Surrey teacher's counselling of students overstepped 'professional boundaries,' discipline authority says
CTV
British Columbia's Commissioner for Teacher Regulation has suspended a Surrey teacher for three days because he had personal discussions with students that were "in the nature of counselling," despite not being the students' counsellor.
British Columbia's Commissioner for Teacher Regulation has suspended a Surrey teacher for three days because he had personal discussions with students that were "in the nature of counselling," despite not being the students' counsellor.
An online summary of the consent resolution agreement between teacher Jeffrey Stephen Box and the commissioner provides little detail on the circumstances of Box's misconduct.
It says only that Box - a high school teacher in Surrey - had the counselling-like discussions with "at least four students" during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 school years.
"In June of 2019 and in the fall of 2019, Box was told by School administrators not to take on a counselling role with students," the summary reads. "Despite this direction, Box engaged in discussions of a counselling nature with students and on two occasions he hugged students who were upset."
Box's consent resolution agreement with the commissioner acknowledges that these interactions constituted professional misconduct and were contrary to Standard 1 of the Standards for the Education, Competence and Professional Conduct of Educators in British Columbia.
Noting that teachers often find themselves in a position to provide advice and guidance to students, CTV News asked the Ministry of Education for more explanation on what, exactly, had made Box's behaviour inappropriate.
Citing a need to protect privacy, the ministry said in a statement that it cannot comment on specific matters before the Commissioner for Teacher Regulation, who is an independent statutory decision maker.
