Special Education Video

A Mother’s Battle for Classroom Cameras

September 30, 2016 1:30

The journey to cameras in self-contained special education classrooms in Texas started with one angry mother. Breggett Rideau found out that her severely disabled, nonverbal son had been abused by his teacher. After winning a $1 million verdict against the school district, she took her fight to the legislature, which in 2015 approved a law requiring districts to install cameras in self-contained classrooms upon parent or teacher request. The law went into effect for the 2016-17 school year. Breggett Rideau explains what kept her going during the 10-year journey.

Coverage of issues related to creating opportunities for all American students and their families to choose a quality school is supported by a grant from the Walton Family Foundation, at waltonk12.org. Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage.

Video

Reading & Literacy Video Want Kids to Read More? An Expert Shares the Low-Cost Tips That Work (Video)
A researcher shares her tips about how to motivate kids to read more.
Illustration of children's hands holding books in a circle in the center of the frame.
Illustration by Emily Wright for Education Week
Early Childhood Video How Play-Based Learning Helps Children Practice Math and Literacy Skills
See how elementary teachers use play-based learning to reinforce math and literacy instruction.
1 min read
Children enjoy a morning at the writing center at the Coltrane-Webb STEM Elementary School in Concord, N.C., on Sept. 3, 2026. Educators at the school use play to reinforce math and literacy instruction.
Children enjoy a morning at the writing center at the Coltrane-Webb STEM Elementary School in Concord, N.C., on Sept. 3, 2026. Educators at the school use play to reinforce math and literacy instruction.
Peyton Sickles for Education Week
Early Childhood Video Play-Based Learning: How It Can Build Young Children’s Independence
An EdWeek video looks at how an early learning program helps students explore boundaries and responsibility.
1 min read
Students tend to chickens at WonderHere in Lakeland, Fla. on Sept. 1, 2026.
Students tend to chickens at WonderHere in Lakeland, Fla. on Sept. 1, 2026.
Saul Martinez for Education Week
Teaching Video How Co-Teaching Helps English Learners Succeed
Increasingly in the Metro Nashville schools, general-education and English-learner teachers team up.
1 min read
Laura Eady, a 3rd grade general education teacher (left), and Lisa Maddox, an English-learner teacher, prepare lessons together for students at Mt. View Elementary School in Nashville, Tenn., on Sept. 2, 2026.
Laura Eady, a 3rd grade general education teacher (left), and Lisa Maddox, an English-learner teacher, prepare lessons together for students at Mt. View Elementary School in Nashville, Tenn., on Sept. 2, 2026.
Kevin Wurm for Education Week