The updated online course meets numerous state regulations and arms educators with evidence-based strategies for diffusing and managing students who act out
Cincinnati, OH – September 23, 2014 – With the new school year underway, PublicSchoolWORKS announces a newly revised Restraint and Seclusion course that includes effective use of time outs, an alternate method to restraining or secluding a student. The updated, 20-minute Restraint and Seclusion course is narrated in both English and Spanish.
This course ensures educators are trained on the acting out cycle, techniques to diffuse a student’s aggressive behavior during any of these cycle phases, and proper use of time outs or restraints when needed in order to avoid harm to the student or staff persons, as well as to avoid potential litigation. Further, this training enables many districts to meet their state training requirement on this topic. PublicSchoolWORKS is the only K-12 school-focused provider of complete, automated safety and compliance solutions for school staff and students.
While there is not a consistent and objective definition being used to categorize what restraint and seclusion is, nor is there a system available to calculate exactly how many restraint and seclusion incidents there are nationally, data suggests that restraint and seclusion is widely used in U.S. schools. For example, a February report to the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions showed a combined 65,000 incidents of restraint and seclusion reported by K-12 schools during the 2009-2010 school year. Additionally, a report using federal data sources published by a non-profit investigative reporting group in June 2014 counted at least 267,000 instances of restraint and seclusion used during the 2011-2012 school year. Use of restraint and seclusion has endangered students, caused hundreds of incidents of physical and psychological harm to students, and even resulted in the death of 20 students since 1992.
Exact numbers notwithstanding, it is evident restraint and seclusion occurs frequently in U.S. Schools, despite evidence showing that it is often an ineffective approach. The PublicSchoolWORKS course addresses the critical need for training on more effective behavior management practices for educators.
Several states have initiated or passed restraint, time out, and seclusion training requirements. Proper training includes evidence-based strategies on alternate methods used to diffuse a student’s aggression, effective use of time outs, knowledge of how acting out behavior progresses, and methods educators can use to diffuse escalating student behavior to prevent further acting out.
These best practices are incorporated in the newly updated PublicSchoolWORKS training, along with case study examples, detailed information on various types of restraint and seclusion techniques, differentiators on how time outs and other methods are safer and more effective, and which circumstances – such as events of imminent danger – warrant use of restraint and seclusion. Further, the course encourages use of proactive methods, such as functional behavioral assessments (FBAs), behavioral intervention plans (BIPs), positive behavior intervention and supports (PBIS) and other positive-behavior strategies (PBS), to encourage safe and appropriate student behavior, and to address issues before they become more problematic.
“Providing clear, easy-to-understand training that arms educators with tactics they can use immediately is imperative to ensuring the safest possible outcomes for everyone involved,” said Tom Strasburger, vice president of PublicSchoolWORKS.
“Our dedicated research and development team monitors all school-related legislation and policy, such as new state requirements and guidelines on restraint and seclusion. These changes are quickly incorporated into relevant new content and shared with our customers…at no additional charge,” said Strasburger. “Districts who use WORKS EmployeeSafe systems don’t have to do a thing to have their staff benefit from learning new best practices since all of our software automatically incorporates ever-changing requirements automatically into the district’s already-occurring training schedule.”
“Quite simply, PublicSchoolWORKS is creating practical best practices for educators and administrators,” said Strasburger.
Administrators interested in learning how their district will benefit from the new restraint and seclusion training, should contact WORKS at 877-77-WORKS or see all of the courses offered in the PublicSchoolWORKS EmployeeSafe "Student Safety, Wellness and Social Responsibility” staff training catalog at www.publicschoolworks.com/courses/student-safety-and-wellness.
About PublicSchoolWORKS
PublicSchoolWORKS (www.publicschoolworks.com) provides practical, comprehensive solutions to the constantly changing environmental, health and safety requirements of K-12 schools in the U.S and Canada. The company has earned an exemplary reputation for the innovation and technical superiority of its comprehensive and integrated systems, which combine administrative software tools and automated management to dramatically reduce the time and cost required to develop, implement and sustain district-wide safety compliance programs. For more information on how PublicSchoolWORKS can improve district safety programs, contact 1-877-779-6757 or [email protected].
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