Judge rules against boy

[Pinky Pie of Doom]

http://www.bangornews.com/editorialn....cfm?ID=433042

Just curious what everyone's thoughts are on this...

[Minnesota]

Parents wrong

Judge right

[Piebald]

Judge right

While it's a shame that the lad has grown depressed, I agree.

[Cowthulu]

Can't get to the link.

[Piebald]

Here you go:

Judge rules against boy with Asperger's syndrome




PORTLAND - A superior court judge on Tuesday ruled that Falmouth school officials did not discriminate against a disabled boy when they banned him from an elementary school playground when other pupils are there.


Justice Thomas Humphrey refused the request from Gayle Fitzpatrick and her husband, Charles Rankowski, to have the ban lifted. The couple said they will appeal the ruling.


The boy, Jan, has Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism that involves delays in the development of basic skills, most notably the ability to socialize and to use imagination.


Although Jan is home-schooled, the school district last year allowed him to spend time at the Plummer-Motz School playground at recess and use the school library. School officials suspended him from the playground after he swore at a teacher and the principal and defied teachers' orders on the playground.


Tuesday's decision followed an 11-hour court hearing over three days that included about a dozen witnesses and was observed by about a half-dozen autism advocates.


School officials had said they would allow Jan back on the playground after a behavior assessment to devise a plan for handling his disruptive behavior.


The parents refused to have Jan assessed, claiming previous assessments by a private educational team provided the information school officials were seeking. The family filed a lawsuit last winter after they and school officials failed to come up with an agreement on how to allow Jan back on the playground.


Ronald Coles, a Kennebunk lawyer representing the family, argued that Jan's behavior on the playground was a symptom of his autism and that the school district had discriminated against him.


Melissa Hewey, a Portland lawyer who represented Falmouth, said the suspension was temporary and that school officials were ready to allow Jan back on the playground after developing a plan to deal with his disruptive behavior.


In his decision, Humphrey wrote that the school department was not unreasonable in its demand for a behavior assessment. He concluded that "Jan's behavior did pose a significant risk to the health and safety of others on the playground, including students, some of whom were disabled with special educational needs, and the adults supervising them."


Fitzpatrick called the ruling "appalling." She has said that Jan had gained weight and grown depressed since he was suspended.


"Now he will sit at home all alone," she said.


Hewey said if the family agrees to a behavior assessment, the school district would work to allow Jan back at a school playground for recess.


"It is our hope that the family will now reassess their position and begin to partner with the school," she said.

[themuzicman]

Gee, MOM, why don't you make him go out and play? Why will he just be sitting around at home? There are other options, while possibly inconvienent, that you could employ.

Or are you too lazy?

[guacamole]

Here's the deal. This is a situation in which a bunch of adults are acting like buttheads and a child with obvious special needs is being punished for it. The parent's obviously don't trust the school to properly educate their child or else they wouldnt be homeschooling (private educational team...). I think there is some suspicion on the part of the parents with respect to allowing the school to do another assesment, one not done by a "private educational team"-- he'd typically have to spend time with some district professional, either a social worker or psychologist who'd also have to interview the parents and pry into their business. I'll have to forward this story to my wife and see what she thinks...being a school social worker and all...

At the same time the district knows that they are making a request that the parents won't entertain, and as long as the school makes the offer contingent on the assessment, then they won't have to deal with the kid. It's also somewhat suspicious for the school to suspend the kid for his playground behavior. That happens on a playground. Ask any teacher. It espcially happens with special ed kids. Now granted, they may not have any other way to keep him accountable, but the move seems a little dramatic.

Personally, I don't think the parents should be trying to homeschool a special ed kid with obvious severe special needs. The whole point to including a kid in a social environment is so that he can learn things like how to behave on a playground. It's not like they are going to try and brainwash an AS kid with evolution or the gay agenda...

fwiw
guac.

[RumTumTugger]

http://www.bangornews.com/editorialn....cfm?ID=433042

Just curious what everyone's thoughts are on this...

should have read further down you someone posted the article.

[Nicholas]

I must agree that suspending a kid for those reasons is a bit harsh, I have to wonder what reason it was that made him do those things, because kids with AS do have problems understanding what to do in social situtations. I would also like to say that I've read some books on it and it would help some kids with Aspergers to be home-schooled, because the problems they have in reading social cues. I will admit though, Aspergers doesn't mean that the kids aren't intelligent, kids with Apsergers usually have average or above average intelligence, especially in subjects such as Science. Like I said, there was probably somthing that the kid didn't understand, or that caused him to become extremely stressed at the time.

[Minnesota]

Now granted, they may not have any other way to keep him accountable, but the move seems a little dramatic.

I must agree that suspending a kid for those reasons is a bit harsh

I'd like to remind both of you that none of us has all the facts about the child's behavior. Consider:

"Tuesday's decision followed an 11-hour court hearing over three days that included about a dozen witnesses . . . ."

Obviously there was a lot more said about his behavior than what we will ever know

[Nicholas]

I'd like to remind both of you that none of us has all the facts about the child's behavior. Consider:
"Tuesday's decision followed an 11-hour court hearing over three days that included about a dozen witnesses . . . ."
Obviously there was a lot more said about his behavior than what we will ever know

Point taken, but they only said he swore at a teach and disobeyed the teacher and the principal, not anything dangerous from the description.

[Bill Mutz]

Not sure what to make of this one. Some teachers can be real pinheads about some things and are as socially underdeveloped as some of the little munchkins running around on the playground. Then again, this kid does have Asperger's, and there's really no way of telling how difficult he'd actually been.

Jury's still out until I know more.

[Busheses]

It's not like they are going to try and brainwash an AS kid with evolution or the gay agenda...

fwiw
guac.

And the gay agenda shows its ugly face again........

[Bill Mutz]

Haha! More conspiracy theory mayhem!

[Pinky Pie of Doom]

Personally I agree with the judge's decision, I think the school was extremely gracious in giving him access to the playground and library, considering that he didn't attend, and his behavior was inexcusable. And speaking as someone with AS, I can vouch for how hard it can be to know how to act socially, but it's still possible to know that certain behavior is unacceptable and has consequences.