Is it illegal in the state of Washington for a teacher to call a student retarded?today in class my teacher called me retarded because she thought...

Whether or not it is illegal in the state of Washington, I
cannot say.  It is, however, very unprofessional.  In my opinion as an educator and an
aunt to a mentally retarded boy, this teacher needs training on dealing with students,
and on what is offensive to human beings - this could have also been heard by a mentally
retarded student who very well could have been offended as were
you.

Your post reminded me of my 7th grade year in which a
teacher whom I admired greatly called me this term.  This was after she had preached and
preached about if a student calls you a name in her class to not call them one back, but
instead report it to her and she would handle the situation.  When I took her at her
word, she humiliated me in front of the class by saying, "You must be retarded because
you are coming to me about this!"  I was shocked, crushed, and very disappointed.  She
was, up until that day, my favorite teacher.  I can thank her for one thing, though -
when I tell a student to come to me with issues they might have, whatever I tell them I
will do - I DO - and I am VERY conscientious about not harming a student in this
way.

Again, whether or not it is illegal, I do not know,
but as a professional educator, I feel it is unethical, unprofessional, and, frankly,
distasteful.