Posts tagged school act

Anonymity in Western countries is now almost impossible.  In the age of the internet, each one of us has some public record or image.  We leave streaks of ourselves in any user-generated website, like facebook,  myspace, youtube and linkedin.  We write letters to the editor, comment on blogs, and the list goes on.  As a result, we all have a history that can be accessed – easily – by almost anyone at any time.  The ability to “google” someone can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on who is doing the googling, whether the information is accurate or unjustly intrusive, etc.

Similarly, some records are important, and some are not.  When it comes to children, many parents reflect on their own journeys and successes and can clearly identify what doors needed to open for them to obtain the goods things in life.  Generally, it starts with school.  Getting into law school at McGill meant I needed to thrive in my undergrad, which meant I had to develop good skills in high school and earlier, which meant I couldn’t be one of those kids school administrators and teachers thought was a trouble-maker or a flake to be admonished or doubted until I proved myself to be otherwise.

Each step wasn’t absolutely necessary to achieve the end result, and it is possible to arrive at the same place from a far less fortunate path, but for my children I definitely prefer they enjoy all the advantages that I had every step of the way.  That is why many parents want to minimize those items that could present a risk – like the contents of student records, which are there to present a reference point for educators at each institution their children attend.

But what are student records?  What do they, or should they, include?  Should every challenge or misdeed of a student be marked down for every subsequently educator to review?

In British Columbia, there are specific rules for what should be held by school administrators in every student record.  Consider the following provisions of the School Act (British Columbia) in relation to public schools:

• Section 9: Each student and their parents are entitled to examine the student records held by a school board in relation to that student while accompanied by a principal or other appointee.
• Section 79: Each school board must establish and maintain a record for every student registered with a school within that board’s jurisdiction and have written procedures for storing, retrieving and using student records.  As well, each school board must ensure that information in each student record is kept confidential, although they may be ordered to allow access to a person providing support services.
• Section 79.1: If separate records are kept concurrently by multiple educational authorities that pertain to a single child involved with each of those authorities, then each authority must provide the other with access to their student records in respect of the child.
• Section 170: Every employee or person otherwise engaged by the Ministry of Education must not disclose information in a student record unless required to administer these laws or conduct business of the Ministry.  As well, every such person must swear an oath not to disclose this information and if they break that oath that have committed an offence.

More specifically, the contents of the student record that must be established and maintained under section 79 above are set out in Ministerial Order M082/09.  Each board must ensure that the record maintained for each student enrolled in the public school system includes:

1. A completed version of the most recent Ministry of Education form entitled “Permanent Student Record” (PSR) and all documents listed as inclusions on that form. The PSR form generally shows whether there are any medical or legal alerts (e.g. restraining order) associated with the child, general student information (e.g. name, Personal Education Number, date of birth, etc.), and the student’s record of school (e.g. where, when, etc.).  The inclusions listed on the PSR form involve documents that help plan or support the student’s education program.  Certain documents must be included; for example, any copies of restraining orders.  Other documents may be included; for example, information an educator (namely, a principal) deems relevant to the education program of the student.
2. Student progress reports for the two most recent years or a copy of the student’s transcript.
3. If letter grades are not set out in progress reports for certain years, a written record of those letter grades.
4. The student’s current Student Learning Plan, if any. A Student Learning Plan is the plan set out in the Career and Personal Planning 8 to 12 Integrated Resource Package (1997) educational program guide.
5. The student’s current IEP, if any. An IEP – or Individual Education Plan – is defined in Ministerial Order 638/95 as a series of specific learning outcomes designed for a student and includes special assistance and support services available for the student.

Each school board generally has policies addressing these requirements.  For example, the Policy Manual of the Vancouver School Board includes a section on student records, which provides guidance to teachers and administrators about the contents of student records:

[Access] to teachers’ notes may be requested by parents or students under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. Any such requests should be referred to the school principal.  When preparing notes for insertion in teacher or classroom files, the information should be factual and worded in a careful, professional manner. Insertions intended to go into the formal student file kept in the office should be dated and signed.

While educators have a responsibility to keep all relevant student information on file and to protect the privacy of others, if information is being released, there is a companion responsibility not to retain information that is irrelevant to the student’s educational program or general well-being. This is a professional responsibility that requires careful review and consideration… It is the principal’s responsibility to decide whether or not documents are relevant to the educational program of the student and, therefore, whether they should be listed in the List of Inclusions and maintained in the student file. All student records should be up-dated and culled regularly.

Another important aspect of Ministerial Order M082/09 is what a board must do with the student records it holds when one of its students transfer elsewhere:

On receipt of a request from a board to which a student transfers and is enrolled, a board must transfer [the documents referred to above] to that board… Where a former student of a board is enrolled in an independent school… and a board receives a request from that independent school… the board must transfer a copy of the documents [referred to above].

This means there is some degree of discretion on the part of educators to choose material to be included, and that your child’s student record will trail them, for better or worse, until their graduation.  (If the last school you attended was within the jurisdiction of the Vancouver School Board, then you can obtain a copy of your PSR by completing a form located here.)  The legislature has acknowledged that parents, guardians and students have a right to access a student’s file.  This right should be exercised in a manner that, on the one hand, respects the administrative burden it can place on schools but, on the other hand, also recognizes the light it sheds on the relationship between an educator and a student and the impact a student record may have on a child’s future.