What is informal school discipline?
Informal school discipline happens when a school denies a student services or excludes a student from school programming without an “official” suspension or expulsion and without due process.
Examples of informal discipline include:
- Being sent home early from school without a suspension or expulsion
- Shortened school schedule
- Being placed in a homebound or tutoring only placement
- Forcing parents to choose between withdrawing their student from school or facing possible expulsion
Why does informal school discipline matter?
Informal school discipline is important because when students face “unofficial” or “informal” discipline, they often do not receive the same legal protections they otherwise would be entitled to. Any day that your student is removed from class or sent home in an informal way (like an early pick-up) generally counts as a suspension.
Track and count these days. If these “informal removals” add up to more than 10 days in a school year, the school is considered to have made a “disciplinary change in placement”. If this happens, additional steps must be taken to protect your student’s rights.
What is a “disciplinary change in placement”?
A disciplinary change in placement occurs if your student has been removed from their current educational placement for 10 days in a row, or if multiple removals add up to more than 10 school days in one school year.
Informal removal days, like early pick-ups, may count towards the 10-day limit which is why it is so important that you track each and every time something like this happens.
Examples:
- School demands that you agree to a shortened school day due to your child’s behavior issues
- Your child’s classroom teacher prohibits them from participating in an elective course because the teacher is worried about your child’s behavior.
The three-factor test
Both of the examples above would count toward the 10 day suspension limit unless all three factors below were met:
- Your child had the opportunity to continue to appropriately participate in the general curriculum
- Your child continued to receive the services specified in their IEP and,
- Your child continued to participate with their nondisabled peers to the extent that they would have in their current placement.
Note: The above three-factor test is the same test used for determining whether an in-school suspension counts toward the 10 day limit.
If a disciplinary change in placement takes place (10 day limit is hit), your child has a right to a ‘manifestation determination review’ or MDR.
What is a MDR?
When a student doesn’t follow school rules, the student can be disciplined, including suspension or expulsion. However, students with disabilities may be protected if their misconduct was related to their disability. Generally, schools cannot discipline students with disabilities for behavior resulting from their disability, as this amounts to disability discrimination.
The Manifestation Determination Review (MDR) is a very important meeting to decide whether your child’s behavior was caused by, or was a ‘manifestation’ of, their disability or if the conduct was a direct result of the school’s failure to implement their IEP. The decision made at this meeting affects whether your child can return to school or will face discipline, including suspension or expulsion.
- Example: A student who has physical tics as a result of their disability accidentally hits a student next to them. Although it is against school rules for students to hit each other, this incident may be determined to be a manifestation of the student’s disability.
- Example: A student’s emotional disturbance caused her to be impulsive and combative, which triggered her to elope from class and start a fire on campus. Although it is against the rules to set fires, if this misconduct is directly connected to the student’s disability, it will likely lead to a finding that the behavior was a manifestation of the child’s disability.
The school must hold a MDR within 10 school days after deciding to suspend, expel, or otherwise discipline a student in a way that would cause a change to where the student is educated. This is known as a ‘change of placement’.
Visit our page on MDR for more information about this very important meeting.
Early pick-ups – What should I do?
If the school calls and asks you to pick up your child early, start by asking two simple questions:
- Is my child being suspended or expelled?
- Is my child too sick to stay at school?
If the answer to either of these questions is yes:
- If your child is being suspended, expelled, or is too sick to be at school then you should pick them up.
- Ask the school to provide you with any paperwork, such as an incident report that explains what happened. Generally, NH schools are not required to complete an incident report if a child is ill, but check your local school policy.
If the answer to either of the questions is no:
- If your child is not being suspended or expelled and is not sick, then you do not have to pick them up before the end of the school day.
- If the school asks you to pick your child up early but your child is not sick, suspended or expelled, it is important to understand that the school is asking you to voluntarily take your student home outside of the normal disciplinary process.
- Keep records: write down why the school asked for an early pickup and how much school your child missed as a result. Do this each and every time an early pickup is requested.
- Ask the school for help: There are many tools that can help figure out what supports and services your child needs to successfully participate in school for the entire day. You can request:
- A Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA)
- A Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)
- An evaluation or reevaluation for special education supports and services.
- An Independent Education Evaluation (IEE)
- Put your concerns in writing. Send a letter to the school district’s Special Education Director expressing your concern that the informal removals may be denying your child a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
Shortened school day – What should I do?
Sometimes, a student’s IEP team may suggest shortening your child’s school day because of behavior concerns. The school may say that the child cannot “handle” a full day.
If a shortened day is proposed, ask:
- What data supports this decision?
- What other supports or services have been tried?
- How and when will the team plan for a return to a full school day?
Your child has the right to a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), which generally means access to a full school day like their peers, unless a shortened day is necessary for disability-related reasons.
When might a shortened day be appropriate?
A shortened day may be appropriate in limited situations, based on your child’s disability-related needs.
For example:
- A student has a medical condition that causes severe fatigue.
- A student needs intensive medical treatment during the school day that cannot be provided by school-based staff.
- A doctor recommends a shortened day for the student’s health or safety.
Shortened days must be decided on a case-by-case basis and should be based on documented needs. Shortened school days should not be decided as a matter of convenience or to manage behavior.
When might a shortened day be inappropriate?
Schools should address behavior concerns with special education services, supports, accommodations, and behavior interventions — not by sending your child home early.
For example:
- A student with autism may show more challenging behaviors in the afternoon, so the school suggests ending the day at noon. This is generally not an appropriate use of a shortened school day.
- The para-educator who works with your child is only available for part of the day. This is not an appropriate use of a shortened school day.
What can you do if you disagree with the IEP team’s decision:
- Clearly state that you disagree during the IEP meeting and ask that your disagreement be written in the meeting notes.
- Ask for a Written Prior Notice (WPN) explaining why the school decided to shorten your child’s school day.
- If you disagree with the data or reasoning being used by the school: Request an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE). This evaluation serves as a ‘second opinion’ about your child’s disability-related needs.
- Send a letter to the district’s Director of Special Education explaining your concern that a shortened day may be denying your child a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
- Refer to, or provide a copy of, this guidance from the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) that explains when shortened days are appropriate.
- If needed, consider formal dispute resolution options like mediation, filing a state complaint, or requesting a due process hearing.
- If the school moves forward with changing your child’s placement to home-based instruction, make sure it is also still providing the appropriate amount of instruction your child needs to receive a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
- Home-based instruction is when services are provided in the home, for example remote tutoring.
- Home-based instruction is among the most restrictive placements on the continuum of educational environments.
The school says “withdraw or face discipline” – What should I do?
Schools may respond to behavioral problems by telling parents that they can either:
- Voluntarily withdraw their child from school or,
- Be subject to formal discipline, such as long-term suspension or expulsion.
Schools may suggest that withdrawing is better because it will prevent the discipline from going on your child’s record. Before agreeing to this, it is important to understand the consequences of both options.
Important things to consider
- If you voluntarily withdraw your child from their public school, your child loses their right to receive a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). This means that the school district is not responsible for providing your child with the supports and services in their IEP.
- Only the public school district that you live in (your home district) is legally required to educate your child.
- Charter schools, other public school districts, and private schools may deny your child admission.
- If your child has an IEP and is suspended or expelled, they still have the right to receive a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in an interim alternative educational setting. This means that the school district remains responsible for providing your child with the supports and services in their IEP.
If the school presents you with this option, ask:
- What formal disciplinary action is my child facing?
- Has the school followed all required due process procedures outlined in the school’s policy manual?
- If my child is expelled from this school district, what will happen next?
- If my child is expelled, what educational supports and services will still be provided to them and where?
