Student Behaviour and Conduct

Objective

To provide direction for school staff as they establish welcoming, inclusive, safe and healthy learning environments, implement discipline processes and develop Student Rights and Responsibilities documents, in alignment Board Policy HG.BP – Student Behaviour and Conduct.

Definitions

Behaviour refers to the way a person acts in a specific situation. 

Conduct refers to a person’s behaviour over time, as observed by others. 

Academic Integrity is honest and responsible academic behaviour. Students are expected to submit original work, acknowledge sources, and conduct themselves ethically in the completion of assessments and examinations. 

Bullying is defined in the Education Act as “repeated and hostile or demeaning behaviour by an individual in the school community where the behaviour is intended to cause harm, fear or distress to one or more other individuals in the school community, including psychological harm or harm to an individual’s reputation.”  Bullying can take different forms: physical (pushing, hitting); verbal (name-calling, threats); social (exclusion, rumours); and electronic (using technology to harass or threaten).  As per the Education Act, bullying also includes “the distribution of an intimate image of another person knowing that the person depicted in the image did not consent to the distribution, or being reckless as to whether or not that person consented to the distribution.” 

Conflict occurs when there is a breakdown in relationships between individuals that results from a disagreement or misunderstanding. While conflicts may require adult intervention, they are considered to be a natural part of how students learn to navigate relationships. 

Restorative practice is an approach that brings together those who have caused harm and those who have been harmed to openly resolve the issue. Restorative practice can range in formality, however it always involves an agreed upon action to repair harm and mend relationships. 

Student Rights and Responsibilities is a requireddocument for each Division school. The Student Rights and Responsibilities document aligns with the requirements of Board Policy HG.BP – Student Behaviour and Conduct and requirements of the Education Act. 

Threat-risk assessment is the process to determine if a threat-maker actually poses a risk to a target or targets they have threatened, and to determine appropriate interventions and supports to ensure safety.

Responsibility

1. All members of the Edmonton Public Schools community, including students, parents, staff and Trustees, have a role and a shared responsibility to create and support welcoming, caring, respectful and safe learning environments.
   
   
2. Students are responsible for ensuring that their conduct contributes to a welcoming, caring, respectful and safe learning environment that respects diversity and fosters a sense of belonging. Behaviour which disrupts or threatens the educational atmosphere of the school is unacceptable. Students are expected to:
   1. Demonstrate academic integrity and follow the rules and regulations that are in place to benefit all members of the school community.
   2. Take responsibility for their behaviour, whether or not it occurs on school property or within the school day, or by electronic means.
3. The principal shall be responsible for:
   1. Establishing supports and processes at the school to proactively guide positive student behaviour.
   2. Implementing fair and appropriate responses to student behaviour.
   3. Developing, implementing and communicating the school’s Student Rights and Responsibilities document.
4. The Education Act articulates that a parent of a student has the responsibility to:
   1. Take an active role in the student’s educational success, including assisting the student in complying with Section 31 of the Education Act.
   2. Ensure the parent’s conduct contributes to a welcoming, caring, respectful and safe learning environment.
   3. Co-operate and collaborate with school staff to support the delivery of supports and services to the student.
   4. Encourage, foster and advance collaborative, positive and respectful relationships with teachers, principals, other school staff and professionals providing supports and services in the school.
   5. Engage in the student’s school community.
5. District Support Services shall be responsible for providing advice and support to principals related to the development and implementation of the school’s Student Rights and Responsibilities document as well as in supporting school staff with the threat-risk assessment process where deemed necessary.

Regulation

1. Principals shall adopt an approach to student behaviour and conduct that supports positive student behaviour and personal development by managing discipline through proactive, responsive and restorative strategies.
   
   
2. The school principal shall develop and implement a school discipline process that reflects the following characteristics:
   1. Initial responses to student behaviour generally occur within the context of the classroom and involve the support of the classroom teacher and other classroom staff.
   2. Progressive responses to unacceptable behaviour include a range of strategies such as appropriate consequences, intervention and support, restorative practice, and threat-risk assessments.
   3. Consequences for unacceptable behaviour are instructive in nature, logically connected and proportional to the behaviour, and escalate in relation to the severity and frequency of the offense.
   4. Responses to student behaviour, including consequences and interventions, must take into account the student’s age, maturity and individual circumstances.
   5. Support is provided for students who are impacted by unacceptable behaviour as well as for students who engage in unacceptable behaviour.
   6. Bullying behaviour is addressed in a manner that:
      1. distinguishes bullying from conflict (see Definitions)
      2. ensures school staff review all allegations of bullying
      3. acknowledges that school staff and parents may not always agree that a situation constitutes bullying, however school staff will work constructively to address the concern in an appropriate manner.
   7. Where appropriate, parents are included in the discipline process, and informed ofconsequences and interventions for their child, with the understanding that school administration is responsible for final decisions.
   8. Processes for documentation and record-keeping of student behaviour and conduct, including interventions and supports.
3. The principal shall establish a Student Rights and Responsibilities document for the school which:
   1. is developed with input from staff, students, parents and the community;
   2. articulates expectations for student behaviour as well as responses and consequences for unacceptable behaviour, including addressing bullying behaviour;
   3. is in alignment with Board Policy HG.BP – Student Behaviour and Conduct, Administrative Regulation HFA.AR – Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, Section 31 of the Education Act and this administrative regulation;
   4. is publicly shared with staff, students, parents and community;
   5. is reviewed yearly.

References