Managing disruptive or challenging behavior has been cited as one of the top concerns of early care and education providers. Equipping staff with feasible behavior management strategies is paramount in reducing the occurrence of challenging behaviors in the classroom and negating the need for more intrusive interventions. This article discusses…

The U.S. Department of Education defines physical restraints as a restriction that immobilizes or reduces the ability to move torso, arms, legs, or head freely. Because of the inherent dangers of physical restraints, their use is strictly regulated in most hospitals, prisons, and public law enforcement settings. Although students have died in…

Urban policymakers, city officials, and community residents utilize neighborhood revitalization initiatives to establish safe and empowered neighborhoods. In 2016, leaders in Columbus, Ohio, launched a neighborhood revitalization effort designed to improve safety, access to opportunities, and economic development in the historically underserved…

Teachers struggle with using consequences for misbehavior--because using consequences well requires a nuanced view of disciplinary situations. Anderson explores six factors that complicate the use of consequence: Confusion over what consequences means; confusion over what it means for a punishment to "work;" the fact that teachers'…

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on education and the ways in which teachers engage their students. Given the individual and collective traumatic nature and impact of this global health crisis, we provide specific strategies for addressing the needs of young adolescents while teaching remotely. Specifically, we posit that…

This report summarizes activities undertaken by OSPI's Reducing Restraint & Eliminating Isolation (RREI) project during fiscal year 2025, as mandated through 2023's biennial operating budget and 2024's supplemental operating budget. Demonstration projects incorporate "Pilot site" districts that strategically engage in the process of…

The first step in providing support to children and teens exposed to trauma and adversity is helping them to feel safe at school and demonstrating alternative working models of relationships. By spending time in a supportive classroom, students can learn that school can be a safe place, and that teachers and peers can be caring, thoughtful people…

The purpose of this article is to first provide PE teachers with an understanding of the different types of trauma students face, including traumatic events, historical trauma experienced by members of racial, ethnic, sexual, and religious minorities, as well as how trauma exposure interferes with student learning. Second, it will encourage…

The 2022 Legislature directed the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) to create an advisory workgroup with specific participants to report back on topics related to student isolation and seclusion. This legislative report provides a background on the workgroup, history of isolation and restraint, current practices in the state of…

Despite having a classroom management plan in place when the year begins, teachers will encounter instances when student behavior blows up. The author discusses what to do when a student has a meltdown or in the aftermath of a fistfight when students are pulled out of class to deal with the consequences.

This paper outlines a programme "Safe and Social" that has been implemented with adults with intellectual disability across multiple contexts in a service based in Ireland. The emphasis within the programme is on providing service users and staff with a framework and the necessary language to discuss social behaviours and boundaries,…

Mary Santelman discusses all forms of biting, the labeling of a biter, the biter as victim or victimizer, and record keeping of biting behavior. On the list of toddler behaviors, she also examines tantrums, including insights into the child's emotional needs, calming down, kicking, hugging, throwing things, and hurting people. Mary describes…

In this article we discuss the necessity of fully informing patients and their families of what constitutes physical interventions and their attendant risks under the established principles and obligations of informed consent. After a brief review of the elements of informed consent and the nature of the duty to advise patients and their families…

A task force authorized by the Executive Council of the Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI) generated the statement below concerning the techniques called "restraint" and "seclusion." Members of the task force independently reviewed the scientific literature concerning restraint and seclusion and agreed unanimously to the…

Though we do our best to protect children from life's underbelly, bad things happen. Hurricanes, school shootings, divorce, exploding crime rates, economic downturns, child abuse, and acts of terror have become reality for many. Sadly, students are not immune from the chaos that often results. If a child worries that he is not safe or thinks…