PDF Version
Administrative Procedure: Code of Conduct
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EFFECTIVE DATE:
June 8, 2005
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ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE CODE:
1.A.10
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AMENDED DATE:
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Policy Reference
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Legal Reference
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In keeping with our Foundation Statements, all staff and every student is entitled to function responsibly within a safe, caring, and enabling environment. In support of this expectation, the Board requires that the entire organization subscribe to the Border Land Code of Conduct. This Code of Conduct includes a statement of expectations of behaviour and related responsibilities for participants in the system. The Border Land School Division Code of Conduct shall be reviewed annually by a committee. Each school, employee, student, and volunteer within Border Land School Division is expected to behave in a respectful manner and comply with the divisional code of conduct.
Working with Parents
Teaching self-discipline is a shared responsibility that hinges on a cooperative approach between the school and parents. Students will feel safe when they see the adults from the two parts of their lives, school and home, come together to focus on their interests. When teachers and parents communicate regularly and work collaboratively, they are more likely to develop a degree of trust.
School and parents may disagree on disciplinary decisions. When positive approaches to resolving disagreements are used, there are opportunities to build strong relationships and to set positive examples for our students. Parents are encouraged to contact their school any time they have a concern regarding a disciplinary matter. The process for appeal is found later in this procedure.
In Border Land School Division, unacceptable behavior includes but is not limited to the following:
- Harassing/discriminating
- Bully/cyberbullying
- Threats to self and others
- Gang involvement
- Possess a weapon, as “weapon” is defined in section 2 of the Criminal Code
- Possession or being under the influence of an illicit drug
- Inappropriate use of the internet and electronic communication
Across Manitoba, schools have been striving to find the best approach for working with students who exhibit challenging behaviours. These efforts have led to successful approached for preventing and changing challenging behavior. The themes that are common to a successful approach include the development of a positive school climate, a positive school-wide approach, team planning, community involvement, and professional support.
Appropriate Interventions and Disciplinary Consequences
All schools are expected to engage in preventative practices – in other words, the use of instruction and programs that focus on social responsibility and positive behavior rather than the need for negative consequences. Many schools have successfully introduced restorative practices that aim to develop community and manage conflict and tensions by repairing harm and building relationships (eg. conflict resolution or peer mediation programs, restitution and restorative justice.) Negative consequences may be necessary when other approached to problem behavior are unsuccessful, however, they are not effective when over used.
Teachers and Principals must ensure that interventions used are appropriate given the frequency and severity of the disciplinary violation and the students age or state of development. The principal maintains the authority to determine which consequence is appropriate in a given situation. In every situation, when selecting appropriate consequences, school staff should be sensitive to any student who has been the victim or target of unacceptable behavior, as well as to the student who committed this behaviour. Reasonable accommodation is required for students with exceptional learning needs that affect their behaviour, taking into account the student’s ability to comply with disciplinary measures.
Interventions and consequences may be applied as appropriate to the context, but they need not be applied in the order they appear in this document. Schools may expand upon the list as long as the additional items are consistent with the Manitoba Education directive.
Informal Discussion
A teacher or administrator speaks with the student to reach an agreement regarding the student's behaviour. Parent(s) may be contacted in some circumstances. Students who are 18 years of age or older must give their consent to contact parents.
Parental Involvement
Contact is made with the parent/guardian(s) to discuss the student’s specific behaviour and the steps that must be undertaken to change it. The contact could vary from a telephone conversation to a formal conference at the school with parent(s), student, and school personnel.
School Counsellor/Resource Teacher
A school counsellor and/or resource teacher meets with the student with the specific goal of developing a plan for changing attitudes and improving student behaviour. Parent(s) should be informed.
Formal Interview
A conference is held with the student, the teacher, and an administrator and/or school counsellor and the parent(s) to develop a plan for changing the student's behaviour. As one example of a plan, it may be useful to conduct a functional behavioural assessment to guide the development of effective positive interventions based on the function of the behaviour.
Withdrawal from Classroom Setting
Where specific student conduct is deemed to have a negative impact upon the classroom learning environment, the student is withdrawn to a supervised alternate location to complete his or her assignment. Such withdrawal would normally be temporary, but when a prolonged withdrawal is recommended, parent(s) will be informed.
Removal of Privileges
Privileges such as access to the playground, cafeteria, library, extracurricular activities, and/or bus transportation are removed under certain circumstances. Parent(s) will be informed.
Detention
The student is detained at the school for specific unacceptable behaviour. Should a detention extend beyond regular school hours, parent(s) will be informed.
Restitution/Compensation
The student and/or parent(s) are required to compensate for damages incurred to school division property by the intentional or negligent act of a child. Such compensation may be monetary in nature, but could take alternative forms such as community service.
Behavioural/Performance Contract
In some instances, the student is required to meet specific behavioural standards in order to avoid more severe consequences. Such expectations are developed among the school, the parent(s), and the student. Outcomes are clarified in order to meet the behaviour standards agreed upon. Such an agreement is documented, with copies provided for all concerned parties.
Student Services
A referral may be made to school division student services personnel who can assist school personnel in the remediation of inappropriate student conduct. Such involvement may include a level of counseling or clinical supports for the student that is beyond the school’s capabilities. Parental permission must be obtained for assessments and/or interventions.
Outside Agency/Community Involvement
A referral to an outside agency or a community resource may be necessary to address a student’s behaviour (e.g., a physician, adolescent or adult mental health services, Addictions Foundation Manitoba, the anxiety clinic at St. Boniface Hospital, the Lighthouses and Turnabout crime prevention programs, Boys & Girls Clubs, Big Brothers Big Sisters, or Aboriginal Elders). In all cases, parental permission must be obtained.
Threat Assessment
The school will respond to all student threats to self or others through administrative action and/or school division threat assessment protocols or through critical incident preparedness plans. Outside agency and/or police involvement may be requested. Parent(s) will be informed.
Police Notification
Police notification does not mean that police will lay charges in every situation; however, police should be notified for serious incidents that happen at school, during school-related activities in or outside school, or in other circumstances if the incident has a negative impact on the school environment. School boards should identify the types of incidents that require mandatory and discretionary police notification and ensure that principals are aware of protocols respecting police notification. Parents will be notified unless police direct otherwise.
Student Suspension
- Alternatives should be considered before suspension (e.g., classroom strategies, in-school alternatives, school-wide programs, and alternative and/or off-site locations).
- A teacher may suspend a student from the classroom for not more than two days.
- A principal may suspend a student from the school for not more than five days.
- A superintendent may suspend a student from the school for not more than six weeks.
- A parent and/or pupil may make a request to appear before the school board to make representations about a suspension. A school board may, upon receiving such representation, confirm or modify the suspension or reinstate the pupil.
Categories for student suspension
Misconduct – this may include insubordination, physical altercation with another individual, verbal altercation with another individual, threats, bullying or harassing.
Substance Use – this includes alcohol or tobacco use
Illegal Drugs – this may include being under the influence of, in possession or, or trafficking of any drug deemed illegal
Weapons – this may include being in possession of, threating with, or attacking with a weapon.
Property Damage – this may include damage to Border Land School Division property as well as damage to other individuals personal property.
Inappropriate ICT Use– this includes any action on a technological device, on or off school property, that violates the Border Land School Division Acceptable Use Agreement.
All student suspensions are to be recorded on the Suspension of Student form, see Appendix C, and reported to the Superintendent’s office within 24 hours of the suspension.
Student Expulsion
A school board may expel from a school any student who, upon investigation by the school board, is found to be guilty of conduct injurious to the school environment.
Appeal Process of Disciplinary Decisions
If a student and/or parent/guardian are not satisfied with a disciplinary decision, they should speak first to the teacher who made the disciplinary decision and then to the school principal if the issue is not resolved. If there is still an unsatisfactory response, an appeal in writing, see Appendix D, can then be made to the superintendent of schools, and if necessary then to the school board. Exceptions to this are suspensions in excess of five days and expulsions, in these cases the appeal does directly to the school board.
APPENDIX A
DEFINITIONS
Bullying
Bullying is behaviour that is intended to cause, or should be known to cause, fear, intimidation, humiliation, distress or other forms of harm to another person's body, feelings, self-esteem, reputation, or property. It is also behaviour that is intended to create, or should be known to create, a negative school environment for another person.
Bullying takes place in a context of a real or perceived power imbalance between the people involved and is typically (but need not be) repeated behaviour.
It may be direct (face to face) or indirect (through others); it may take place through any form of expression, including written, verbal, physical, or any form of electronic communication (referred to as cyberbullying), including social media, text messages, instant messages, websites, or e-mail.
Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying is bullying by means of any form of electronic communication, including social media, text messaging, instant messaging, websites, or e-mail.
Expulsion
The removal of a student from all schools of a school division permanently, at the discretion of the school board.
Reasonable accommodation
The school’s obligation to address students’ special needs that stem from the protected characteristics specified in Manitoba’s Human Rights Code, such as physical or mental disabilities, et cetera., and that affect the individual’s ability to access educational/school services or facilities. The measures to accommodate special needs will be reasonable and required unless they cause undue hardship due to cost, risk to safety, impact on others, or other factors.
Unacceptable conduct
Unacceptable conduct includes abusing another student physically, sexually, or psychologically, verbally, in writing, or otherwise. It also includes bullying another student.
APPENDIX B
Rights and Responsibilities regarding Student Discipline
Students
Rights
- To be accompanied by a parent or other adult to assist and make representations to the school board before a decision is made to expel.
Responsibilities
- To attend school and classes regularly and punctually.
- To comply with school and school division discipline and behaviour management policies.
- To behave in a respectful manner and comply with the school code of conduct.
- To complete assignments and other related work required by teachers or other employees of the school division.
- To treat with respect school property and the property of others who are employed at or attending the school.
- To assume responsibility if he or she destroys, damages, loses, or converts by an intentional or negligent act school or division property.
Parents/Guardians
Rights
- To be informed regularly of the attendance, behaviour, and academic achievement of his or her child in school.
- To be informed of the discipline and behaviour management policies of the school or school division or school district, and to be consulted before the policies are established or revised.
- To accompany his or her child and assist him or her to make representations to the school board regarding a suspension of more than five days or before a decision is made to expel the child.
- Responsibilities
- To cooperate fully with teachers and other school/division employees to ensure their child complies with school/division discipline and behaviour management policies and the school’s code of conduct.
- To take all reasonable measures to ensure the child attends school regularly.
- To assume responsibility with the child where school/division property is damaged, lost, or converted by the intentional or negligent act of that child.
(Note: Teachers and students whose personal property is damaged or lost may bring action under The Parental Responsibility Act).
Responsibilities and Authority of Teachers
- To maintain order and discipline among students attending or participating in activities that are sponsored or approved by the school, whether inside or outside the school.
- To behave in a respectful manner and comply with the school code of conduct.
- To ensure that the interventions and responses used or implemented in carrying out duties to maintain order and discipline in school are appropriate, given the frequency and severity of the disciplinary violation, and take into account the student's state of development.
- To report to the principal unacceptable student conduct while at school or at a prescribed school-approved activity as soon as reasonably possible*.
- To report to the principal as soon as reasonably possible that a student may have engaged in cyberbullying or been negatively affected by cyberbullying, whether it occurs during school hours or not*.
- To seize or cause to be seized and take possession of any offensive/dangerous weapon brought to school by a student and hand over same to the principal.
- To suspend a student from the classroom for up to two days when a student engages in disruptive behaviour and suspension is the consequence for that behaviour under school policy or the school code of conduct.
- To promptly document and report a student suspension to the principal.
*The duty to report to the principal also applies to employees of a school board, school division, or school district and persons who have care and charge of one or more pupils during a prescribed school-approved activity.
Responsibilities and Authority of Principals
- To review annually, in consultation with the school’s parent advisory committee, a school code of conduct.
- To ensure that a school’s discipline and behaviour management policies -including disciplinary consequences for violations of the code of conduct - are consistent with any Ministerial directives concerning appropriate disciplinary consequences for unacceptable behaviour.
- To supervise buildings and grounds during school hours, including safety, repairs, cleanliness, et cetera.
- To remove, or cause to be removed, persons from school premises who are causing a disturbance or interruption, trespassing, or who are present for a purpose not reasonably associated with the normal functioning of the school.
- To provide disciplinary authority over the conduct of each student of a school from the time the student arrives at the school until the student departs for the day, except during any period that the student is absent from school at the request of his or her parent or guardian.
- To provide disciplinary authority over students on their way to and from school, in terms of their conduct towards one another, while travelling to and from school on school division transportation, and while on school-prescribed activities.
- To ensure that the interventions and responses used or implemented in carrying out duties to maintain order and discipline in school, are appropriate, given the frequency and severity of the disciplinary violation, and take into account the student’s state of development.
- To notify parents, as soon as reasonably possible, if the principal believes that a student has been harmed as a result of the unacceptable conduct.
- To suspend a student for up to one week for engaging in conduct that the principal considers injurious to the school environment.
- To inform the student’s parent or legal guardian of the suspension and the reasons for the suspension.
- To give the Superintendent within 24 hours of a student being suspended, a written report setting out the pupil’s name, the period of suspension, and a description of the disruptive behaviour for which the pupil was suspended.
- To keep a record of each suspension of a student.
- To develop categories of the reasons for which a student may be suspended, and to ensure that each suspension is accordingly categorized and that the total number of students suspended and the duration of suspensions are tabulated.
- To ensure that educational programming is available to a student who has been suspended.
Responsibilities and Authority of Superintendents
- To suspend a student from school for up to six weeks for engaging in conduct that the superintendent considers injurious to the school environment.
- To inform the student’s parent or legal guardian of the suspension and the reasons for the suspension.
- To give the school board or designate a written report setting out the student’s name, the period of suspension, and a description of the disruptive behaviour for which the student was suspended.
Responsibilities and Powers of School Boards
- To establish written policy* respecting the appropriate use of
- the Internet, including social media, text messaging, instant messaging, websites, and e-mail, and
- digital cameras, cell phones and any other electronic or personal communication devices identified by the board.
- To establish written policy on respect for human diversity and ensure that the policy is implemented in each school. The policy must promote and enhance a safe and inclusive learning environment, the acceptance of and respect for others, a positive school environment, and the training of teachers and other staff on bullying prevention and respect for human diversity.
- To permit the student and his or her parent(s) or legal guardian(s) to make representations to the school board about a suspension of more than five days.
- To confirm or modify the suspension or reinstate the student after receiving such a representation.
- To suspend or expel any student who, upon investigation by the school board, is found to be guilty of conduct injurious to the school environment.
- To ensure that educational programming is made available for students under the age of 16 who are expelled.
- To limit or place conditions on the teacher’s right to suspend, either with respect to an individual student or generally, if the board is of the opinion that the teacher has repeatedly
(a) suspended an individual student for reasons that are not justified, or
(b) suspended students for reasons that are not justified.
*Appropriate-use policies may include provisions that prohibit accessing, uploading, downloading, sharing or distributing information or material that the school board has determined to be objectionable or not in keeping with the maintenance of a positive school environment.
APPENDIX C
Superintendent’s Department
SUSPENSION OF STUDENT
School _____________________________________ Date ___________________________
Name of Student_____________________________________ Student No___________________________
Date of Birth_____________________________________ Grade ___________________________
Day Month Year
Name of Student_____________________________________ Student No___________________________
Date of Birth _____________________________________ Grade ___________________________
Day Month Year
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Date of Incident ______________________________
Date of Suspension______________________________ Length_______________________________________
(Indicate whether in school or out of school suspension)
Proposed Date of Return__________________________
(If a student does not return as expected, please notify Superintendent)
NUMBER OF PREVIOUS OUT OF SCHOOL SUSPENSIONS THIS SCHOOL YEAR _____________________
Reason for Suspension (more than one category can be checked and please use the description of incident section to provide specific incident details)
- Misconduct __________ 4.Weapons __________
- Substance Use __________ 5.Property Damage __________
- Illegal Drugs __________ 6.Inappropriate ICT Use __________
Description of Incident_____________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Conditions for Return/Support Provided________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Parent(s) / Guardian(s) of suspended student contacted: Telephone__________ Letter__________
Parent(s) / Guardian(s) of victim contacted: Telephone__________ Letter__________
Superintendent contacted (if applicable): Yes __________
Police Contacted: Yes __________ No __________
By Whom: School __________ Parent__________
Request for Extension/ Alternative Placement: __________ Letter to Superintendent attached____
_____________________________________________
(Signature)
_____________________________________________
(Position)
Please attach copies of all pertinent information, (i.e. letters to parent(s), Superintendent), and ensure that the
Description of Incident section is completed.
This form should be completed immediately upon suspension of a student and forwarded to the Superintendent within 24 hours of the suspension.
APPENDIX D
DISCIPLINE APPEAL FORM TO SUPERINTENDENT
I have met with the teacher involved _____ Date and time
I have met with the school administration _____ Date and time
To:
Name ___________________________________________________________
Address ___________________________________________________________
Telephone ___________________________________________________________
From:
Name ___________________________________________________________
Address ___________________________________________________________
Telephone ___________________________________________________________
- Nature of the basis of your appeal. This should be a description in your own words of the grounds for your appeal; including all names, dates, and places necessary for a complete understanding of your appeal. (Additional paper may be used if necessary).
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
- Has this concern been discussed with the classroom teacher and/or school administrator?
________________________________________________________________________
If no, please do so prior to filing this appeal with the Superintendent.
- If yes, what was the result of the discussion?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________/______________________________________ Signature of Complainant Date