DISCIPLINE COMMITTEE OF THE ONTARIO COLLEGE OF TEACHERS
IN THE MATTER OF the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996 and the Regulation (Ontario Regulation 437/97) thereunder;
AND IN THE MATTER OF a discipline proceeding against
Rosa Bruni, a member of the Ontario College of Teachers.
PANEL: Robert Gagné, Chair Irene Cheung, OCT Ravi Vethamany, OCT
BETWEEN:
Ava Arbuck, McCarthy Tétrault LLP, for Ontario College of Teachers, assisted by Daniela De Bartolo, Law Clerk
– and –
Rosa Bruni, Self-represented
Marc Spector, Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc, Independent Legal Counsel
Heard: December 16, 2015
DECISION, REASONS FOR DECISION AND ORDER
This matter came on for hearing before a panel of the Discipline Committee (the “Committee”) on December 16, 2015 at the Ontario College of Teachers (the “College”) at Toronto.
A Notice of Hearing dated May 7, 2014 (Exhibit 1) was served on Rosa Bruni (the “Member”), requesting her presence on May 30, 2014 to set a date for hearing, and specifying the charges. The hearing was subsequently set for December 16, 2015.
The Member was not in attendance for the hearing and she did not have legal representation.
THE ALLEGATIONS
The allegations against the Member in the Notice of Hearing are as follows:
IT IS ALLEGED that the Member is guilty of professional misconduct as defined in subsections 30(2) and 30(3) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996 (the “Act”) in that:
(a) she failed to maintain the standards of the profession, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(5);
(b) she failed to comply with the Education Act, Revised Statutes of Ontario, 1990, chapter E.2, and specifically subsection 264(1) thereof or the Regulations made under that Act, contrary to Ontario Regulation 437/97, subsection 1(15);
(c) she displayed a lack of knowledge, skill or judgment and/or disregard for the welfare of her students of a nature or extent that demonstrates that the Member is either unfit to carry out her professional responsibilities or that the Member’s certificate should be made subject to terms, conditions or limitations.
AGREED STATEMENT OF FACTS
Counsel for the College advised the Committee that an agreement had been reached on the facts and introduced an Agreed Statement of Facts and Guilty Plea (Exhibit 2), which provides the following:
At all material times, Rosa Bruni was a member of the Ontario College of Teachers. Attached to Exhibit 2 at Tab “A” is a copy of the Ontario College of Teachers Registered Member Information with respect to the Member.
At all material times, the Member was employed by the York Region District School Board (the “Board”) as a teacher at [XXX] School (the “School”). The Member began teaching at the School in the academic year 2003-2004.
In the academic year 2009-2010, the Member received a new assignment teaching full-time Core French. The Member had not previously taught French at the School. In the academic year 2010-2011, a new French curriculum program was introduced at the School. The School provided the Member with limited resource materials to assist her with implementing the new program.
In the academic year 2010-2011, the Member taught six French classes. Three of the classes were integrated classes that included a number of students with exceptionalities. In-class support for these students by an educational assistant or resource teacher was not provided. The Member found the assigned classes very challenging.
In May 2011, the Member underwent a Teacher Performance Appraisal (“TPA”). The Member received an overall unsatisfactory rating. Areas of concern included:
a) a lack of instructional strategies that effectively enhance and support student learning;
b) ineffective methods of engaging students;
c) a lack of differentiated instruction to address individual learning styles;
d) a need for effective descriptive feedback to students on a regular basis;
e) a lack of programs in place to support students with Individual Education Plans.
Attached to Exhibit 2 at Tab “B” is a copy of the Summative Report Form for the Member dated June 20, 2011. With respect to Ongoing Professional Learning, the principal noted that the Member did approach a French mentor and Special Education Resource Teacher (“SERT”) to support her with planning lessons and a balanced French program. However, the principal concluded that there was no evidence that professional development had impacted her teaching practice.
Following the first performance appraisal, an Improvement Plan was put in place for the Member, which included the Member: meeting weekly with the principal to review planning, assessment, and instruction; continuing to meet with a literacy mentor teacher and SERT; reviewing a number of Board and Ministry curriculum guidelines; reviewing a number of professional development resources. Attached to Exhibit 2 at Tab “C” is a copy of the Improvement Plan for the Member dated June 26, 2011.
The Member’s second TPA took place in November 2011, and she received an overall unsatisfactory rating. While a number of improvements were noted, there continued to be a lack of differentiation of instruction for students with learning exceptionalities, and there was no evidence that instruction was informed by a variety of assessment tools, strategies, and methods. While the Member demonstrated knowledge of the subject matter and the Ontario curriculum, there was no clear link between the learning activities, learning goals, success criteria, and formative and summative assessments. Attached to Exhibit 2 at Tab “D” is a copy of the Summative Report Form for the Member dated January 11, 2012, which includes the Member’s comments.
Following the second performance appraisal, an Improvement Plan was put in place for the Member, which included the Member: meeting weekly with the principal to review planning, assessment, instruction, and classroom management strategies; continuing to meet with the French Curriculum Consultant for further support; reviewing a number of Board guidelines regarding instruction, curriculum expectations, and assessment and evaluation. Attached to Exhibit 2 at Tab “E” is a copy of the Improvement Plan for the Member dated January 16, 2012.
The Member’s third TPA took place in June 2012, and she received an overall unsatisfactory rating. Although there was some improvement, the Superintendent noted that the Member’s instruction was ineffective in engaging students, there was much off-task behaviour by students, and it was not clear how the Member incorporated assessment information into her planning. While the Member provided some evidence for modifying programs to respond to the needs of exceptional students, there was no evidence of any differentiation in the Member’s instructional delivery, or in the provision of resources. Attached to Exhibit 2 at Tab “F” is a copy of the Summative Report Form for the Member dated June 28, 2012.
GUILTY PLEA
By this document, the Member admits the accuracy of the facts and exhibits referred to in the paragraphs above (the “Admitted Facts”).
The Member hereby pleads guilty to the allegation of incompetence in that she has displayed a lack of knowledge, skill or judgement or disregard for the welfare of a student of a nature or extent that demonstrates that her Certificate should be made subject to terms, conditions or limitations, as defined in subsection 30(3) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996.
By this document the Member states that:
(a) she understands fully the nature of the allegations against her;
(b) she understands that by signing this document she is consenting to the evidence as set out in the Admitted Facts being presented to the Discipline Committee;
(c) she understands that by pleading guilty to the allegations, she is waiving the right to require the College to otherwise prove the case against her and the right to have a hearing;
(d) she understands that any agreement between her and counsel for the College with respect to the penalty proposed does not bind the Discipline Committee;
(e) she understands and acknowledges that she is executing this Agreement voluntarily, unequivocally, and without the advice of legal counsel.
- In light of the Admitted Facts and circumstances and the guilty plea, the Ontario College of Teachers and the Member submit that the Discipline Committee find the Member to be incompetent.
DECISION
Counsel for the College requested that the allegation of professional misconduct outlined in paragraphs (a) and (b) of the Notice of Hearing, namely that the Member contravened subsection 1(5) and 1(15) of Ontario Regulation 437/97, be withdrawn. The Committee granted the request.
Having considered the Agreed Statement of Facts and Guilty Plea, the Committee finds that the facts support a finding of incompetence as defined in subsection 30(3) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996.
REASONS FOR DECISION
The Member admitted the truth of the facts and exhibits referred to in paragraphs 1 to 10 of the Agreed Statement of Facts and Guilty Plea and pleaded guilty to the allegation of incompetence against her. She acknowledged and the Committee accepts that the Admitted Facts give rise to a finding of incompetence as defined in subsection 30(3) of the Ontario College of Teachers Act, 1996.
Paragraphs 5 to 10 of the Agreed Statement of Facts and Guilty Plea demonstrate that the Member displayed in her professional responsibilities a lack of knowledge, skill or judgment or disregard for the welfare of her students of a nature or extent that demonstrates that the Member is unfit to continue to carry out her professional responsibilities or that her Certificate should be made subject to terms, conditions or limitations, as defined in section 30(3) of the Act.
JOINT SUBMISSION ON PENALTY
Through a Joint Submission on Penalty (Exhibit 4), Counsel for the College and Counsel for the Member jointly submitted that the appropriate penalty to be imposed by the Discipline Committee in this matter would be that the Committee:
- direct the Registrar to impose the following terms, conditions or limitations on the Member’s Certificate of Qualification and Registration, the fact of such terms, conditions or limitations to be recorded on the Register until such time as they are fulfilled:
(a) prior to commencing or returning to a teaching position or any position for which a Certificate of Qualification and Registration is required (a “Teaching Position”), the Member shall attend, at her own expense, and successfully complete the following course, pre-approved by the Registrar:
(i) an Additional Qualification course or Additional Basic Qualification course which covers curriculum, lesson planning, instructional strategies and assessment of student learning;
(b) within 30 days of her completion of the course referred to in paragraph (a) above, the Member shall provide evidence to the Registrar in writing of her successful completion of same;
(c) the Member shall advise the Registrar at least 30 days before she commences or returns to any Teaching Position of the date of such return, the name of her employer, and the nature of said employment;
(d) upon the commencement or resumption of her employment, the Member shall take all reasonable steps to cause her employer to conduct a performance appraisal in each school year for the first two years in a Teaching Position, and shall provide evidence satisfactory to the Registrar of the steps taken in that regard. The Member shall provide copies of the reports of such performance appraisals to the Registrar within 30 days of their completion. If the Member’s employer is unable or unwilling to perform either of the performance appraisals, the Member shall immediately notify the Registrar in writing.
PENALTY DECISION
The Committee accepts the Joint Submission on Penalty presented by the parties and makes an order in accordance with its terms, as set out above.
REASONS FOR PENALTY DECISION
The Committee accepts the penalty jointly proposed by the parties. The Committee recognizes that, once it ensures that it has jurisdiction to make the order requested, the law confines the Committee’s role to determining whether the proposed penalty is so unreasonable that accepting it would bring the administration of justice or the discipline process into disrepute. The Committee finds that the penalty proposed in the Joint Submission on Penalty is proportionate to the incompetence of the Member and is reasonable given the circumstances of this case.
Prior to commencing or returning to a Teaching Position, the Member is required to complete an Additional Qualification course or Additional Basic Qualification course which covers curriculum, lesson planning, instructional strategies and assessment of student learning. This coursework will help the Member to acquire the necessary skills to improve her practice and it will remind her of the competencies expected of a teacher. Accordingly, the course will address the Member’s teaching deficiencies and it will serve to rehabilitate the Member. The Committee finds that it is also appropriate to have the Member’s teaching performance closely monitored during the first two years of her potential return to the profession to ensure that her teaching performance remains at a satisfactory level.
The Committee is satisfied that the public interest is served by imposing these terms, conditions or limitations on the Member’s certificate.
Date: January 19, 2016
Robert Gagné Chair, Discipline Panel
Irene Cheung, OCT Member, Discipline Panel
Ravi Vethamany, OCT Member, Discipline Panel