Tribunal Ruled That School Board Did Not Discriminate Against Student With ASD

A recent decision by the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO or Tribunal) confirms that while educators have a duty to accommodate special-needs students for the provision of meaningful access to education, guardians must also co-operate with schools in the accommodation process, an obligation particularly relevant where violent behaviour has been present in the classroom.

Educators have long been working towards a model of inclusive education, striving to create classrooms that integrate rather than segregate students with special needs. Faced with a rise in the number of children diagnosed with disabilities linked to behavioural problems, however, schools and their staff are finding it increasingly difficult to discern the limits of the accommodation process – a process often punctuated with violent incidents inside the classroom and strained relations outside it.