Education and Schooling

1. Education and Schooling Week of January 12, 2009 Asst. Prof. G. Sharpe

2. Today at a Glance • Attendance • The Job Market • The Final Exam • OTF Guidelines Regarding Harassment Complaints that arise During practicum placements-Dec, 2008 • Specific Areas of Responsibility for Teachers • Liability for Corporal Punishment in Schools • A Case Study- Force by Way of Correction • Vicarious Liability • Negligence in Schools –(Part 2) • Preventative Steps for a Safer School • Film…Avoiding Negligence in our Schools

3. The Realities of Today’s Job Market Jobs will be scarce in Education for next year • Options? • Supply Teaching (make your calls/connections now!) • Working as a F.T. Educational Assistant- Excellent Experience! • Securing Employment in Remote Communities($, great cultural experience)-Turnover? • Teaching Internationally? Contact my friend Anita at auntanita@hotmail.com Japan • Explore possibilities both within Canada and in the USA http://canadaonline.about.com/od/canadianteachersjobs/Canadian_Teachers_Jobs.htm and http://www.escapeartist.com/jobs34/jobs34.htm • Both of these sites provide ample resources and applicable suggestions • Part Contracts (.2, .5, .76 etc.)-What are they and how can they help you? • Community College Positions? • Don’t loose hope! There’s a vast number of teachers on the verge of retirement!

4. The Final Exam • Please know and be able to apply: • The factors examined when determining teacher negligence and liability (age of student, instructions/directions given, etc.) This will be reinforced in subsequent sessions!...9 case studies to review • Duty of Care, Standard of Care, and whether the Standard of Care was Violated/Breached • Define Duty of Care, Standard of Careonce and apply them in conjunction with the determining factors when assessing teacher negligence • Case studies of potential teacher negligence/liability (2-3) will be presented and you will be asked to analyze the situation according to Duty of Care/Standard of Care and the above criteria • What to do if you are asked to speak to the police, Children’s Aid etc. regarding an alleged incident? • 90 minutes….20% of your total mark…we will do a review period on the above later on….thoughts?

5. OTF Guidelines Regarding Harassment Complaints that arise during practicum placements-Dec, 2008 • As associate members of the Federation, teacher candidates are subject to the exact same responsibilities as full members of the Federation… although they do not have the same rights • Teacher Candidates are subject to the same member to member duties as stipulated under the Teaching Profession Act • Being Harassed as Teacher Candidate? • Candidates must provide a written statement to a fellow member within three days • Discuss the issue with your Faculty Advisor at once • DOCUMENT everything!!

6. OTF Guidelines Regarding Harassment Complaints that arise during practicum placements-Dec, 2008part 2 • IF the teacher candidate feels comfortable enough to do so, the teacher candidate should be encouraged to take it up with the Associate Teacher • Not comfortable doing so? The Teacher Candidate’s Faculty Advisor should contact the Associate Teacher and propose a meeting with said Associate Teacher WITH Federation support to mediate the situation • If the issue is not resolved, the Teacher Candidate has the RIGHT to pursue the matter in a more formal venue/manner • A formal complaint would be made by the Teacher Candidate to the school’s principal, who would then follow the Board’s directed policy on Harassment • In this sense too, the Teacher Candidate is obligated to provide the Associate Teacher with a written statement of the complaint registered with the principal within three days

7. Specific Areas of Responsibility for Teachers.. A Review • The Classroom- It is your duty as a teacher to supervise students in the classroom…RIGHT! • If a teacher is absent from a room and a student is hurt? Courts will explore the reasons for the absence, its duration, the type of accident, and the nature of the class • Playgrounds- was adequate supervision provided? DO NOT BE LATE FOR ANY ASSIGNED DUTIES. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR STUDENTS UNATTENDED IF AT ALL POSSIBLE! • Hands On?

8. Liability for Corporal Punishment in Schools • Corporal Punishment refers to the intentional use of physical force for an alleged offence or behaviour of a student • Touching without Consent? Is technically an assault; legal action is likely only when the touching results in some physical or emotional damage to the student

9. Liability for Corporal Punishment in Schools • There are Criminal Code protections (Section43) for teachers to use force by way of correction • Section 43 states that “Every schoolteacher, parent or person standing in the place of a parent is justified in using force by way of correction toward a pupil or child, as the case may be, who is under his/her care, if the force does not exceed what is reasonable under the circumstances” • Practice teachers are not encouraged to resort to physical violence as a means of correction

10. Case Study • Mrs. Smith is on yard duty. She comes across two Intermediate girls engaged in a fistfight. One of the girls has the other girl on the ground and is punching her. Mrs. Smith intervenes and wrestles the girl to the ground. She holds the girl down and waits for further teacher assistance. Was Mrs. Smith justified in her actions? What would you have done?

11. Vicarious Liability • What is Vicarious Liability? • A school board is normally found liable for the acts of its employers • If a teacher is found to be negligent, liability is usually found against the schoolboard, this is known as Vicarious Liability

12. Teacher Negligence Part 2 • Lawsuits involving schools have become more common • Why?- The target of a lawsuit is no longer the local school or teacher but large district school boards and their insurance companies • There is also a greater sense of awareness of legal rights and freedoms amongst both students and parents • Schools are assuming more parental and community roles, we are wearing far more “hats” as teachers • Schools are now providing nutrition, medication and highly specialized physical and psychological care to students with special needs

13. Teacher Negligence Part 2 • Again, Standard of Care refers to the safety we provide for our students • We are asked to act as a reasonably prudent or careful parent • Minimizing student risk of harm • The Education Act imposes a duty on teachers to maintain, under direction of the principal, proper order and discipline in the classroom and while on duty in the school and on the school ground

14. Teacher Negligence Part 2 • The principal plays a significant role in this regard • The principal must “give assiduous attention to the health and comfort of the students” • Exam Question? What are the factors involved in addressing potential teacher negligence? • 1. the number of students being supervised • 2. the nature of the exercise or activity • 3. the age of the students • 4. instruction/directions given to the students by the teacher • 5. have there been previous accidents in the activity and have school/board policies been followed ?

15. Teacher Negligence Part 2 • The film we are about to view looks at several cases of teacher negligence and liability and what was involved in finding whether that teacher or board was liable or not • Again, If you are forced to leave your classroom and an accident occurs, lawyers will ask why you left the classroom, for how long you were away from the classroom, the time of the accident,the age of the students, the nature of the class and whether previous accidents demonstrated the need for a higher degree of supervision • STUDENT ACCOUNTABILITY is very important here!

16. Teacher Negligence Part 2 • Accidents happen in schools even when no one has been negligent • A school or teacher can not be an insurer of the safety of all students under its care • There is an inherent risk of injury in most athletic activities • A teacher will only be considered negligent if a student is exposed to UNREASONABLE RISKS

17. Preventative Steps for a Safer School • 1. Review all previous incidents or injury and plan accordingly • 2. Examine each incident and determine what could have been done to eliminate or reduce the risk of injury • 3. Constantly re-evaluating existing safety procedures to ensure that all foreseeable risks of harm have been dealt with • 4. Follow all school/board guidelines when planning a lesson, event or activity • 5. Essentially be PROACTIVE! • The film- (25 minutes) • When watching the film and the case studies presented, always keep in mind duty of care, standard of care and acting like a careful, prudent parent