Education and Early Childhood Learning

The Act strengthens the regulatory framework for teachers through amendments to The Education Administration Act. Specifically, the amendments to the legislation establish

• an independent Commissioner to investigate, adjudicate and otherwise respond to matters of teacher misconduct and competency, including having the ability to enter into consent resolution agreements and refer matters to a hearing panel for adjudication.
• hearings open to the public and hearing panels with equal representation between teachers, employers and the general public.
• the ability to address issues of competency and fitness to practice in the future and the development of professional standards for teachers in partnership with the sector.
• the ability to require further mandatory trainings; and the development of a certification renewal process that can include obligatory background checks and other requirements to be satisfied at the time of renewal.

The Manitoba government takes the safety of youth very seriously. Recent issues involving cases of teacher misconduct have highlighted gaps in the previous framework for addressing teacher misconduct in Manitoba. The amended legislation will allow for better protection of children in schools.

The Act will come into force in phases. As of January 6, 2025, the sections of the Act that allow for the appointment of the Commissioner and enable them to address matters of teacher misconduct will be proclaimed. The department will also establish a teacher registry in this phase and conduct necessary consultations with the sector regarding competency standards. On September 2, 2025, the sections of the Act that enable the Commissioner to address matters of teacher competence and fitness to practice will come into force. The section of the Act related to certain information included for teachers certified prior to January 6, 2025, and those subject to any suspension, cancellation or limitations after January 1, 1990, will be proclaimed at a later date.

The Education Administration Act maintains Manitoba’s current “one-window” approach to teacher certification complaints – that is, its scope includes both conduct and competence. This is consistent with practice in other Canadian jurisdictions that use a commissioner model for teacher oversight. Historically, the Minister of Education and Early Childhood Learning held the authority and responsibility for the regulation of the teaching profession. The Minister’s role included issuing, suspending and canceling teacher certificates, as they deemed necessary. The amendments to The Education Administration Act transfers these responsibilities to the Director of Teacher Certification and Standards who will be responsible for issuing teaching certificates and will also suspend or cancel them when ordered to do so by the Commissioner, resulting from a consent resolution, or a decision by a hearing panel.

However, sections of The Education Administration Act related to competence will not be proclaimed until after further consultation and collaboration with the sector, which will require additional time. That is why the Commissioner will not be enabled to address matters of competence until September 2025.

The department has committed to both consulting and working collaboratively with the sector – including, but not limited to, teachers and their employers – regarding their recommendations for competency standards.

The definition is intentionally broad, with specific thresholds only for some clearly defined behaviours. The definition does not include an exhaustive list of all behaviours that constitute misconduct, as it would be impossible to list all examples in legislation without creating gaps. However, the legislation also allows for a regulation that could include other types of behaviours that could be defined as misconduct, if necessary. The department will continue to engage with the sector to ensure that the definition included in the legislation is understood by all parties and is consistently applied by all employers of certified teachers.

The Commissioner will have the ability to dismiss complaints that are found to be frivolous, vexatious, or trivial, or that give rise to an abuse of the process.

Furthermore, The Education Administration Act provides an appeal route for panel decisions, allowing the courts to dismiss the appeal, make other findings, or refer the matter back to the hearing panel with directions for further consideration.

As Manitoba Education and Early Childhood Learning does not have authority to regulate staff who do not hold a teaching certificate, matters of misconduct involving non-teaching staff will continue to be addressed by the employer, child protection agencies, and/or law enforcement, similar to other sectors.

The department has already implemented several measures to prevent and address misconduct for non-teaching staff, including training requirements. The department is committed to continuing to work with our education partners to find additional ways to address misconduct by any school staff.

The Commissioner’s work will be complemented by mandatory abuse prevention training for all school personnel. In addition, the department will continue to work with employers to ensure that all parties are aware of their responsibilities and roles in preventing misconduct.

During a public hearing, the hearing panel may direct the attending public to be excluded from all or part of the hearing, in order to protect the disclosure of intimate personal matters related to the victim.

Furthermore, the Commissioner may direct a hearing decision not to be made public, or to publicize just a summary of a hearing decision, if the Commissioner is of the opinion that publicizing such decision in its entirety would cause significant hardship to the victim.

The same type of exception applies for publications of consent resolution agreements entered by the Commissioner.

Stakeholders emphasized the importance of teacher and employer representation on hearing panels due to their unique knowledge of the teaching profession.

Based on experiences in other jurisdictions, Manitoba anticipates the majority of cases will be addressed by consent resolution agreements, rather than adjudicated by a hearing panel. Further, the public representative on the hearing panel will be the Chair of the panel. Hearing panels’ decisions must also be made public, which increases transparency and accountability.

If needed, the Commissioner and investigated teacher will also have the option to appeal hearing results to the Court of King’s Bench.

An investigated teacher will have the option to appeal hearing panel decision results to the Court of King’s Bench. The appeal route provided for in The Education Administration Act goes beyond a judicial review, allowing the courts to dismiss the appeal, make other findings, or refer the matter back to the hearing panel with directions for further consideration.

The department only has authority to take action on a teacher’s certificate. Employment matters must still be handled by schools or school boards, who are the employers. The new teacher professional conduct process does not alter or reduce the responsibility employers have for the actions of their staff.

However, the Commissioner will have the discretion to suspend a certificate at any time after a report or a complaint has been received, regardless of the stage of the investigation, if deemed necessary for the safety of students. The Commissioner may also initiate an investigation on their own initiative if it is in the public interest. School divisions and members of the public can also report instances of misconduct prior to disciplinary action occurring if they choose to do so.