Human Rights Syllabi: Institute of International Studies, University of California, Berkeley
Winter Session 1998 - TSIJHR 3I03
Wednesday 6:30 - 9:30 pm
OT/PT Building T-16, Room 131 Mary Tremblay
Eddie is a five year old boy with a congenital hearing impairment. Eddie's parents are trying to decide whether to send him to the neighbourhood school his older sister attends or to a special program for children with hearing impairments. Eddie has begun to learn ASL and is a bright energetic young boy.
His parents believe he should be educated alongside other students in a regular class. One of their neighbours, however, says that they can't send him to a local school because the other children won't understand him and besides he is better off in a school with children of his own kind. The neighbour on the other side of the street suggests that they try to contact the local Catholic school, because she believes have always educated students with disabilities in the regular school system. She tells them about Emily Eaton, a student she had read about in the local newspaper.
Before turning page: What do you think are the issues to consider in this case? Could you list them. Then after completing case review your original list. Have you changed your perspective?
In November 1989 the IPRC for the Brant County Board of Education identified Emily as exceptional and determined that she should be placed in kindergarten on a trail basis in the neighbourhood school with an educational assistant.
After several more consultations the IPRC decided on February 24th, 1992 that Emily should be placed in a special education class.
Emily's parents appealed this decision to a Special Education Appeal Board which unanimously confirmed the decision of the IPRC. After several more failed appeals the parents brought the application for judicial review. Eventually the parents appealed to the Ontario Court of Appeal.
The Ontario Court of Appeal ruled in February 1995 "when analysed in its social, historical and political context, the decision to educate Emily Eaton in a special classroom for disabled students is a burden or disadvantage for her and therefore discriminatory within the meaning of Section 15 of the Charter."
At the time of this ruling, Emily was a 10 year old student attending a grade 4 class in an integrated classroom in the separate school system.
416- 482-8255; Local School Boards.
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