Reports of abusive treatment of children with disabilities in schools

Reports of a Canberra child with autism being placed in a 'cage like device' in a classroom have provoked outrage, and claims that such abuse is neither isolated nor confined to children with autism, over the long weekend:

Children with autism caged and abused at school 
Rachel Browne, The Sydney Morning Herald, 2nd April 2015
Disturbing allegations have emerged about widespread abuse of children with disabilities in the classroom following the suspension of a principal at a school where a cage was built for a 10-year-old boy with autism, to control his behaviour ...

Response of peak body, Children with Disability Australia, 3rd April 2015:

  Read the full text of the CDA media release here

CDA's Issues Paper,  "Belonging and Connection of School Students with Disability" is available to download here.

CDA commissioned Dr. Sally Robinson and Julia Truscott of the Centre for Children and Young People at Southern Cross University to develop this issues paper, which raises important concerns and suggests some solutions in relation to the school experience of students with disability.

CDA is following the matter closely on its Facebook page.

Labor calls for disability commissioner after cage built for special needs student 

Shalailah Medhora, The Guardian, 5th April 2015
Labor is calling on the government to reinstate the role of disability commissioner, following the revelation a cage was built in a Canberra public school for a special needs student.

The Australian Capital Territory government has launched an independent inquiry into the case, which came to light on Friday, after a member of the school community made a complaint to the Human Rights Commission ...

Disability groups back call for inquiry into education of children with disability

Dan Harrison, The Sydney Morning Herald, 7th April 2015
Disability groups have backed calls for a broad inquiry into the education of children with a disability, following revelations an autistic Canberra school student was confined in a cage-like structure ...