Policy Makes Classrooms Safer For Children

The Department of Education is working with school boards and with other provinces to help make Nova Scotia's classrooms even safer for students.

School boards in the province must now report to the department any teacher who has not been hired, who has been suspended or fired, or who has resigned or retired due to conduct that could put a child at risk or any other inappropriate behaviour. If certification is suspended, revoked or reinstated, the department will report this information to other provinces and territories.

"We're fortunate in Nova Scotia that incidents of inappropriate behaviour are few, but one is too many," said Education Minister Angus MacIsaac. "By formally reporting any incidents, we can help prevent children in Nova Scotia and Canada from being harmed in the classroom."

The new regulation came into effect on Jan. 16. School boards will report immediately if incidents occur. The department will report to other jurisdictions immediately if certification is suspended or revoked as a result. The department will also send a summary report to them of incidents each year.

"School boards are always concerned about the safety of the students in their schools," said Mary Jess MacDonald, president of the Nova Scotia School Boards Association. "We see this as a positive step to ensuring that school boards have the information they need to help prevent incidents that would endanger students."

Nova Scotia's new regulation under the Education Act is part of a national initiative. In 1999, all Canadian provinces and territories agreed on a common reporting protocol through the Council of Education Ministers, Canada.

Nova Scotia joins Alberta, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario and the Yukon Territory in establishing the new regulation according to the national protocol.

Mr. MacIsaac said other measures have already been put in place to minimize risks to students.

"We're taking every precaution to keep our children safe in school and prevent incidents from happening in the first place," he said. "In September, it became mandatory for every adult applying for a job or volunteer position with our school boards to undergo police and child abuse registry checks."

That regulation also applies to private schools, the Nova Scotia Community College, Université Sainte-Anne-Collège de l'Acadie and schools registered under the Private Career Colleges Act. These schools employ teachers with Nova Scotia licences.