Q&A Regarding Shortened School Days Due to Behavior

from INSOURCE:

Q & A from the OSE (Office of Special Education, INDOE), Dr. Pam Wright, Director of Special Education

Q: We are seeing an increase of students who are being placed on shortened days, many attending 1-2.5 hours of school per day, due to behavior issues. The school says when the student’s behavior improves, the hours may be increased. In some cases, the students have been on a shortened day for years. Is this practice of shortening the day considered best practice? Is this considered a Research-Based Intervention? With research data showing that only 65% of special education students earn a high school diploma, is it appropriate to be excluding students with disabilities from any portion of the school day? If the schools are required to address the unique needs of the students, academic and functional, how are they doing this when the students aren’t at school for the largest portion of the school days? (This question was posed by IN*SOURCE.)

A: A student with a disability should have the same instructional day and year as students without disabilities unless, due to the nature of the student’s disability or other medical issues, the student requires a shortened instructional day. Shortening a school day is not best practice, nor is it a placement, the Department of Education condones without careful consideration of the harmful effects of such a restrictive placement.

A related issue is the use of homebound placements that appear to be related to behavior. Putting a student on home-bound does not lend itself to teaching appropriate behavior, if that is indeed the reason the student is being placed on homebound. A homebound placement or a shortened day based on behavior that is a result of a student’s disability could be considered discriminatory and harkens back to the days of excluding students from school because they are disabled. If schools determine that one of these very restrictive placements, either a shortened day or homebound, is required in order for a student to receive a free appropriate public education, then the placement should be reviewed frequently, and in the case of homebound, must be reviewed at least every 60 instructional days. If progress is not evident, then another placement needs to be considered. As is the case whenever parents disagree with case conference decisions, they have a right to meet with an official from the school, participate in mediation or request due process.