Children ‘subject to arbitrary power’ in school seclusion rooms, advocate says

The use of so-called “seclusion rooms” in New Brunswick public school may violate students’ human rights, according to a new report from New Brunswick’s Child, Youth and Seniors’ Advocate.

Also called time-out or isolation rooms, their intended purpose is to “provide a safe and calm environment for students” and as a last resort to ensure safety, but their use is controversial, according to the latest report by Kelly Lamrock.

Critics argue the experience of seclusion can traumatize students, and a growing body of evidence has highlighted “the disproportionate use of seclusion rooms on students from marginalized communities, primarily students with disabilities,” the 20-page report states.

“Children in New Brunswick schools are the only group we can think of who can be detained and secluded without statutory language defining the limitations on that power and the obligations upon those who exercise it.”

Guidelines from the Education Department state that seclusion should only be used “if a student is engaging in intense violent behaviour that presents a substantial risk to the student or others.”

But data about the use of seclusion rooms in New Brunswick is “apparently almost non-existent,” and the Education Department itself “has no data,” according to the report. In contrast, federal regulation in the United States requires that “every use of seclusion must be reported and explained, and these practices must be regularly reviewed.”

It’s unclear whether or not any legal authority for the practice exists in New Brunswick under the Education Act, according to the report, which calls for amendments to the law ready in time for the Spring 2024 legislative session. Otherwise, the practice “places educators at risk of legal consequences and leaves students subject to arbitrary power,” it states.

The report also call for the province to address related systemic issues in public schools, including a shortage of school psychologists, among other recommendations. But it stops short of calling for a ban on seclusion, saying that it would cause schools to rely instead on police, resulting in a “high risk of criminalizing disability, which is something that simply doesn’t work.”

The association representing anglophone teachers in New Brunswick issued a statement Monday saying the report reveals critical gaps in staffing and resources.

“The safety nets that once supported students through community services and schools have disappeared, leaving teachers and students to bear the brunt of an inadequate system,” said Peter Lagacy, president of the New Brunswick Teachers’ Association, in a media release.

The NBTA, a professional organization representing some 6,000 teachers, blamed successive government for failing to respond to “widening gaps in school resourcing and staffing to meet students’ needs,” problems documented in a series of government-commissioned reports.

Education Minister Claire Johnson stated that more information is needed on how seclusion rooms are being used in New Brunswick’s school system, CBC reported.

David Gordon Koch is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op. This reporting has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada, administered by the Canadian Association of Community Television Stations and Users (CACTUS).