Educators learn how to restrain students with Aikido

Aikido

Educators learn how to restrain students | Kentucky Enquirer | nky.com

I’ve got a problem with this recent article in the Kentucky Enquirer.

The article talks about teaching teachers to use martial arts to restrain students. Yet it mentions nothing about deescalating aggressive behavior, using proactive Positive Behavior Interventions or Supports (PBIS), or the potential harm that restraints can lead to for the student and the teachers.

The abuse of restraint and seclusion was recently at the center of a hearing in Washington, DC, on May 19th, 2009. CCBD lead the way in introducing Position and White Papers on this topic and they had representatives of their organization testify at the hearings. As educators, we need to make sure our voice is heard at the policy as well as the practice level to ensure that our students with behavior challenges are TAUGHT and not just restrained when they appear to not comply with teacher demands.

What do you think of the article? Does you school use restraints or seclusion? How are your teachers trained?