Accountability for Children in Education Western Australia - ACE WA

New data shows more than one quarter of Australian students receive a disability adjustment. This is up from 18% in 2015.

👉 Read the article: https://theconversation.com/27-of-australian-students-now-have-an-adjustment-for-disability-at-school-why-are-we-seeing-this-growth-283379

💬 Comment "newsletter" and we'll send you the link to sign up for our free wrap of the latest insight and analysis.

I hesitated about posting this, because of the extreme distress and crisis so many school can’t families are currently experiencing and because the misguided perception of school can’t as behaviour choice is already widespread.

As always- I’m talking about my family and my experience and it’s not the same as everyone’s. If you are experiencing school can’t or other attendance barriers, our friends at School Can't Australia have excellent resources including a free mini ebook to help you understand school can’t and supporting your young person.

This morning Fred didn’t want to go to school. And he went anyway.

When my family was going through school can’t, I heard endless times- “no child wants to go to school - tough luck take him anyway”. And many variations of that same narrative.

Here’s the thing- school can’t vs school reluctance hits differently. I don’t know if reluctance is the right word for what I’m talking about and what we experienced this morning but I can’t think of a better one.

Whatever we call it - It feels different to school can’t as a parent. It certainly feels different as a child.

School can’t is a literal can’t. Often it’s accompanied by a “wants to” - as in, a child wants to go to school but literally can’t.

School reluctance (or whatever the preferred term is) like Fred experienced today was:
* it’s a cold Monday morning and I want to stay snuggled in bed (same, kid).
* I don’t have a problem with school but today I just don’t feel like it
* I’d prefer to stay comfy at home than walk to school in cold drizzly weather
* I’m in a veg on the couch mood not a go and learn and play mood

It is NOT;
* distressed about the prospect of school
* experiencing major barriers to school attendance and engagement
* a nervous system that is heightened due to fight or flight about the prospect of school.

School can’t IS those things. What we had this morning was not.

We eventually got out of warm comfy bed. We eventually walked to school. Fred chose to stay and play with his classmates and safe trusted adults. I could hear him giggling at something as I left. He is happy and safe at school and he chooses to stay when he gets there - sometimes thirty minutes is his capacity sometimes he stays all day.

I have experienced school can’t with my family. When you have too, you just know and feel the difference.

Love
Symone

Thank you School Can't Australia who have released this wonderful digital book with lots of helpful information - great to share with your school, parents going through school can’t and therapists. You can download a digital version here https://ap1.hubs.ly/y0w_r40 or through the school can’t website you can purchase hard copies https://www.schoolcantaustralia.com.au

School Can't Australia, a place for parents, caregivers and professionals supporting young people struggling with school attendance. School refusal, school attendance issues or as we call it School Can't can be a distressing time for all involved.

Today alone we have heard multiple stories of IEPs being ignored, therapist suggestions brushed aside and restrictive practices used to force compliance.

School staff rightly ask for their degrees, expertise and profession to be respected. But respect has to be a two way street.

Not sure why some school staff assume they know more about a child’s sensory needs than their Occupational Therapist? Or more about a child's reading comprehension than their Speech Language Pathologist? Or more about a student's mental health than their Psychologist or Psychiatrist?

When parents invest their hard earned money and time to bring specialists to meetings or provide comprehensive reports, it shouldn’t be a "pick-and-choose" menu for the school. Second guessing the professionals who have dedicated years to their specific fields doesn't just undermine them it actively disadvantages the student.

It is deeply concerning that we are also still hearing about restrictive practices in some schools. We are not talking about genuine, split second emergency situations where someone's immediate safety is at risk. We are talking about using restraint or isolation as a first line tool simply because it’s quicker, easier or establishes control faster.

Sticking to outdated, compliance driven methods because "that's how it's always been done" leaves lasting scars. The trauma, shame and embarrassment inflicted on a child in those moments don't just disappear when the school bell rings.

A child cannot learn if they do not feel safe. And a child cannot feel safe when their body is restrained or their fundamental needs are ignored.

Clinical research and child psychiatrists continuously highlight the profound psychological damage caused when a child is physically restrained or locked away for compliance:

🛑 Many children who present with "meltdowns" at school already have underlying neurodivergent sensory overload or anxiety. Medical specialists point out that when physical force is used, it triggers the child’s primitive survival system (fight, flight, or freeze). It registers in their brain as a life threatening assault, deeply re-traumatizing them.

🛑 For a child to learn, their brain must be in a state of psychological safety. Psychiatrists note that the sheer power imbalance of adults physically overpowering a child destroys any capacity for trust. The child stops viewing school as a place of learning and begins seeing it as a place of unpredictable danger.

🛑 Psychologists emphasize that being restrained, often in front of peers inflicts deep humiliation. This manifests later as severe depression, school phobia or internalized aggression. The child internalizes the message: "My body is not my own, and my distress is a crime."

In fact, the Australian Federal Senate Inquiry into School Refusal explicitly addressed this. Their findings recommended that schools shift completely away from outdated, rigid "behaviorist approaches" (punishments, forced compliance and rewards for masking distress). The Senate report confirmed that these practices cause further trauma and deep psychological distress, often driving students out of the school system entirely. They strongly advocated for a mandatory shift toward trauma-informed practices and genuine collaboration with allied health professionals.

Relationships Take Time—But They Are Worth It!

True connection and safety aren’t built through forced compliance. They are built through time, patience and collaboration. We hear it from parents constantly, when a child moves to a classroom or different school where the staff actually collaborates with parents and therapists, genuinely listens and invests in building a relationship, the transformation is staggering. The child flourishes.

This is not a post about everyone in the entire teaching profession or education staff or school admin. There are countless, incredible staff out there doing right by kids every single day! educators who want to learn, who welcome parents and therapists with open arms, collaborate and who advocate fiercely for their students - to those we THANK YOU for all that you do.

This is for the ones who refuse to adapt and causing harm to a child’s self esteem, mental health and education. If you are in this profession, a question that always should be asked: Does it make you proud to see a child flourish because you worked as a team and made the adjustments necessary for them to thrive or to see a child decline because you demanded control and refused to make adjustments?

Isn't helping them the reason you got into this job in the first place?

Specific needs 'soar' across school system over past decade, principal says The WA government has committed $16 million for a professional learning hub that will include mandatory inductions for special needs education assistants and disability modules for graduate teachers.

🚨🚨Waikiki Primary School claimed it "must revert to a standard siren during the school day" because of a complaint made to the City of Rockingham.🚨🚨
Link in comments 👇👇👇