Physical Restraint, Seclusion, and Time-Out Rooms in Canadian Schools: Analysis of a Policy Patchwork

Abstract

The intended purpose of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out rooms in schools is to intervene in a crisis when the behaviour of a student poses an immediate or imminent, and significant threat to physical safety. While the use of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out rooms is intended to provide protection from immediate physical harm, there is increasing concern that these practices are being used more broadly and that individuals with disabilities are disproportionately subjected to their use. In spite of the importance of this issue, there is a dearth of research analyzing the policy landscape of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out rooms in Canadian schools. In order to explore this issue, a comparative analysis of publicly available provincial and territorial education documents was conducted. The analysis revealed that in many Canadian provinces and territories, policies and accountability structures on the use of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out rooms in schools are inconsistent or non-existent. Further, the terminology used to describe seclusion is variable and often conflated with time out, and the conditions under which such practices may be used in some instances are subjective, which may contribute to a broad interpretation of what is deemed acceptable practices in schools. This analysis draws attention to the need for the development of clearly articulated provincial and territorial standards for the use of physical restraint, seclusion, and time out, as well as the need for regulatory and enforcement mechanisms at the school, division, and ministry levels in order to ensure the emotional and physical well-being of all.

Policies Matter: Closing the Reporting and Transparency Gaps in the use of Restraint, Seclusion, and Time-Out Rooms in Schools

“…The need for regulation of the use of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out rooms in Canadian educational jurisdictions was affirmed in a recent policy analysis conducted by Bartlett and Ellis (2021). This analysis found that seven educational jurisdictions (Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Ontario, Quebec, Nunavut, Saskatchewan, and Yukon) did not have provincial/territorial educational policies or support documents that specifically regulate or provide guidance regarding the use of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out rooms in schools.…”

“…Only Alberta, Newfoundland, and Prince Edward Island were found to have Ministerial Directives, Operational Procedures, or policies that were explicitly directive and enforceable; however, even within these mandates, specific practices (e.g., physical restraint as compared to time-out rooms) were subject to varying degrees of enforceability. For example, the province of Newfoundland mandates how physical restraint must be addressed but provides only non-directive guidelines regarding the use of time-out rooms (Bartlett & Ellis, 2021).…”

“…The Restraint and Seclusion: Resource Document (U.S. Department of Education, 2012) also recommends same-day notification, and both require data collection to ensure training, resources, and oversight are provided whenever these practices are used. Moreover, since 2009, the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights has required all public schools, alternative settings, and charter schools to report all incidents of restraint and seclusion and disaggregate the data by race/ethnicity, sex, limited English proficiency and disability as a part of their Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) (Gage et al, 2020 Only recently has the use of restraint, seclusion, and time-out in schools been brought to the fore in other jurisdictions, including Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom (Bartlett & Ellis, 2020a, 2020b2021;Government UK, 2019;Inclusion Alberta, 2018;Inclusion BC, 2013Inclusion Ireland, 2018;McCarthy, 2019;Scottish Government, 2018). In Canada, much of the activism regarding the use of physical restraint, seclusion, and time-out in schools has been from parents of children with disabilities (Bartlett & Ellis, 2020a, 2020bInclusion Alberta, 2018;Inclusion BC, 2013.…”