By law, all staff in Ontario schools are legally responsible for completing Safe Schools Incident Reporting Form Part 1 when they witness an incident that has a negative impact on the school climate. There are many reasons why Safe School Incident Reporting Forms are not being completed but it is important that we reverse this trend.
The following information is taken from the OECTA Safety in Schools brochure. See the brochure for more details related to student behaviours that must be reported and reporting guidelines.
As a teacher, it is important for you to know your responsibilities, and those of other school staff, when it comes to reporting and responding to incidents that have a negative impact on the school climate.
Staff
- Staff who work directly with students are required to respond to incidents that have a negative impact on school climate.
- Staff includes principals, vice principals, teachers, educational assistants, early childhood educators and other non-teaching staff, such as those involved in social work, child and youth work, psychology and other related disciplines.
- Staff must respond, unless doing so would cause immediate physical harm to themselves, a student or any other person.
- Staff are to report to their principal incidents that can or will lead to suspension and/or expulsion using the Safe Schools Incident Reporting Form Part I.
- Teachers who do not comply with their responding and reporting obligations are at risk of being disciplined by their employer and/or reported to the College of Teachers for professional misconduct. Serious cases could result in further discipline by the College of Teachers.
You can read ‘‘Addressing Students’ Violent Behaviour’ written by Joe Pece at OECTA Provincial for more information.
Click here for the NCDSB Safe School Incident Reporting Form
- Fill out Part 1 of the form as soon as safely possible, preferably within 24 hours of the incident.
- Make a copy of the form and keep it in a secure location for your records.
- Submit the form to your Principal. If you make an oral report to the Principal, a Safe School Incident Reporting Form is still required to be completed.
- The Principal must investigate the incident, meet with you to discuss the results and provide you with written acknowledgement, using the “Safe Schools Incident Reporting Form – Part II”.
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/extra/eng/ppm/145.pdf
If you have any questions about the Safe Schools Incident Reporting Form and/or the process, please speak to your OECTA Staff Representative or contact the Niagara Secondary Unit Office.
