.
Since the "dual discipline" topic is on the national table, we will look at Functional Behavior Assessments and Behavior Intervention Plans in a future issue.
Michael Lo Gallo
Liz Smithmeyer
