1 / 12

Legal Considerations for Public School Discipline Policies

Explore the legal framework and due process rights in disciplining students, with a focus on students with disabilities, IDEA provisions, and schoolwide discipline strategies for teachers and administrators.

ddavy
Download Presentation

Legal Considerations for Public School Discipline Policies

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Chapter 2 Legal Considerations for Public Schools

  2. Teachers’ Duty to Enforce Discipline • In loco parentis • In place of the parent • All students have rights in disciplinary matters based on the due process clause of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments.

  3. Students’ Due Process Protection • Two general areas of due process rights afforded to students • Procedural due process • Substantive due process (Goss v. Lopez, 1975) • Applies only to short suspensions of under 10 days

  4. Procedural Due Process: The Right to Fair Procedures • Must be fairness of methods and procedures in implementing discipline

  5. Substantive Due Process: The Right to Reasonableness • Protection of students from violation of rights • Reasonableness of disciplinary procedures (Valente & Valente, 2005)

  6. Summary of Due Process Protections • Two fundamentals in developing rules and disciplinary procedures: • Rules must be clear • Rules must have a school-based rationale • Consequences clearly stated • Applied in a fair and consistent manner

  7. Disciplining Students with Disabilities • IDEA • Created a detailed set of rules and guidelines to ensure the appropriate education of students who were eligible for special education programs

  8. Disciplinary Provisions of IDEA 1997 and 2004 • Suspensions and Expulsions • Short-term and suspensions • Serial suspensions • Long-term suspensions and expulsions • The Manifestation Determination • Review of the relationship between a student’s disability and misconduct • The interim alternative educational setting

  9. Provisions Continued… • Proactively addressing behavior problems of students with disabilities • Summary of disciplining students with disabilities • IDEA 1997 and IDEA 2004 have been the subject of much controversy • Both emphasize proactive, positive behavioral supports and interventions

  10. Schoolwide Discipline • Focusing on teaching appropriate behavior while preventing misbehavior from occurring • Developing schoolwide discipline policies • Rules and consequences • Programming for students with serious behavior problems

  11. Implications for Teachers and Administrators • Develop school district disciplinary policies and procedures • Proactively address problem behavior • Provide training in behavioral interventions to teachers • Document disciplinary actions • Evaluate the effectiveness of interventions

  12. Summary • School districts and personnel have… • A legal responsibility to ensure safe, orderly learning environment. • To develop school-wide discipline plans. • To define, teaching, and reinforce appropriate behaviors. • To focus on positive, proactive models. • To provide FBAs and BIPs for most serious problem behaviors.

More Related