Disciplining Students with Disabilities.

Discipline refers to procedures that teachers use to maintain a classroom climate conducive to learning (Walker, Colvin, & Ramsey, 1995). Teachers generally think of discipline as techniques they can use to manage misbehavior (Curwin & Mendler, 1988; Walker, 1995). We believe that discipline involves more than just using procedures to control student misbehavior. It also is a means to teach students about the effects of their behavior on others and to help them learn to control and manage their own behavior. Discipline should maintain an effective classroom environment and positively affect the lives of students in that classroom. Discipline long has been an important concern of administrators, teachers, and parents. Thus, it is not surprising that courts and legislators have addressed issues regarding the use of disciplinary procedures with students in the public schools. In fact, the law has been an important force in the development of ways in which we use discipline. Therefore, we must understand the legal requirements and constraints that guide school personnel when disciplining students. Three sources of law directly affect discipline in schools: