WASHINGTON • Two Democratic senators urged the Education Department on Wednesday to strengthen regulations against quietly excluding kids from class because of behaviors related to a disability — a practice known as informal removal.

Since the pandemic began, parents of kids with disabilities say the practice is on the rise, denying their kids the legal right to an education. Disability rights advocates and legal experts say the removals likely circumvent protections for these children, who are not supposed to be disciplined because of their disability.

A report Tuesday documented the impact of these informal removals on children and families. In interviews with 20 families in 10 states, parents said they were called repeatedly, sometimes less than an hour into the school day, to pick up their children. Some said they left work so frequently they lost their jobs.