Alarming Trends in Exclusion Discovered by BCEdAccess Exclusion Tracker
Photo Credit: Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press via City News
In 2022 – 2023, the Exclusion Tracker was released by the BCEdAccess Society, a charity that serves families of students with disabilities.The Exclusion Tracker was created to monitor the rate of exclusion and discrimination towards disabled children within classrooms, and has shown a staggering rise in these issues throughout the district by both teachers and students. BCEdAccess explains that the report “aims to shed light on the ongoing barriers to equitable access to education experienced by [disabled] students, emphasizing the urgency for systemic change.”
The number of general respondents to the survey, which totals to 406 people, has remained practically unchanged from previous years. However, the amount of student responses has increased significantly since last year, for a total of 70 student respondents. In this survey, it was revealed that there have been almost 6,000 incidents of exclusion across the district.
Of these reports, 84 have revealed instances of students being restrained or secluded from other classmates, making up 18 per cent of the total reports. Restraint and seclusion is defined in the report as “practices where students, particularly those with disabilities, are physically restrained and/or isolated in a separate space.” The report found “no measurable improvement” in the frequency of these situations.
Such cases can result in long-term mental health struggles, such as anxiety, PTSD, and depression. These experiences can seriously affect both parents’ and children’s trust in teachers and the school board. Some reports have shown that when families attempt to stand against this treatment of their children, it can result in hostility from staff, preventing their child from attending school, and, in some cases, calling the police.
There are also many reports of nurses or health staff being unqualified to aid children with disabilities, leading to some kids not being allowed to attend school. At one point, Nursing Support Services (NSS) announced that children prone to seizures would not be allowed to bring their medication to school if a year had passed without them needing it. This was revoked in October 2022 due to major outcry from parents.
Another reason for exclusion within classrooms is staff shortages and a suspected gap with the training of Education Assistants (EAs). 58.5 per cent of parents who completed a survey conducted by BCIT have reported that their child’s EA was absent during moments of exclusion/discrimination in class. Another 29.8 per cent of parents have said that their child was never given access to support personnel in the first place. The standard of hiring for EAs has also been questioned, given that the training time of EAs can range from two years to only three weeks. This is difficult to change due to an existing shortage of staff.
Exclusion starts young — children in kindergarten are the most likely to participate in it. Instances like those will cause parents to pull away their child from in-class schooling, and for the staff to encourage it. The report states that this could negatively impact a child’s social development, which could lead to issues communicating with their peers in the future.
The VSB claims that they are doing their best to prevent further incidents of exclusion, seclusion, and restraint. However, at the moment, there has been very little improvement.