TEACHERS across NSW are set to be granted greater powers to discipline unruly students in the classroom.
Education Minister Adrian Piccoli has ordered his department to review and "strengthen" its code of conduct.
It is understood Mr Piccoli wants the code, last revised in January 2012, to give schools greater freedom in disciplining unruly students.
In a column written exclusively for The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Piccoli said discipline in schools was critical in ensuring challenging behaviour was not tolerated.
"That's why late last year, I asked my department to strengthen the code of conduct, which includes ways teachers can interact with their students," he said.
The move is likely to be welcomed by teachers, who claim their powers to control misbehaving students have been eroded by rigid regulations.
Since the abolition of the cane in the 1990s, teachers have also been banned from "shouting angrily" or physically stopping students from leaving a classroom.
The existing code of conduct states teachers are not allowed to confiscate items such as mobile phones, but instead must "ask" the student to hand over the item.
The Sunday Telegraph has been inundated with letters from teachers and concerned parents on the issue of discipline, while a recent survey found the lack of control in the classroom was among the key reasons many staff quit the education system.
Disciplining disputes have also landed many teachers in court, such as in the case of former high school teacher Stephen Krix, who was sacked after putting an unruly student into a headlock.
The court found that Mr Krix was right to direct misbehaving boys to stay in his classroom, but not to "physically restrain" them.
Link To Article
It's about time they woke up to themselves. I'd love to see Mr Krix re-instated.
