grab store: recess

Friday, January 17, 2020

School Recess Restrictions for Discipline- Are These Okay?

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

Once in awhile, a parent is surprised when their child tells them they were held in during recess by the teacher, and did not get a break that day. Unfortunately, this may be partially okay for a teacher to do, depending. Such restrictions cannot be overused and in fact there are arguments against them entirely. Our trouble is there are conflicting laws on this issue which create confusion.

I met with a family involved in a discipline dispute with a school district. During our discussion, it came up that the boy who had gotten into trouble had not had any recesses for a long period of time due to continuing behavior issues. Although this was not the main focus of our discussion, what the family reported to me was disturbing simply as this was the "new" schedule of this boy, one with NO RECESS. Additionally, the withholding of his recesses did NOT solve his behavior issues. This was completely inappropriate and open to challenge.

Per California Education Code section 44807.5:

"The governing board of a school district may adopt reasonable rules and regulations to authorize a teacher to restrict for disciplinary purposes the time a pupil under his or her supervision is allowed for recess." [emphasis added]

This is the entirety of the statute. Getting NO recess ever is not reasonable or appropriate.

To add confusion to the matter is Section 352 of the California Code of Regulations, Title 5, which states:

"A pupil shall not be required to remain in school during the intermission at noon, or during any recess."

This regulation seems clear, but conflicts with the authority given in section 44807.5 to restrict recess. Both laws seem to work against each other. It is confusing to say the least. Parents just need to do the best with what they have.

Many districts have policies on recess and recess restrictions, so parents need to start there. What do their policies say? If they say "no recess or lunch restrictions" the argument should be over.

No kid should be kept in from every recess nor should they be kept in an entire period of lunch. Doing so can be challenged by bringing up the above regulation disallowing this. If the District brings up §44807.5 the argument would then exist that holding children in all recess or all lunch is unreasonable and does not comply with §44807.5. Youths need to get out of the classroom to have a break, run around, and just interact socially with other kids.

Additionally, if such restrictions are occurring, the school may effectively be put on notice that they need to take action to address the issues. A Student Study Team (SST) meeting, behavior assessment, or other actions could be in order.

School is not only about academics, but is also about socialization, exercise, life, and fun. It should not be such that it becomes a prison where a student never gets let out of the cage. That would hardly be beneficial for anyone

Best,

Michelle Ball

Education Law Attorney

LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL

717 K Street, Suite 228

Sacramento, CA 95814

Phone: 916-444-9064

Email:help@edlaw4students.com

Fax: 916-444-1209

Website: http://www.edlaw4students.com/

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Please see my disclaimer on the bottom of my blog page. This is legal information, not legal advice and no attorney-client relationship is formed by this posting, etc. etc.! This blog may not be reproduced without permission from the author and proper attribution of authorship.

Published 4/5/11, updated 1/17/20

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

When In Doubt Go To The School District

By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995

Are you frustrated that your school's Principal or Vice Principal are not listening nor acting adequately on your school complaints? Are you being given a blank stare when you sit in the office telling your tale? Is your child's problem not being resolved? When problems are not resolved at the school site, don't forget the school district.

I have sat and consoled many parents who have complained to their child's principal or other school staff about issues, such as continual bullying, targeting by a teacher, a dangerous situation on campus, issues with a student group, etc. to no avail. The parents complain of getting nowhere, being treated like idiots or bothersome pests, and know their issues are not being taken seriously. They are at a loss.

Often these parents do not know nor think to involve their school district. I think some parents believe that their school district may reflect the same attitude as their school or that the district won't give the parents any help. It is possible no help will be forthcoming, but not always the case. Often, a school district will try to help and they can even order the school to take action.

Yes, I do hear from some parents that a district referred them right back to the school or that the district did not get back to them, but generally, districts are separated just enough from their schools to be somewhat objective in hearing parent complaints.

So, if everything is not immediately roses at the school and you can't get anywhere, what do you do? Here are some suggestions to get attention from the district (and maybe the school):

1) Put your issues in writing, supporting them with specific facts and documentation (no wild unsupported accusations please), perhaps in the form of a factual summary and other attachments proving your point.

2) Submit it to the District accompanied by a list of what you want to be done to resolve the situation.

3) Submit in writing and cc via email.

4) Request a meeting with the district staff regarding your issues and help with resolution.

5) Follow up on your submission with a call if you don't hear back in a reasonable time.

6) Politely persist until you get a meeting with the district or feel the matter has been adequately handled.

You can also formalize your complaints to the district via internal complaint forms, and can even submit personnel complaints on the school staff (e.g. Principal or others). Be mindful, however, that if you are deciding whether to file an internal complaint (with district/school), or to file with the United States Department of Education (USDOE), California Department of Education (CDE) or even your local grand jury, there may be limitations on whether those bodies will accept a complaint if a formal complaint is already proceeding at a district. In other words, agencies don't like to waste resources and accept a filing if another agency is already investigating.

If you get nowhere, or depending on how you want to proceed, you could also opt to get attention by having legal counsel send something in writing and/or bringing an attorney to a meeting (with advance notice). If things ramp up when you contact a district, they will usually really ramp up when you bring in legal counsel.

Now, I won't say that all districts you contact will do the right thing, will do what you want, or otherwise, but often parents who are not getting anywhere with the school administration will make some headway by involving the higher ups at their local school district, as these folks have the power to override school staff to get the job done and the matter handled.

Best,

Michelle Ball
Education Law Attorney
LAW OFFICE OF MICHELLE BALL
717 K Street, Suite 228
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-444-9064
Fax: 916-444-1209
Email: help@edlaw4students.com