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1. Posted by MSG - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 20 hours, 3 minutes ago

   I think what that teacher did was horrific and she should be fired immediately.  I think that not only did she harm the autistic boy but the other children by asking them to engage in such terrible behavior.  However, there is a larger issue at work here and that is the issue of streamlining developmentally disabled children into classrooms with children with no developmental problems.  This is not a good solution for either group of children.  The children who are developmentally delayed do not get the special education they need and it slows down and disrupts the teaching of the other children.  Parents of dd children understandibly do not want their children stigmatized but it is unfair to other children to disrupt their education.  There our other ways to overcome the fear of being stigmatized.  They can share in other school social events, etc.  Both children require totally different teaching methods, that is a fact, not a discriminatory statement against any one class of children.  The sooner the DOE and school systems realize this, the better off, our children will be.

2. Posted by JENNIFER - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 17 hours, 11 minutes ago

   IF THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A WHITE TEACHER DOING THIS TO A BLACK STUDENT NOT ONLY WOULD THIS TEACHER BE OUT OF THE JOB BUT SHE WOULD PROBABLY ALREADY BE IN JAIL. TELL ME WHY THIS WOMAN STILL HAS A POSITION. GOOD WORK RECORD OR NOT YOU DONT TREAT 5 YEAR OLDS LIKE THAT. THE KIDA PROBABLY FELT NOT ONLY “SAD” BUT ASHAMED OF HIMSELF AND FRIENDLESS. A WOMAN LIKE THAT SHOULD BE KEPT FAR AWAY FROM CHILDREN. HOW BOUT THEY VOTE HER OUT OF TEACHING? THATLL BE A VOTE SHELL REMEMBER!

3. Posted by Josh Kantrow - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 15 hours, 38 minutes ago

   The teacher’s actions are disgusting and she should be fired immediately.

4. Posted by msg - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 15 hours, 35 minutes ago

   I think we all agree she should be fired.  But this is not racial issue.  Why do things always get tied to race?

5. Posted by Cindy - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes ago

   It was just a matter of time before the news gets out that Ms. Barton wants to sue.  Every time something doesn’t go the way we think it should, the first thing we think of is SUE.  America’s sue-happy society is out of control.  There are better ways of handling this without suing.  I hope Ms. Barton’s lawsuit gets thrown out of court.

6. Posted by Timmay - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 8 hours, 25 minutes ago

   Hmmm….maybe the autism community should put this “teacher” in an enclosed room and ask each parent of an autistic child what they don’t like about her “compassion” toward our kids and then take a vote as to whether she should be tarred and feathered.  What an ignorant, naive woman!  I pity her!

7. Posted by Rajesh - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 7 hours, 51 minutes ago

   You are the weakest link.  Goodbye!

8. Posted by BrandonP - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 6 hours, 28 minutes ago

   I agree that the lawsuit may not be the best answer.  Instead if she did this to my son I’d have been thrown in jail for beating that teachers ass.  Short of that, even though I’m not a fan of lawsuits I have no pity for this teacher or this school since it hasn’t already fired her on the spot.  Absolutely horrible.

9. Posted by Sharon - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 4 hours, 54 minutes ago

   Suing is probably the only way the parents can get the school to do anything about it.  Have you noticed how things have changed since the formation of the NEA?  School boards don’t answer to parents any more…they answer to the bureaucrats who give them their federal funding.  I loathe frivolous lawsuits but I don’t think this suit is frivolous.  Without being sued the school won’t do anything and that teacher will never be held accountable.  Do you want her to continue teaching?  This woman should not only lose her job but her teaching certificate as well.  She should be banned from teaching in all 50 states.  Clearly she is not someone who should work with children in any capacity.  Whatever has to be done to hold this hag accountable is fine by me.  I’d like 5 minutes alone with her…give her a chance to pick on someone her own size and she how she fairs.

10. Posted by Scott - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 4 hours, 43 minutes ago

    Have any of you ever been with a child with Aspergers Syndrome?  There are 16 students in that classroom who are not getting the education they deserve and need because of the continual disruption an out-of-control behavior by Alex.  Yes, the teacher was callous and handled it in the wrong way.  She was possibly at the very end of her rope after all of the acting-out and disruption that she had to face, while still having to provide a proper teaching environment for the rest of the class.

    Until you have lived through the horror of the disruption she faced daily, and how the other children are being cheated out of an education, you need to cut her some slack. It’s all well and good for you.

    Alex needs to go to a special school that is able to handle the very real challenges he brings.  An ordinary teacher is not equipped to deal with such disruption.

11. Posted by julie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 58 minutes ago

    You are all very naive if you think that a child with Asperger’s is holding up a class of 5 year-olds. Children that age without any developmental issues “disrupt” the class for a number of reasons. Children at this age are still learning what is appropriate behavior. and many have developmetal issues that haven’t even been diagnosed yet (ADHD, hearing and speech impairments, and others). This boy is still in the process of being diagnosed. What did he do to compromise anyone else’s eduction? The law is actually in favor of inclusion, not segregation. Check Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, enacted in 1974, people. You really need to understand the law before you speak.

12. Posted by Mike - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 47 minutes ago

    I have a son who was diagnosed with Asperger’s which is considered very high functioning on the autism spectrum.  These kids are often more intelligent than the other kids - however, they miss the social cues and have a hard time making friends.  They are not disruptive monsters as Scott implies.
    The teacher was cruel, stupid, insensitive and should be immediately fired.  I think the trail lawyers should assist the mother in sueing the school district and the school since it is apparent they are wasting their money anyway by hiring idiot teachers.  She might also press hate crime charges against the teacher.  How incredibly sad.

13. Posted by Scott - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 43 minutes ago

    We have an Aspergers child in our family.  Do you? Do you understand that their brain is wired differently? Do you understand that Alex is going through a sensory overload when he is around more than 2 or 3 people? You are correct… the Disabilities Education Act made some broad requirements that are great on paper and an utter failure in reality.  You speak like a person with an opinion but no actual experience.  You obviously haven’t been around an Aspergers child.  If you had, then you wouldn’t have to ask what he did. There are schools and teachers specifically for “Special Needs” children.  That is where he belongs… not as a continual disruption to the other students who need everything the school system can offer.

14. Posted by Parent of an Autistic Son - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 41 minutes ago

    Mainstreaming will almost always be cheaper than an alternative “free appropriate public education” . While the teacher should have been more sensitive and should not have treated even a “normal” student in that manner, I also wonder if part of the blame should not rest on the district if it sought save money by mainstreaming this child without the necessary supports and trained staff.

    I easily achieved a district paid expensive residential placement for my autistic son, but I have always wondered if it went so easy because they knew I was an attorney (i.e. my son’s attorney was present at every conference) , and they thought that s.o.b. will sue at the drop of a hat.

15. Posted by Ann - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 40 minutes ago

    How much good she could have done had she asked the class what was right with this child. Ask them about his strengths, the things they admire. Defending this teacher is inexplicable. There is no defense of verbal abuse.  She needs to leave the field of education and this boy needs to be immersed with people who can appreciate all he brings to the table.

16. Posted by Scott - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 39 minutes ago

    My statement was directed to Julie… not Mike. When an Aspergers child is alone with the family, they are sweet, intelligent and high functioning.  When they are around a larger group of people, they are unable to cope with the stress and cannot control themselves.  With proper training, they can function in society.  But that training need special teachers and a different curriculum than a regular classroom.

17. Posted by nobody - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 37 minutes ago

    Scott: The issue isn’t the child’s syndrome. The issue is the teacher’s abusive attitude, AND her promotion of it in her students. Most 5-year-olds aren’t able to take the long view w.r.t. their actions and choices. Thanks to the callousness of one teacher, 16 other kindergarteners now think it’s OK to ostracize someone for differences beyond his/her control. And don’t bother saying “grow a thicker skin.“ That notion has zero meaning to a 5-y-o who was just insulted by an authority figure.

18. Posted by jodi - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 34 minutes ago

    As a teacher for 5 year old specializing in Autisim, I find this story to be disgusting. With all of the research on Aspergers and Autisim, I would hope that a teacher for 5 year olds would know better than to humiliate any child…typical or otherwise.  Having teaching in a classroom that is inclusive, I find my 5 year old students to be compassionate, tolerant, empathetic, and quite mature toward each other. My students are FAR more compassionate and empathetic than this monster will ever be. She should not be allowed to teach children OR adults. What would this person be teaching adults if she had the chance? She is in my eyes comprable to Hitler.  Are people with blue eyes better than people with brown eyes? How about blondes compared to bruinettes? What happened to tolerance?  Horray for differences!!!!!

19. Posted by Scott - 5 months, 3 weeks, 5 days, 3 hours, 25 minutes ago

    Nobody:  I don’t condone her actions, but I understand the frustration that led to them.  She was wrong in the way she handled it, but the school is wrong to leave a Special Needs child in a classroom where he has a captive audience for his continual disruption.  Those other children need the help of their parents now to understand that compassion dictates the placement of Alex in a place where he can be helped, and also that it is alright to do something about unacceptable public behavior.  Or would you have them just learn that no matter how bad the behavior… they just have to suck it up?

20. Posted by Brian - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 21 hours, 22 minutes ago

    Scott, you are completely missing the point. First of all, you have no idea what was going on with this particular child. Regardless of the child’s behavior, the teacher’s actions were inhuman. Are we supposed to believe that no other child in the class had EVER misbehaved? Did she ever do this with other children and what purpose does it serve?

    Every parent in country should be outraged by this. if this child does have an Autism, she has just taught her class to ostracize anyone who is not “typical”. This is not just an “oops, I made a bad decision”. There is something fundamentally wrong with this teacher and she should fired and banned from ever teaching again.

    I think everyone agrees that the child may need a different environment, but that teacher had no right to humiliate the child in that way.

    Other’s have brought up race. I don’t know if that’s an issue here, but no one can deny that if this had been a white teacher and a black child, we would already be having congressional hearings and press conferences about how racist America is and the teacher would be sitting in jail. It’s sad that it takes a racial component to get anyone to pay attention to the abuse of a child.

21. Posted by Ray - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 21 hours, 18 minutes ago

    I feel most of the responses are generally correct. The harm the teacher did to the other students is probably worse, both individually and collectivly, then the harm done to the ostricized child. I feel that the majority of the blame must be placed on the school system that created the invironment in the first place. If improper teacher performance occured it is their responsibility for creating the situation and teacher selection. Clearly the administration was aware of the problem.

    The teacher should be disiplined immediatly. I recommend the teacher have their certification be removed for a year. This is both a punishment and a corrective action. After a year the teacher will know if they still really want to teach and in a very real sense have learned the seriousness of their mistake. Remeber, good judgement is often learned after making bad judgements. If this teacher has any real compassion and other positive teaching skills it would be to everyones advantage to have them return to teaching a little wiser and better prepared to teach. Wouldn’t it be something if after all this they made a career change into special education?

22. Posted by Eric - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 20 hours, 19 minutes ago

    The ostracon is alive and well. Give the children their democracy. LETS SEE HOW FAR IT GETS THEM! LITTLE CAPITALIST PIGLETS!

23. Posted by Jan in TX - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 19 hours, 20 minutes ago

    To those criticizing the lawsuit - keep in mind - the school and STATE has said - THERE IS NO CRIME.  Emotional abuse at the hands of a teacher - NOT a CRIME?  The teacher was not fired, no punishments - a LAWSUIT is the next logical course of action.  Sometimes that is the only way to penalize the guilty.

24. Posted by Lenore Hamrick - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 19 hours, 18 minutes ago

    Just look at how many the comments this NEWS has brought on, and I will add one more!

    Sue the school system? Starting there is not the FIRST place to got.  Sue the teacher PERSONALLY!  But, instist that the school system pay for 24 hour secruity for the callous ‘creature’ as well. 

    Alll of the previous commments are right on regarding the this teacher’s firing, and the yanking of her license to teach children or adults. 

    How many years has she been teaching?  How many other children has she taught to effectively ostricize those in front of them that are different?  How many other children’s ego/inner person has she marred and scarred before doing this to this one little boy, however disabled he may be? 

    Sociopaths, who are one step away from the psychopaths, is what this school system has hired !

25. Posted by Jan in TX - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 19 hours, 16 minutes ago

    While it may be true that a teacher is not equipped to deal with a special needs student - HOWEVER - she should be equipped to deal with young children, emotions, cruelty, etc.
    There was an IEP in progress, I can guarantee she knows that process.  Those who are defending this action should stay away from young children AND small animals.

26. Posted by Celeste - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 59 minutes ago

    Jennifer, why did you bring race into it.  It is moot w/an issue like this.  The bottom line is that the teacher is a professional and should know better than to humiliate a child like that.  Regardless of his behavior problems, no child should be treated like that.  Maybe you are a white teacher that mistreated a black child, lost your job,  and now you are feeling some kind of way about it.

27. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 29 minutes ago

    I think the point about race is that this teacher was black and that might be areason she has not been punished. The schoolmight be afraid more afraid of her than of the white parent.

28. Posted by Martha - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 28 minutes ago

    To Celeste:  the race comment by Jennifer appears to point out that ANY white authority figure treating a minority child this way would have brought outrage, protests, Al Sharpton, and such to the school board and the media.  Asberger’s doesn’t have an activist backing and pre-printed signs that turn up at the smallest slight to an affected child.  Understand the perspective Jen’s comment brought to the debate, not only that it involved race.

29. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 25 minutes ago

    I am concerned I have a child who is two, pretty normal as far as i can tell, but I don’t want him going to a school where there are teachers like her. Lets see, my son can be sent toschool not to learn reading and math skills but rather he can either be the student that learns he is worthless or he can be taught that it is alright to make other people feel worthless and that parents have no power at all to protect their kids fromt his type of horrible behavior on the part of the educators. Makes me look so forward to sending my son to school.

30. Posted by A - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 11 minutes ago

    How about the teacher stands in front of *US* and we tell her how we feel about her and her blatant bigotry, disrespect, and ignorance… and then we can vote to blacklist her from teaching!! (...no pun intended.)

31. Posted by Karl - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 8 minutes ago

    Some of the comments on this story are interesting. I am a parent of a son who is diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome. He is also streamlined in a classroom full of ‘typical’ children. He does get distruptive at times, but the whole idea of streamlining these children is part of the LAW. When I read what Scott wrote, I was appalled that he is so shortsighted. Putting these children in different schools is your solution. Do you want to pay for this Scott? The law states that children with these types of disorders are to be put in classrooms that will help them socialize with typical children, as well as learning the three R’s. Teachers need to be TRAINED to handle this and this particular teacher was not fully trained nor did she understand. Her behavior and solution to have the students vote this child out if the classroom is not only humiliating for the child, but next to criminal. The teacher should be fired immediately and find another job where she is not around children with special needs. Scott, you should also be ashamed of yourself.

32. Posted by A - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 6 minutes ago

    Additionally, I completely agree with the fact that this IS a race issue. If the teacher were white and the child were black, as mentioned earlier, it would be treated as such. WHY does the child deserve LESS respect just because it is a less visible example of discrimination? My heart goes out to both Alex and his family. This teacher’s actions are absolutely appalling. It doesnt even matter whether he should have been placed in a special needs classroom. The teacher is TEACHING HATE. Disgusting.

33. Posted by Bob - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours, 4 minutes ago

    I think the teacher watches too much Survivor.

    Also, I think the parent should sue.  This is the only way to get the school to change policy.

34. Posted by Bob Fetter - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 18 hours ago

    BAD TEACHERS = BAD STUDENTS

    If I was a parent of a child at that school, I would pull my child out.  I do not want my kid to turn into a mini-Hitler.

    Did this teacher get her degree from an online college?  Does she even have a degree?  A two week training course does not count.

35. Posted by Mackey Chandler - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 59 minutes ago

    Another good question would be why does the education system put years of instruction into a person like this who is obviously not up to the challenges they face in their job? Why at some point in her first year of seeking a degree in education did someone not tell her bluntly that she didn’t have what it takes and should seek a degree in some other field? It is a huge loss to her and society both.

36. Posted by Mike - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 33 minutes ago

    After calming down after initially reading the article I will say that even within Asperger,s there is a range of behaviors - from disruptive to very compliant.  My son, with Asberger’s, was desperately lonely as a child.  Fortunately, there were a few compassionate kids that helped it make it through school.  He graduated from high school.

    In this case the teacher damaged not only Alex by her incredibly cruel and insensitive actions, but also has influenced the rest of these young impressionable kids to be prejudice against “special needs” kids. 

    I agree with Bob that she probably watches too much Survivor on TV.

    She should be offered the chance to resign or take intensive rehab training - the damage to the all of children and the reputation of the school may also be significantly harmed.  If the teacher won’t resign the principal should also be disciplined.  If the principal won’t do anything then the school district should be taken to task.  I’m sure there are many attorneys who would be happy lend their services to make certain this does not happen again.

37. Posted by laarni - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 30 minutes ago

    this brings back a lot of memory.  my child, who was not diagnosed yet, was left by the kindergarten teacher at the principal’s office while they were having a field trip.  she said that my son was the cause of her not sleeping at night and her whacked nerves.  but these type of teachers do not deserve to work in school and handle kids.  i thought i had the worst experience… i feel so bad for this family because very few people understand the pain we are going through when your kid is ostracized.

38. Posted by BD - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 22 minutes ago

    The Superintendant over the school should immediately fire the teacher. The principal should be demoted for for allowing this to happen (Teacher was not disciplined immediately when this was brought to the principal’s attention). If this does not happen the Superintendant should resign under pressure from the school board.

    Since the school recieves Federal Funds, the Department of Justice should launch an investigation.

    Insensitive teachers like this do not desrve the place of public trust given them. The teacher taught 17 kids a lesson that day. That different kids do not deserve to be in school.  This is the ultimate form of bullying - “Bullying by Teacher”!!!

    SHAME ON HER and SHAME on the school!

39. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 8 minutes ago

    The problem is the school has basically said the parent “screw you” we aren’t doing a thing about it - we are backing the teacher. They have dug in their heels. The police won’t send the case to the DA for prosecution. So what can the parent do.

40. Posted by lab - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 17 hours, 1 minute ago

    No child should be ostracized like Alex was.  Will he ever want to go back to school?  This was pure trauma for this young child.  As the parent of a child with special needs, I can attest to the fact that mainstreaming has its merits IN THEORY ONLY but in practicality, it has a 1% chance of really being effective.  Special education for varying needs is essential to develop all children’s potential.  Having a child whose behaviour is disruptive is most certainly trying on any teacher.  I experienced a horrible incident with my son when I visited his school in the Cleveland City School District where an emotionally disturbed child in his class became so enraged that he began to throw chairs during a library visit.  I tackled my own son and pulled him under a table to protect him.  This child should have been in a different educational arena.  My son has cerebral palsey and would not have been able to quickly move out of harm’s way.  Should a teacher be allowed to behave in the manner that the Florida teacher did?  Absolutely not.  Firing her and disciplinary notation against her teaching certificate is the only way to let her know that she cannot do that in a classroom.  Oh, and make that nationwide so that she cannot obtain a teaching certificate in another state and traumatize someone else.

41. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 16 hours, 53 minutes ago

    Again, everyone is saying “fire her” but the school is not going to dothat.

42. Posted by Donna Santora - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 16 hours, 48 minutes ago

    Scott, you have no idea what you are talking about.  The news story said very little about Alex’s behavior, so you are just stereotyping him based on his disability. The fact is that if you’ve seen one child with Asperger’s Syndrome, you’ve seen ONE child.  Not every child with special needs is out of control.

    On CBS, the mom said that Alex would do things like go under the table or eat crayons. Hardly what I could deem as “horror” nor depriving anyone else of their education.

    Clearly if the child’s behavior was so severe, he would never have been placed in that classroom to start. 

    A child with a disability doesn’t necessarily need a separate setting. Those who say inclusion doesn’t work are making blanket statements based on their own biases. When it’s done right, it does work.  It’s not the answer for every child, but with proper training and support for teachers and aides and careful thought about each child’s placement, it absolutely can be a great solution.

43. Posted by Grizzles - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 16 hours, 40 minutes ago

    This faux-teacher, who is clearly an animal, and the school ,both need to be sued.  Hopefully the family can hti the lottery with this one - and this is from someone who HATES lawsuits.
    As for Alex, he needs to be in a classroom setting that fits his particular needs.

44. Posted by Sydney - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 16 hours, 7 minutes ago

    MELISSA SUE THE PANTS OFF OF THAT SCHOOL. That teacher should be FIRED.  I am SHOCKED by this idiot’s behavior!!!!!! I am so sorry for what your son had to go through. All teachers should go through training on how to deal with Aspergers kids. They are SO MUCH different than ADD or ADHD.

45. Posted by Jennifer - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 15 hours, 58 minutes ago

    I wouldn’t tolerate this conduct from any teacher toward any student.

    Unfortunately, most regular education teachers do not have the specialized training to handle students with special needs, especially autism.  In several states, even special education certifications are general, and not geared toward a specific disability. 

    Disruptive students come in all shapes, sizes, abilities, etc.

46. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 15 hours, 58 minutes ago

    I just saw a story on the news about another teacher doing this type of thing to a student onethat had no issues with behavior. Anyway the kid camehome and toldhis parents andthe parents sent him to school with a taperecorder. Now that teacher is on paid administrative leave pendingthe outcome ofan investigation. Why can’t the same thing happen here.

47. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 15 hours, 55 minutes ago

    Everyone says this womanshould be fired, I wouldn’t tolerate this. This mom went tothe school and the school said screw you/she went to the police and the police said screw you. She is being forced to tolerate it. And her child has now been voted out of the classroom and is not welcome to return.
    What are this womans options????

48. Posted by Martha - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 15 hours, 55 minutes ago

    The phrase, “in the process of being diagnosed”, was used to describe the boy’s situation.  This means that he can’t be placed in a special program with all the trimmings…yet.  Until a clear diagnosis is made, the schools are unwilling/unable to begin an IEP (Individual Education Plan).  That a teacher like this is allowed anywhere near children makes me cringe.  That the school/union is supporting her is worse.

49. Posted by JGalt - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 14 hours, 23 minutes ago

    I am livid with what has happened here.  I have a son who will be starting school this fall and I fear putting him into the hands of a person like this awful teacher.  There is just no excuse available to her for what she did.  If he had been continually disruptive then she had other means from having him removed from her class.  It says that he had just returned from a trip to the principal’s office so something had probably occurred earlier to trigger this but her solution was well beyond inappropriate.  She should be fired and she should lose her teaching credentials.  That the school system is backing her up is a sign of how the stick together mentality some groups have poorly serves the public - like a bunch of cops covering up the crimes of other cops.  Teachers function the same way.  I deplore using lawsuits to solve things but I see no solution to what is going on here if the school system and the local prosecutors are not interested in dealing with this.  The mother has no redress.  To humiliate a small child struggling to cope is inhuman especially amongst the small group of kids that he was trying to fit into.  I’m not a fan of holding back some kids in order to keep up with the slower ones but I can’t just can find NO MATTER WHAT any sort of excuse for what was done to this child.  This is wrong and action needs to be taken by those in charge immediately to make sure that the ones responsible be MADE TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THEIR INEXCUSABLE ACTIONS. 

    AND KUDOS FOR THE 2 GREAT KIDS THAT STOOD UP FOR ALEX.  The rest will unfortunately have to bear the scars of what they unwittingly did.  They are losers in this too.

    WHERE ARE OUR LEADERS?  THEY SHOULD BE STANDING NEXT TO THIS CHILD TO COMFORT HIM, TO PROTECT HIM, TO HELP HIM!  The silence is deafening isn’t it.

50. Posted by Brian - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 14 hours, 10 minutes ago

    Stop already. You all sound like a lynch mob. You think you have the facts and want to string up a woman solely on the allegations of another woman.

    Do we know what went on in the classroom? What were the circumstances surrounding the alleged vote by the other children? If the youngster wasn’t yet diagnosed and he looked like a regular kid who was being disruptive was she using techniques that she was taught to deal with the situation? Was this a first time incident? Had she successfully worked with other special needs children? Do we know what the child did immediately before the incident was supposed to have taken place? What role had the parent played in helping the teacher understand the possibilities the school may encounter with her child?

    What did the principal say about the incident? The school board? What did authorities learn from other children and other parents about the incident? Did they determine that the mother had mis-characterized the incident and concluded that the teacher should not be fired but be moved until the entire incident can be cleared? We still believe in due process, don’t we?

    What would be the nature of a law suit. What would the allegation be? I suppose someone would want monetary damages, but what about the teacher.  What if she wins the suit, who will come to her aid when she has to sell her house to pay for her defense? Who will hire her after she gets slammed in the media? Is it better to drain a school system of funds defending a lawsuit or using those funds to find a better way to handle disruptive children?

    If she was wrong, and if she has a history of underperformance, then by all means remove her from the school system, but to brand her with words like idiot, hag, ignorant, naive, cruel, stupid,and insensitive,  and for calling this an incident worthy of hate crime prosecution says more about your ignorance and insensitivity than hers.

51. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 13 hours, 28 minutes ago

    If you listen to the story the teacher admitted the whole thing. She said she did everything exactly as the parent described.
    The principal and school board are standing behind the teacher.
    Whatever the child was doing should have been punished or disciplined in another manner other than public humiliation. And don’t forgetthe lesson the other children learned from this.

52. Posted by BD - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, 45 minutes ago

    You want to know where the activists are? They will come in droves once the teacher gets disciplined for this. Sharpton will be there in a flash.

    The family of this boy does have options. The school recieves Federal Funds and they can not discriminate. The mother needs to file a complaint with the Deprtments of Justice and Education.

    Take a lawyer to the school and they will melt like a candle in the desert.  Lawsuits, unfortunately are the only think school administrators seem to respect.

    If this child had drawn a picture of a soldier with a gun, the zero tolerance policy would have dictated that he be suspended for a period of time.

    Well it is time for zero tolerance of foolish administrators and teacher.  Sue everyone involved!!!!

    I had a 3rd grade teacher like her and she caused a lot of problems for her students over the years.  She was a new teacher and ignorant about how to handle kids.  She did not last more than 2 years as a teacher.

    This one seems to be ill prepared to work with children, especially special needs kids.  The school would be doing her a favor by getting rid of her (at least for a year) and let her decide if she really wants to be a teacher.

53. Posted by Scott - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 8 hours, 54 minutes ago

    Bravo Brian!  It’s sad to see all of these people foaming at the mouth looking for some nails and a hammer to crucify the teacher.  They are gleefully advocating worse punishment and actions than could ever be justified against her.  The teacher made a mistake and these ‘good’ people want her humiliated, disgraced, fired,  and financially ruined.  Without having a single clue about what that teacher experienced, they are all ready to rush to judgment. They should be ashamed of themselves.

54. Posted by Michelle - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 8 hours, 32 minutes ago

    It breaks my heart when someone - a teacher seen as normal can get hired as a teacher, but someone as myself, dedicated and also having Autism may struggle in an interview, when I can’t show the interviewer my skills that I CAN be a teacher and pehaps, better than some out here that are intimidating children/young adults with Autism. Its sad .... that’s not the point of being a teacher. A teacher is someone who is loving, caring, understanding, dedicated, listens, and asks questions and answers questions when parents or children need help with someone… Most importantly, we teach more important values and are suppose to be a good role model for our students.

55. Posted by Mike - 5 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 7 hours, 30 minutes ago

    There are normally two sides to each story.  I am willing to eat crow if the facts are different.  However, I see no evidence of the teacher or school disputing what happened.  If the teacher had the other five year old students one by one tell what they didn’t like about Alex, and if the teacher had them vote on whether the boy should stay or not it is clear to me the teacher also voted herself out of a job.

    If I recall Port St. Lucie was one of those places where Democrat voters can’t figure out how to read ballots - I suppose it is hard to find competent help in Port St. Lucie these days.

56. Posted by SC - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 21 hours, 53 minutes ago

    First:  I can’t imagine a situation in which it is appropriate for a teacher to expose a five year old child to such blatant public humiliation. Period.

    Second: For those who believe that had the teacher been white and the student black the teacher would have been fired on the spot, I’m just not sure that’s realistic.  It simply doesn’t take into account that by the time the white teacher/black student situation gets to the likes of Al Sharpton it is specifically because nothing has been done about the situation before.  For as much as we all know how Sharpton likes the camera, I don’t think he’d go down to Florida over a teacher that had already been fired for what she did.

    But beyond that, the focus here should perhaps be on what can be done to heal this child, and counsel the other children in his class so that they understand that this is inappropriate behavior and should not have ever happened.

57. Posted by Ellen Barshevsky - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 21 hours, 47 minutes ago

    I’m glad to see a story about a mom who is standing up for what is right.  She knows how to address an unfair situation.  I say KUDOs to her.  We MUST stick together to prevent the unfair system, run by MEN, from preventing us from getting the right thing done.  I disagree with those who would just maintain the status quo; rather we WOMEN must take concerted action to prevent us (and our children) from being abused by the system.  I say stick it to the MAN who would put us down.

58. Posted by Tim Hughes - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 21 hours, 39 minutes ago

    The comments on this article are very telling.  Everyone seems to agree the teacher is horrible.  The split is on whether the placement was appropriate or not.

    Given the clear out of bounds behavior from the teacher, I am surprised:
    1.  more people do not question the accuracy of her statements regarding disruptions; and
    2.  more people do not appear to realize that the teacher’s mishandling of this child likely made such disruptions far more likely to occur.

    No question that kids on the spectrum need some special assistance, methods, and educational cirriculum.  There is also no question they need socialization and mainstreaming.  It sounds to me that a better teacher, or perhaps assistance from a shadow, and we would not be having this discussion.

    On a final note, I say hell yeah to a lawsuit.  I thank God I live in Northern Virginia where there is a fairly serious committment to educational funding and compliance with IDEA in particular.  This child’s school system does not appear as enlightened and the remedy is to pursue rights under the act.  More power to the mom!

59. Posted by Twyla - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 20 hours, 57 minutes ago

    Survivor: Kindergarten.  How tragic for this little boy.  I think the school district and teacher are lucky if a law suit is all they get from this inhumane behavior.  My family was blessed with both an autistic child and a developmentally delayed child and in both cases teachers’ behaviors in response to the child can make behaviors worse. 
    Regardless, of the child’s “disruptions” this behavior cannot be tolerated.  I work with vulnerable/disabled adults everyday and this type of behavior toward a disabled adult would be considered abuse of a vulnerable adult, according to Florida protective services law.  Had this child been 18 years of age, the teacher would have been investigated by Adult Protective Services, had a finding of abuse entered in her record and been prohibited from working with children or adults.  Someone needs to ask the school why it did not meet its statutory obligation to report this teacher for abuse of a child.
    BTW: The kindergarten teacher has been teaching for 12 years.  And, she admits conducting a post voting interview to “find out how he felt after the experience.“  Sadistic witch.  How many children has she destroyed in her teaching career?

60. Posted by Rob - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 20 hours, 48 minutes ago

    Sharon - “since the formation of the NEA” - In 1857?  You’re right, schools were much better then and they’ve only gone downhill since.

61. Posted by Fred Hait - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 20 hours, 21 minutes ago

    My son has Aspergers.  He was asked to leave a private religious school due what was considered (and probably was) disruptive behavior.  Things went slightly better in public school but even there they were not well equipped to deal with Aspergers.  People who are unfamiliar with Aspergers and with other forms of autism, simply do not understand that the child not only cannot control the behavior, but is unaware of how he affects others.

62. Posted by maggie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 20 hours, 8 minutes ago

    This woman (the mother) is an abomination doing a great disservice to parents stuggling to uplift their children while educating those who don’t live with and understand autism. This is not about a lawsuit, appearances on news programs, or an insensitive teacher. Parents of children with Autism know that there will always be callous and insensitive teachers; we also know to police our children’s interactions, read situations, and act before situtaions get to this point. Advice to this mother: Give up your 15 miuntes, learn to advocate for your child (in order for her son to succeed, this must become job-one), and do something to truly shine a light on the issue. Your actions thus far are truly self-serving.

63. Posted by Motty - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 20 hours, 7 minutes ago

    Terrible decision on the part of the teacher and certainly I would not fault a principal for dismissing her based on this incident alone.  I don’t know enough facts to say she *must* be expelled, but there does not appear to be any mitigating evidence in the article.  In the mean time get the kid into a supportive school pronto.

    With that said, stay 100 miles away from Dr. Phil.  The only thing you will accomplish on that show is to allow one of America’s biggest bullies to milk a bad situation for all it is worth.  Dr Phil has a record of the same kind of sick education as this teacher - on more than one occasion has brought problem children onto his show and ridiculed them in front of the nation.

    I hope the school district is investigating the incident and making a decision about the right thing to do based on more evidence than a CBS interview.  In the mean time, this boy needs to start healing from this incident through positive relationships with teachers, parents and peers.  Dr Phil will create a negative relationship, egging on both mother and child to vent their anger and continue to dwell on this one terrible day in what can be an otherwise great life.

64. Posted by Celia - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 19 hours, 48 minutes ago

    As a parent of an Asperger child, I was horrified by this story.  I was also reminded of degrading comments or actions by teachers in various grades and settings.  The best teachers we’ve had appreciated each child as a unique being, rather than as part of a well-behaved group.  Rather than training on Aspergers, autism, ADD or whatever, I’d like to see more emphasis on accepting each child’s strengths and talents, with or without labels.  Even “neuro-typical” kids have their issues!

65. Posted by Scott P - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 19 hours, 38 minutes ago

    There are many ill-informed conclusory statements in the several posts I’ve read.  First, none of us has the facts of what, precisely, the other children said about Alex.  Perhaps all of them told him he was a great kid but they were having problems listening to the teacher in the class.  Perhaps some of them told him they loved him and wanted him to get better.  Perhaps some of them merely said, we like you Alex but cannot learn anything with your behavior.  Until we know all of the facts, all of our comments are speculative—a good lesson for us lawyers not to forget!  I don’t think we should rush to judgment against the teacher, and we should not rush to pander to those who put everything under the sun in the “disabled” category.

66. Posted by justiceinaction - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 19 hours, 17 minutes ago

    SUE THE SCHOOL, THE DISTRICT, THE CITY AND THE B**** OF A TEACHER UNTIL THEY ALL CRY, “DOESN’T ANYONE LIKE US ANY MORE?“  Then they can begin to understand how they made that poor FIVE-YEAR-OLD feel.

67. Posted by Sam's Dad - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 18 hours, 39 minutes ago

    Public humiliation is the highest form of abuse. It is never justified for a 5-year-old boy. These cuts will not heal with time or with age. As for his classmates, 14 of them will have to live with what they did when they never should have been presented with the option of inflicting such cruelty. You have to admire the courage and compassion of the two students who voted for him in spite of his flaws and any pressure from the votes of their peers. I only hope my 5-year-old son would have been with them.

68. Posted by R - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 18 hours, 35 minutes ago

    The teacher was “reassigned”? If - I emphasize if - the facts of this story are correct, it seems to me that would be a dischargeable offense.

69. Posted by Carrie Baker-Miller - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 18 hours, 30 minutes ago

    I am the mother of a 4 year old son with mild Asperger’s Syndrome.  I can tell you, when I hear things like this, it is the most devistating part of the disease.  We fought very hard to even get Aidan diagnosed with something, other then just being a “bad kid”.  This lable was given to him, not just by teachers and strangers but by family members also.  As someone who has experienced what this does to a child I truely belive this teacher needs not only to be fired but should also be required to spend some time with children who have these special needs. 
    I think that this story is proff that the educational world is just not educated.  Asperger’s is “high functioning autism” and honestly you probably wouldn’t know if somebody had this diagnoses unless you spent some quality time with them.  It effects the socialization and ability for someone to understand the appropriateness of social situations.  As a parent trying to raise a child in this world of autism I can tell you that as mean spirited and ignorant as that teacher is, this child will probably never really understand the true essence of the situation.  However, because a child with Asperger’s spends there life trying to gain social acceptance she has done the most devistating thing imaginable to his self ego.  She has taken a cracked mirror and shaddered it.  This child will now try even harder to become accepted and has now gained a lable of being a bad kid.  OK your brain doesn’t work like all the other kids, you’re just bad. 
    As for the previous comments about integrating children with dd into mainstream classrooms.  Obviously you are not the parent of a dd child.  Grant some developmental delays are more sever then others, but you need to become a little better aquainted with Asperger’s syndrome before you spek of it.  Asperger’s kids are actually very smart, most sevants have a form of Asperger’s Syndrome.  Look at Bill Gates and Dan Akroyd, both people with AS. They just require help in social situations.  Usually AS kids don’t have many friends or will talk about subjects in which they become engulfed (ie. rainman and math).  Not all people with AS are that severe, and it is those children that get slighted.  This is the child who falls through the cracks, the child who is able to keep up educationally in a classrooom but starts blurting out quotes from a book at inappropriate times or that eats fuzzballs and playdough in order to help control his sensory system.  This is the child who can’t verbalize that they have a headach or a stomach ach but yet can recite to you anything that you wanted to ever know and more about a train’s engine-at the wrong time.  This child doesn’t have empathy but will do anything to try and be accepted by his peers and doesn’t understand the boundries of what is ok and what isn’t.  This is my child and like so many other people’s children he is wonderful and great and we spend everyday of our lives working together to find out ways that Aidan can work with being more socially acceptable.
    This teacher has no idea that she just made every mother of a child with AS’ fears a reality.
    This is ignorance and the only way ignorance can be stopped is through education.  Other kids won’t learn to deal with other’s that are different if we isolate every child with a “difference” into special ed classrooms.

70. Posted by Chris - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 17 hours, 55 minutes ago

    I’m a little concerned about the rush to judgment on the teacher.  The people who begin their post with ... my child is autistic so I know… don’t.  Autism is a catch all diagnosis like cancer.  No two people have the same symptoms.  I really have a hard time believing that a teach simply put a 5 year old in front of the class and voted him out.  There has to be more to it than that.  The opinion here is nearly universally against the teacher while the principal and school board (who would be targets in any lawsuit) seem to be backing her rather than working to satisfy the mother of this child?  Why is that?  Perhaps there’s something we don’t know. 

    To the proponents of mainstreaming: 

    First, it doesn’t always work. 

    Second, a child who really is a behavior problem (not saying Alex is… he doesn’t sound like it) gets the benefit of mainstreaming at the direct expense of the other students. 

    Third, mainstreaming has to be done on an individual basis consistent with what the goals for the child are AND the rescources of the school.  Too often parents simply demand that their special needs children (who are behavior problems, whether through their own fault or not) be placed in a regular classroom.  A school that can afford an aide for the child can make this situation work (my mom works in such a position), but a school that doesn’t have the resources might simply pull in a desk and sit the child down with the rest of the class.  The poor kid gets very little out of it, the education of the rest of the kids is harmed, but at least the parents are vindicated that their child is in a “regular” classroom.

71. Posted by Joseph Kashi - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 17 hours, 49 minutes ago

    I noticed that some of the commenters assumed that the teacher was female by the use of she and her.  I reread your balanced story and did not find any obvious indication of gender.  It would seem that many different agendas are being projected into an admittedly icky situation by your readers.

72. Posted by James - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 17 hours, 37 minutes ago

    If this child was so disruptive that the class could not function normally, he should be removed to a special needs class.  The rest of the children need to receive their education.  We should not sacrafice the needs fo the many for the needs of a few.

73. Posted by Ronnie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 17 hours, 35 minutes ago

    Chris you have missed the point all together, and so has Scott.  This is not an issue of mainstreaming or an allowable offense of frustration, this is about how the teacher treated a FIVE YEAR OLD!!

    It doesnt matter how frustrated you may be, It dont care if society as whole has wrongly mainstreamed a child or children in general, you do not treat a child the way this poor kid was treated, regardless -

    Adults are highly affected by people telling them what types of flaws they have or what people dont like about them and to imagine that this goes on in our nation’s school’s - there is no greater sense of humiliation than being rejected by your peers, this poor five year old!

74. Posted by Bryan - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 16 hours, 53 minutes ago

    It’s easy to rush to judgment but there are a lot of “facts” missing from the reporting.  Perhaps the teacher was frustrated with the lack of resources and support and this was her breaking point?  Perhaps the child was out of control and belongs in a different educational setting?  Perhaps this Florida school lacks resources to help those with special needs or, worse, doesn’t care?  We may never know those answers in the short term, but I can say that (1) an individual teacher with poor judgment is still teaching when she should have been placed on leave and counseled immediately, and (2) bullies come in all ages.

75. Posted by so so obnoxious - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 16 hours, 7 minutes ago

    I personally don’t care if the kid was running in circles and screaming at the top of his lungs through every class session of every day—fire her.

76. Posted by In the Office - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 15 hours, 58 minutes ago

    In response to all comments about how Alex disrupted the classroom and deprived the other students of a good education:  the article stated that Alex was “in the process of being diagnosed.“  The majority of testing processes for disabilities in children take time and in the public school system that can take longer.  Also, to have Alex placed in special education, he has to have a label and that is what his mother was in the process of doing - having him labeled.  So I am guessing, the school nor his mother knew exactly what was wrong with Alex and some disabilities are not apparent at birth.  Alex is only five years old and was in what, Kindergarten!?  I am just saying…

77. Posted by Myles - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 15 hours, 54 minutes ago

    As a parent who has dealt with teacher’s that have complained about our child’s behavior my number one complaint is that teacher’s do not use their teaching skills in addressing the problem.  Teachers retrieve periodic training in that is presumably appropriate for the students that they teach.  Every parent has encountered the “teacher’s institute” days or whatever the school or school district might use to refer to the training period. 

    And do we see any of these skills used when there are sometimes or even often difficult situations with a classroom of five year olds.  No.  Instead you get this abusive, really emotionally abusive behavior, that is an ad hoc response to the situation.

    I know that dealing with a room full of five year old children must be frustrating.  But for a teacher to somehow draw on her education and experience and to come up with a solution taken directly from a television show that caters to adults (and which often shows adults, with adult sensibilities, emotionally distraught after a vote) is beyond the pale, clearly inexcusable and should not be tolerated, excused or rationalized by those that would counsel that we need more facts.  I can think of no facts that would excuse this teacher’s behavior.

78. Posted by susie - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 15 hours, 46 minutes ago

    If my son were totallly out of control I would have preferred he get sent to the principals office but honestly I would rather have the teacher call the cops on my son and have them come tase him than put him through that humiliation. And noone has alleged that at that moment when the teacher did this he was that out of control.

79. Posted by Maria Arndt - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 15 hours, 28 minutes ago

    I am a teacher and I am horrified by what this teacher did.  She should be dismissed.
    I would like to say that the “ demented behavior plan”  is sometimes ALL a teacher has to keep order and sanity. 
    Without diagonois and without an IEP (individual educational plan)  in place a “behavior plan” can ofen times be a way to record data and document a NEED for the child to have he/she help needs.  Parents, doctors and the educational teams then can work together for the good of child.
    I want to stress that behavior plans should NEVER ever demean or destroy a child’s self esteem.  This was unkind and uncalled for Teacher behavoir!

80. Posted by RS - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 15 hours, 15 minutes ago

    As a parent of a six year old with autism, I am encouraged that 2 very young children were able to resist this teacher’s sociopathic example.  I believe that once the situation is fully investigated this teacher will be looking for a new job.  Hopefully, more of the other childrens’ parents will encourage interaction between their children and Alex both to set a positive counter-example and to help Alex get past this event.

81. Posted by Bob - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 14 hours, 51 minutes ago

    I am the parent of a child with autism, but am not totally willing to hang the teacher out to dry. In the stories I have read I do not see that the child was diagnosed with anything prior to this event. The child was apparently not “mainstreamed” but simply had not been staffed for services. There are newpaper articles about this teacher that portray her as a caring 12 year veteran who has done innovative things in her class room. Why someone like that would subject any 5 year old to this sort of treatment mystifies me. However, for a legal community, we certainly seem quick to judge on the barest of facts.

82. Posted by A lawyer and former teacher - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 12 hours, 15 minutes ago

    Because we as a nation allocate an appallingly paltry portion of our resources to educating our children, it is not surprising that teachers are not tested for temperamental qualifications, are not trained in recognizing and responding to developmental and learning disabilities, and are not supervised adequately once they are in the classroom.  That same lack of funding makes it equally unsurprising that parents with a special needs children with anything other than obvious physical disabilties confront a task that would defeat Sysiphus when they attempt to obtain diagnoses, and therefore IEP’s, through public means.  Because providing a child with anything other than a seat in a standard (usually overcrowded) classroom costs our underfunded school system extra money, obtaining an appropriate education for a child with any disability requires more sophistication, dedication, and energy than any one of us has ever put into any legal matter we have handled.  With that said, and whether or not the child was disruptive, and whether or not mainstreaming with support services or a providing a special dedicated setting is more appropriate in any individual case, I am appalled that anyone could defend humiliating any child, and perhaps even worse in the long run, training children to denigrate others.*  Unfortunately, unless and until we start devoting more of our public funds to our schools, the only means parents will have to enforce their children’s rights to an appropriate education and humane treatment will be the legal system.

    * As for those who say that the facts are unknown, it does not appear that the teacher disputes that she in fact engaged in the conduct alleged to have taken place.

83. Posted by Joe - 5 months, 3 weeks, 3 days, 2 hours, 52 minutes ago

    This is a sad story but I feel sorry for the teacher, I really do.  She made a really stupid mistake and it will probably cost her her job.  But she is probably like most teachers in this country; pushed to the limit by cheapskate and incompetent school districts who wouldn’t give her the resources she needed to handle kids like this. 

    I see a lot of posts here screaming for blood.  But most of you have never set foot in the classroom and have absolutely no idea what it’s like.  I was a teacher before coming to law school and I can unequivocally say that teaching was much, much harder than anything I have encountered in law school.  Most schools have absolutely no idea on how to deal with kids like this.  And actually, it’s not helped by the law.  Some (quite a few in my experience) parents with special needs kids try to bully schools into getting what they want , no matter how absurd or unreasonable, by threatening to sue.  That scares the crap out of most administrators so they cave into even the most unreasonable demands, rather than have to face any possibility of a court battle.  They then push these demands on teachers. 

    This case, sad as it is, looks like an all too common scenario:

    School district can’t/won’t adequately deal with high need students, just shoves him/her in a regular classroom.  Teacher probably has no training on how to deal with the student and is already pushed to her limit.  She gets frustrated and does something really stupid, for which she will probably pay with her career.  Everybody is so outraged they scream for her head.  The school district pushes her under a bus and after awhile, everyone forgets about the whole thing but NOTHING changes so the same sad cycle happens all over again.

84. Posted by Anthony - 5 months, 3 weeks, 2 days, 13 hours, 45 minutes ago

    I hope the mother files a lawsuit.  Large institutions only understand things that hit them in their pocketbook.  Treating any child like this is unacceptable; treating a child with developmental disabilities like this is even worse.  Such insensitive treatment of an especially vulnerable child could lead to even greater mental harm to the child’s already difficult mental development.

    Stopping with the teacher and not holding the school district accountable will not sufficiently deter these types of incidents.  See Posner and Landes, The Economic Structure of Tort Law (discussing the justifications for vicarious liability in tort law).

85. Posted by A Yung - 5 months, 2 weeks, 3 days, 22 hours, 39 minutes ago

    Autism is a problem.  Maybe the answer is to have seprate, quality schools, where they can learn.  I think this is all caused by vaccines and global warming.  It didn’t happen when I was growing up.

86. Posted by Mozella - 5 months, 2 weeks, 2 days, 18 hours, 13 minutes ago

    I am certainly appalled with Scott for his statements.  As a parent with Aspergers, it appears that many of the people are stereotyping asperger’s children, even those who supposedly have aspergers children.  Each child with Aspergers has varying degrees of behavior, but as they get appropriate socialization experiences and internalize those experiences, their behavior improves as well and eventually the children are unnoticed as different.  I would sue the school system because it will only get worse.  I have spent four years battling continuaously with our school system to get them to follow the plan we created together for my child. all of the parents I have encountered in similar situations agree that the blame is usually placed on the child for the behavior or the parents for not being “good parents” because of “eucators” who make no effort to learn about this growing disorder. The school system and all teachers ought to be more educated as to this condition because the number of children diagnosed with it increases daily. Just because they have Aspergers, which by the way is a social learning problem, does not mean that the child is emotionally disturbed.  But with behavior of a teacher like that and the students following suit, you can bet the child will have a horrible educational experience that will eventually, if not corrected, lead to a placement in an emotional disturbed classroom. Most likely the Aspergers child internalized this behavior because he will never forget it and he himself will believe it is acceptable to ostracize a child who is different. Not a very good social learning lesson for any of the children, but the “normal ones” can be retaught much more easily than the one who was the brunt of this behavior. The earlier this situation is corrected with appropriate educational services the more likely this child can overcome this disorder or at least effectively learn how to control his behavior.

87. Posted by Beth - 5 months, 2 weeks, 2 days, 16 hours, 14 minutes ago

    I was saddened to hear of such poor behavior on the part of the teacher.  The school’s answer was to reassign this teacher…shame on the system, if the teacher was a poor role model for a 5 year old class, what more could she possibly offer any other class, as the older they get the more issues there are?  If the school system cannot effectively correct these actions and the state feels there is no criminal action, then the parent is effectively left with no other option than a lawsuit and I applaud the parents for going forward.  Instead of the teacher taking this opportunity to educate her students to be mentors, friends, role models and helpers, instead, she taught hate and divisiveness, she lacks patience and teaching skills.  For anyone reading this comment, I do have standing on this issue as I have several high school and college aged children who have been in IB, AP, Excel, Honors, Gifted classes along with children in those classes that have “issues” or “exceptional varying disabilities”, and if they can keep up, they deserve the same education.  I also have a 4 year old who is in an inclusion class with 5 year olds and her classmates have down’s, autism and other handicaps along with non handicapped children, and this class operates fantastically as they help each other out because the teacher and the aide have control over the class and each child helps each other along.  The children without handicaps assist those with and all benefit by being together.  THE PROBLEM LIES WITH THE TEACHER ONLY, SHE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR HER BEHAVIOR!!!!!!  So, for the parents that are worried that a child with disabilities is always going to be disruptive, I can tell you first hand that is untrue.  ~I think the teacher and system should be punished.  If the child continued to be disruptive, provided that the teacher used positive strategies to assist the child, why wasn’t the child sent back to the office.  I see that putting the child in front of the class for a vote was cruel and unusual punishment and I would not want to see that teacher in any classroom with students again.  Also, there should be an investigation as to what the administration (Principal) has done to assist the child and teacher; maybe the principal is not governing and providing the teachers with the assistance needed.