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Province to Strengthen Anti-bullying Action Plan

A new provincial code of conduct will be developed that will set out a range of appropriate disciplinary consequences that all schools will be required to follow that will provide schools with more tools to address bullying in a clear and consistent way, Education Minister Nancy Allan announced today.

“Our government was a leader in bringing in anti-bullying legislation and establishing a Safe Schools Charter and codes of conduct for all schools in 2004.  As part of our anti-bullying action plan, we are continuing to take steps to ensure there are appropriate consequences for bullying and that teachers and principals have the support they need,” Allan said.

The new provincial code will be developed in partnership with the provincial oversight committee comprising teachers, superintendents, parents, trustees and school business officials from public and funded-independent schools in consultation with the province’s Safe Schools Advisory Committee, said Allan, adding it will also provide guidance to principals and teachers on how to respond to inappropriate conduct, including bullying or cyberbullying, that take place both in and outside of school hours and thereby affect a student’s ability to learn. 

The minister also announced passage of a new regulation that will require all schools to follow the new provincial code of conduct in the coming year. 

“Building on the good work the oversight committee did in helping draft the new provincial report card and has been doing to implement our government’s smaller classes initiative, I look forward to working with them to ensure we have the strongest anti-bullying legislation in Canada,” said Allan.

“Teachers are always working for better learning in safer schools.  This code could be an important step toward having both useful guidelines and a clear message of support for the work Manitoba teachers do every day,” said Paul Olson, president, the Manitoba Teachers’ Society.

The new provincial code of conduct builds on recent provincial work to ensure safe and inclusive schools including:

• introducing Bill 18, the Safe and Inclusive Schools Act, which would protect students from cyberbullying and help ensure all students feel safe and accepted in school;
• expanding the Tell Them From Me online survey so that schools can hear directly from grade 4 to 12 students in 550 schools across Manitoba on how they can improve safety and prevent bullying;
• providing new resources and supports to educate parents, teachers and students to help them identify, prevent and deal with bullying; 
• continuing to support Safe Schools Manitoba, a unique partnership between the provincial government, schools, law enforcement, social service agencies, parent councils, professional associations and community agencies;
• partnering with the Egale Canada Human Rights Trust to develop resource kits for teachers and schools to assist with the creation of gay-straight alliances; and
• hosting a Safe and Caring Schools Provincial Leadership Forum which brought together students, teachers, administrators and experts on school safety to share strategies on how to make schools safe and inclusive learning environments.

“We know that students can’t learn when they feel marginalized, humiliated or intimidated.  We want all of our students to feel safe.  And we want bullies to know there are real consequences for their actions,” said Allan.

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