There is plenty to hate about the way that this situation was handled. Still, I have to have some sympathy for the teacher in this one. I, myself, have had several months worth of a struggle about how to handle a student with an autism spectrum disorder...and I teach college.

A person (like someone with pronounced autism) can be extremely frustrating, since they do not respond to the gentle social cues that tell them their behavior is inappropriate. Whereas an irritated tone of voice, a stern look, a pattern of ignoring questions or cutting off the student might work for anyone else, the autistic person is commonly oblivious to these messages. It's not their fault, of course...the same thing would happen to any of us if, say, the message was painted in ultraviolet paint.

Eventually, this student can get so disruptive that it really affects the quality and learning environment of everyone in the class. As much as you might want to safeguard their dignity, it becomes necessary to intervene and stop the disruptive behavior. And, since the normal messages don't work, you find yourself in the position of cranking up the volume on that message. This might be exactly the wrong thing to do with autism...they may not benefit from such feedback no matter how loud...but it is nevertheless something that seems logical to do.

I think there is a finer line than most people think between reprimand and cruelty. The acceptance and rejection of peers is a powerful tool, and one that, ultimately, you hope a child cares about. (Somebody who truly doesn't care what people think about them is not a "free spirit"...more commonly they are a psychopath.) So, letting children speak their mind about how they feel about another child's behavior might be very unpleasant but ultimately very useful and necessary.

We always talk about how great it is to express feelings freely...but we have to keep in mind that feelings aren't always positive.

I have to disagree. As the older sibling of a person with Asperger's (high-functioning autism), I completely understand how frustrating the inability of a child to read and process social cues is. The teacher certainly has an obligation to reprimand the child and to maintain order in the classroom for the sake of the other children. But public shaming, especially in the manner this teacher used, is not okay in that environment. Neither is it acceptable to grant to a group of five-year-old children the authority to decide whether another five-year-old child gets to be in the classroom, and to tell him that he is not wanted. It is one thing to discuss the fact that certain behaviors are not acceptable, and to demonstrate that they will not be tolerated, it is another to exercise cruelty towards such a young child.

Mangar - I can't see how this situation is "useful and necessary" in any way, shape, or form for children or even adults for that matter. I hope when you go to work tommorow, you don't enter the employee lounge and stand at the front of the room while your colleagues take turns telling you they hate it when you pick your nose and they don't want you to be in the office anymore.

I thought this was appalling, until I read the whole report. I have more sympathy for the teacher now that I have read all the details. I'm not saying that she handled things in the best possible manner, but I also don't think her behavior was "abusive" but an attempt to make clear to the boy the consequences of his behavior for other people. Granted, I don't have much personal experience with autism.

Like hardlyworking I too was appalled when I read headlines about this incident. After reading the full report I still wish the teacher had acted differently, but have a lot of sympathy for her too. The entire time I was reading it I kept thinking about what I would feel like as a 5 year old in that classroom. Can you imagine how frustrating it would be to be doing your work with someone continually kicking the table? How much relief you'd feel when that person was finally gone for awhile? Teachers should have very clear cut methods for dealing with disruptive behavior, autistic or no. Administrators need to stick with them too.

No, no...let me reiterate. I think the teacher mishandled this one. I'm just saying that I can see why. I can understand.

Also, keep in mind that as much as public humiliation hurts, it's probably something that's going to happen to a kid if he is pissing off his peers. If not in your classroom, then on the playground where it's out of your control. Peer rejection is not something that adults can control...children have a culture and powerful social strata of their own. I'd almost rather this stuff be aired at a time when the teacher can moderate the discussion.

I don't have any clear idea, I'll admit, about how to keep from going to far in formal public feedback sessions. I probably wouldn't risk it myself. Still, the faster a child learns that it's important to be prosocial or risk rejection, and the faster they learn what they are doing specifically that is causing peer rejection, the better chance they have of changing their behavior to integrate themselves into the peer culture.

I understand your point better, I think. However, I still think that officially sanctioned public shaming is a really bad idea, especially for such small children. The children were prompted to air everything they did not like about the child, and then were given a vote on whether he got to remain in the classroom. And, this singled him out--he was the only child voted off the island, or even voted on at all. She wasn't just permitting, she was encouraging peer rejection. Wherever the line is, that's way over it. Plus, what might work for an ordinary child (notice I say "might") is doubly inappropriate for an autistic one.

Also, it's not like the teacher didn't have any other options. She could have set him in a corner of the classroom, working on something away from the other children, for example.

Yeah. I'm with you now pretty much. The teacher should have control over the class, including when students are dismissed. The "tell me what you don't like about this kid" forum seems too unconstrained, and if he needs feedback it could be better controlled. (Perhaps have children tell the teacher privately, then have a 1-on-1 meeting with the child where the teacher has the chance to frame and filter the feedback?) And for an autistic child, this "intervention" doesn't really stand a chance of being helpful, so it's probably just awful without being helpful...in other words, cruel.

For that matter, she could have removed him from the class for the day without the ludicrous drama of a vote.

Mangar - I have a 5 year old son and have been recently dealing with the issue of peer pressure/humiliation in the kindergarten set. Not because my son is a victim, but because he is being pressured by his friends to alienate and mock one of the neighborhood kids who is also his friend. He is very confused and feels a lot of pressure to conform. I also have conflicted feelings. This poor kid comes to my door at least once a week crying because my son has gone to play with the kids who don't like him, and he's not even my child. What the heck do you do in this situarion? I keep telling him that in my house we do not tolerate name calling and that sort of thing and I will not allow my child to be mean to him, but I also tell him that I can't force my son to play with him because my son deserves to have other friends too. I had a long talk with my son about how the teasing makes this other child feel, and a big lightbulb went off in his head and he has really become quite the local hero, playing with all his friends while defending the weaker ones at the same time. I really breaks my heart that this child has no adult in his life to come to except for me. So the point of this (too long) story is that kids will be humiliated by their peers, for sure, but as an adult (and a mother) I feel it is my job to be a stable and caring counterbalance to that cruelty. To be rejected by your peers and have the rejection reinforced by other adults, such as this teacher, is too cruel. That's what bothers me most about this story.

I think your story makes a good point, which is that some peer rejection is itself the result of peer pressure. If I read the document right, one of the child's classmates refused to vote to expel him, even while under some pressure. It's not clear if that pressure came from the teacher, which would be, I think, completely inexcusable. Children may hurt each other by saying cruel things, but adults have no business encouraging it. If a child needs feedback about inappropriate behavior, the adult should provide it in an appropriate way, which usually means in private, wherever possible.

As the mother of a 17-year-old autistic son, I can't help but contrast the culture of the school system in which this kindergartener is being educated with that in which my son has been a welcomed and supported student since the age of three when he entered our town-sponsored special needs pre-school. Since kindergarten, he has been included in a regular class setting with the help of a one-on-one aide. Autistic children often act out when they are over-stimulated and my son's aide has always had the option of removing him for a short break (not punishment) when his behavior threatened to disrupt the classroom. As he has matured, the need for these breaks has greatly diminished. Today, my son is a high school junior, a polite and popular boy loved by his classmates who go out of their way to include him in many activiites. If it weren't for the culture of inclusion fostered in our school system from kindergarten on up, my son would not have been exposed to all the terrific kids who have acted as role models and would never have been able to make the progress he has toward becoming a productive member of society. It's been a win-win situation.

Alex's classmates, on the other hand, with the encouragement of their teacher, are being taught from an early age that it is acceptable to ostracize and exlude those who are different. My heart breaks for that poor child. I hope his parents have the fortitude to fight for services which Alex deserves and is entitled to by law.

Living in Massachusetts, a pioneer in inclusive special education, I didn't need to fight as hard as Alex's parents will. I wish I could talk to Alex's mom--there's lots of advice I could give her.

Nell, I completely agree that inclusion can be beneficial for everyone in an educational setting. In my own classroom this year, I had one autistic boy and one boy with Asperger's. Of course they presented me with challenges (what fourth grader doesn't?), but our class would not have been complete without them.

In a situation in which a student, for whatever reason, displays a pattern of disruptive behavior, the help of a one-on-one aide, rather than a more restrictive environment, should be tried.

I don't care if this person has been "teaching for 12 years" or living in a hole in the ground -- putting a child in front of a group for public ridicule and a live "poll"???? What is the matter with this person? Where would any adult (or human being with an ounce of compassion) let alone a professional get the idea that this type of behavior toward another is acceptable? This school system should send a clear zero tolerance message re this incident (who knows at this point how isolated?) This teacher should be at the very least reprimanded in writing with a copy in their personnel file -- but first, have the teacher publically apologize to this child in front of the class, ask for forgiveness, and explain to the class as a whole that ridiculing this child or others is/was wrong, that they as an adult should have known better, and that they are sorry -- Turn this ugly incident into a teaching opportunity for all concerned.

this is a GREAT thread! REALLY solid, emotional and intellectual discussion. thanks all of you for sharing so positively and openly.

i teach kindergarten in canada. shaming of a student is something that will come up on occasion, when dealing with severe behaviour. constant running or hitting or behaviour that will get in the way of the safety or learning of the offender or their classmates.

NONE of the described behaviour was injurious to anyone in the classroom. some of it was getting in the way of learning for all. if this is the case, then the teacher should sit the child out, talk to the child, try to figure out coping mechanisms, say something like "we don't pick our nose in the classroom.", or "stop picking your nose."

what happened here was emotionally damaging to a child that seems to have asperger's, taking a poll of the class on whether he should be in the room is DISGUSTING!!! we take polls about favourite books, which bean plant the children think will grow faster, which car will roll down the ramp faster.....

the teacher sets the tone for the classroom, and in this case it's a bit too frontier justice for my comfort level. as much as i try to take into consideration the emotional well-being of all my students, i will still look out for the safety of all over upsetting one child. there was no safety issue here.

it's a real shame that this occurred, that it seemingly was sanctioned, and most importantly that there are people who think it's okay to do this to people with special needs.

far too often in our modern society we talk about bullying. children should be allowed to be children, and sometimes that means that they're not always nice to each other. i'm okay with that, provided it's explained by the child or the teacher/adult, as to why it's acceptable. (all children do not always have to play with all children. children can express that they don't like someone, provided they give a good solid reason why. all children cannot win. being a good winnner is just as important as being a good loser. it's a good lesson to learn in life!) but when a child is bullied by an adult, or a classroom of their peers, it's sad. and wrong. unfortunately, it's not criminal. but in so many ways it really is.