Seclusion Timeout in Schools

Perhaps it is just because we're closing in on the "happy holidays," but for some reason I have found the number of news items about abuse and crimes against children particularly disturbing lately. On CNN.com today I came across an article called, "Children Forced Into Cell-like School Seclusion Rooms." It seems the seclusion timeout technique--similar to the seclusion of a patient in a mental health facility--is being used in some schools. According to the article, few states have laws against this and only 24 have guidelines for their use.

The article references a 2007 study, "State Policies Concerning the Use of Seclusion Timeout in Schools" published in Education and Treatment of Children (v.  30, no. 3), which members of the PSU community can access here through the Libraries' Professional Development Collection database. For more suggestions on library resources for research on this topic, consult a librarian or visit the Educational Psychology research guide.

The CNN.com article also refers to several other cases of alleged abuse in schools. For more information on these or similar cases, try searching for -- seclusion timeout -- in the Libraries' database America's Newspapers to find local news articles and TV news videos. For more information on state and national court cases or state laws and regulations -- or for any other questions-- please ask a librarian at Altoona or all PSU Libraries.

Did the school do anything wrong here? Perhaps not, time will tell. Should this have happened? No, at least in my opinion. What's yours?