Rules for Elementary and Middle School's Teachers‘s Use of Educational Discipline (Draft for Solicitation of Comments)

Source: http://www.moj.gov.cn/news/content/2019-11/22/zlk_3236152.html

Article 1: (Goals and Basis)These Rules are drafted on the basis of the Education Law, Teachers Law, Law on Protection of Minors, and other laws and regulations, so as to perform the task of cultivating morality and cultivating people, to ensure and regulate teachers performance of their duties to educate and manage students, to preserve the dignity of educators, and to promote the comprehensive development and healthy growth of students.

Article 2: (Scope of Application)These provisions apply to teachers of regular elementary and middle schools, secondary vocational schools, and special education schools (hereinafter 'schools') carrying out educational discipline of students.

Article 3: (Concept Definition)Educational discipline as used in these Provisions refers to professional acts by teachers and schools in the course of education and management, rooted in educational and goals and necessity, to stop and control students whose speech and conduct have violated rules or discipline, or to use specified messages to correct them, and make students learn from, recognize, and rectify their mistakes.

Educational discipline is a necessary part of teachers' carrying out their teaching duties and a legally-prescribed power.

Article 4: (Duties and Requirements)Where students violate the student code of conduct, school rules and discipline, social order and good customs, laws and regulations, or those with other physically or psychologically harmful conduct that impeded the normal conduct of educational activities, teachers shall give criticism and education and may give appropriate discipline in light of the circumstances.

Administrative departments for education and schools shall support teachers' proper exercise of educational discipline authority, stopping speech and actions that are harmful to students or infringe on students' lawful rights and interests.

Article 5: (Implementation Principles)The following principles shall be followed in implementing educational discipline:

(1) Education Focused. It shall be based on the goal of caring for students and in line with educational precepts, to achieve the goals of teaching students to follow rules, strengthen self-discipline, and improve themselves.

(2) Compliance with laws and regulations. It shall be based on rules announced in advance, respect students' basic rights and personal dignity, comply with principles of rule of law, due process, and objective justice.

(3) Appropriate punishments. Appropriate discipline measures shall be selected based on the students' sex, age, personal characteristics, physical and psychological characteristics, cognitive level, normal demeanor, the nature of the issue, repentant attitude, and so forth, to achieve the best educational outcome.

(4) Ensuring safety. The motives for, and nature of, students' acts shall be understood in advance; and attention shall be paid to the safety of the methods, venues, and environment to prevent risks that might emerge.

Article 6: (Ordinary Discipline)During classroom education and routine management, teachers may employ the following means to carry out on-site educational discipline based on students' violations of rules and discipline:

(1) naming and criticizing;

(2) ordering them to apologize or make oral or written self-criticism;

(3) Appropriately increasing athletic requirements;

(4) Having them stand up in the classroom, or face the wall for self-reflection, for not more than one class period.

(5) Temporarily taking away items used by students' in violating discipline, disrupting order, or breaking rules.

(6) Keeping them after class for guidance;

(7) Other appropriate measures provided by school rules.

Where students disrupt classes or educational order, impacting others or potentially causing harm to others, teachers may employ necessary measures to take the students out of the classroom or teaching site, and temporarily separate them.

After teachers employ the measures provided in the preceding paragraph against students, they shall notify the students' parents or other guardians (hereinafter 'family') in an appropriate manner in light of the circumstances, and request that the family join them in efforts to educate the student.

Article 7: (Heavier Discipline)Where students violate school rules and discipline, and the circumstances are more serious or where they refuse to make corrections after being given on-site educational discipline, the upon the consent of the person responsible for moral education at the school, teachers may carry out the following discipline measures, and shall notify families:

(1) Suspend or limit students' participation in outings or social practicums that aren't on the class schedule, as well as other off-campus group activities;

(2) Take on public service tasks in the school;

(3) Have the person responsible for moral education in the school lecture them;

(4) Separate them for self-reflection or have them receive specialized education on school rules, discipline, and behavioral rules in a special educational venue established within the school;

(5) Request that families accompany them to school;

(6) Other appropriate measures provided by school rules or discipline.

Article 8: (Serious Punishments)Where students violate rules and discipline, misbehave, and do not change their ways despite repeated education; where they seriously impact the order of education and teaching; or where there are vile circumstances such bullying classmates, berating and striking teachers; teachers shall request the school carry out educational discipline by employing the following measures:

(1) Give not more than one week of at-home or in-school suspension and request that parents lead them back and cooperate in their education;

(2) have the vice-principal for rule of law or the rule of law tutor give them a reprimand;

(3) Arrange locations for special education and have professional personnel carry out tutoring and corrections;

(4) change their educational environment or transfer them for a period;

(5) Other appropriate measures provided for by school rules or discipline.

The school may give discipline sanctions such as warnings, demerits, and academic probation to students who violate rules and discipline where the circumstances are serious or for those that do not make corrections after receiving educational discipline. Students in high-school may also be given discipline sanctions of being ordered to drop out or expelled.

Where student conduct is suspected of being a illegal or criminal, the schools shall transfer it to the justice organs for handling. Schools may follow legally-prescribed procedures to suggest that students be transferred to specialized schools for education and corrections where they have serious negative conduct or for those who broke the law but were not given administrative or criminal punishments because the conduct was minor.

Article 9: (Compulsory Measures)Where teachers discover students are carrying or using hazardous items in violation of rules or laws, they shall immediately stop it, temporarily take the items away, and inform the families; where the circumstances are serious, they shall report to the school. Items temporarily take away shall be returned to the students' families at an appropriate time. Illegal or hazardous items shall be confiscated or reported to the public security organs, production safety management departments, or other relevant departments, to be disposed of in accordance with law.

Teachers who discover dangerous student conduct shall employ the necessary measures to stop it, where discovering that students have concealed items in violation of laws and rules, they shall order the students to hand them over or inspect the desk or locker etc. where items are concealed.

Where student conduct damages public property or the items of others, they shall restore it to original conditions or give compensation in accordance with law.

Article 10: (Drafting School Rules)Schools shall lawfully draft and improve school rules and discipline, clarifying the specific circumstances and rules for teachers conducting student management and educational discipline.

Schools shall widely solicit the opinions of educational professionals, students, and families in drafting school rules and discipline. School rules and discipline shall be submitted for deliberation and passed by the Parents Association, the Education Workers Congress, the Association of Principals, and then reported to the departments for education to be recorded.

In light of actual conditions, schools may provide for educational discipline measures other than those in these Rules in the school rules and discipline, but shall conduct a risk assessment and legality review, as well as hear the opinions of the vice principal for rule of law, legal advisers, and experts; and where there is capacity, a hearing may be organized.

Article 11: (Enforcement of School Rules)School rules and discipline shall be published, and those that are not published must not be enforced. Schools shall use orientation as well as other appropriate methods to publicize and explain school rules and discipline to students and families.

Based on the circumstances, schools may establish a committee or other institutional bodies on the enforcement of school rules and discipline, brining in participation by representives from all relevant parties in society such as teachers, students, and families, to be responsible for discussing and determining the educational discipline measures that may be adopted, overseeing the implementation of teachers' educational discipline authority, and carrying out publicity and education.

Where schools will carry out the educational discipline measures listed in article 8 of these Rules against students, they shall hear the students' statements and explanations, and where necessary shall hold a hearing.

Article 12: (Aid and Education Measures)After teachers carried out educational discipline against students, they shall emphasize communication with and support of the student, emphasizing unifying disciplinary and educational efficacy.

Based on actual conditions and needs, schools may establish mechanisms for counseling work on protecting student education, with the person in charge of the school, the person responsible for student work bodies, teachers, as well as the Vice Principal (tutor) for Rule of Law, and specialized personnel from areas such as justice, psychology, and social work forming a counseling group, to carry out specialized counseling and corrections for students with negative conduct.

Schools shall lawfully collaborate and cooperate with public security organs and procuratorates to mind and assist students that have serious negative conduct or that have constituted crimes but not received criminal penalties, and request that families cooperate.

Article 13: (Prohibited Situations)Teachers must not have the following conduct during management of education and teaching, or in carrying out educational discipline and education:

(1) Acts of corporal punishment using methods such as stiking or pricking to directly cause physical pain;

(2) Making one stand as punishment or repeatedly copy text beyond normal limits, and cover physical punishment that indirectly causes physical or psychological harm such as by compelling them to take uncomfortable movements or positions;

(3) Acts infringing on students personal dignity such as berating them or using discriminatory or insulting speech and actions;

(4) Disciplining all students due to one or a small number of students' breaking rules or discipline;

(5) Arbitrarily or selectively carrying out discipline due to personal feelings, likes, or dislikes;

(6) Other acts infringing on students' basic rights or insulting personal dignity.

Article 14: (Rights and Duties of Teachers)Where teacher properly carrying out educational discipline cause physical or psychological harm to a student due to an accident or factors relating to the student themselves, the school must not give the teacher sanctions or other adverse treatment as a result.

Where teachers violate article 13 of these Rules, and the circumstances are more minor, the school shall give criticism and education; where the circumstances are serious, they shall give sanctions; and where gross negligence causes physical or psychological harm to students, the school may seek contribution from the teacher after taking relevant responsibility for compensation.

Article 15: (Rights and Duties of Parents)Families shall perform duties to educate children, respect teachers' education rights, and cooperate with teachers to restrain and educate students who violate rules and discipline, and who misbehave.

Where families object to teachers' implementation of educational discipline, the schools shall guide the families to go through official channels to reasonably express their demands; where teachers are threatened, insulted or injured, the department of education in charge of the school shall lawfully protect the physical safety of the teacher, preserve the teachers' lawful rights and interests, and support or represent the teachers in pursuing legal responsibility.

Article 16: (Removal of Punishments)After students receive educational discipline or sanctions provided for in article 8 of these Rules, the school may remove the discipline measure early for those that can honestly admit their mistakes and actively reform.

Where students are released from educational discipline or sanctions, their right to receive commendations and rewards shall be restored.

Article 17: (In-school Appeals)Where students and their families are not satisfied with educational discipline carried out by teachers under articles 7 or 8, or discipline sanctions given by the school, they may raise an appeal.

Schools shall establish a student appeals commission composed of the school's responsible persons, teachers, and students, as well as representatives from parties outside the school such as from the parents association and the Vice-principal for rule of law, to accept student applications for an appeal and to organize a re-examination. Schools shall clarify the composition of people on the student appeals commission, the scope of acceptance and procedures for handling appeals, and announce this to students and families.

The student appeals commission shall conduct comprehensive reviews of the facts, reasoning, and so forth of students' appeals, and make a decision to sustain, modify, or revoke the original disciplinary sanction or disposition measure decision.

Article 18: (Remedies) Students or families that are unsatisfied with a decision on handling a student appeal may apply to the education department responsible for the school for a review.

Article 19: (Guidance and Oversight)Schools shall strengthen guidance and oversight over teachers' implementation of educational discipline, employ measures to increase teacher's awareness and ability to correctly perform their duties, and include this in teacher ethics evaluations. At the end of every semester, schools shall report information on students receiving the educational discipline listed in article 8 to the department of education in charge of them for recording.

Article 20: (Implementation Date)These Measures take effect on __/__/20__. Each region may shall [sic] summarize local conditions and draft specific implementation rules for that region or to guide schools.