Coquitlam teacher reprimanded for pulling a student by ear, collar

A Coquitlam teacher who was rough with students on multiple occasions has been reprimanded and ordered to take a class on creating a positive learning environment.

Brigitte Marie Monique Vivianne Lepine has been a middle school French Immersion teacher since 2017.

During the 2018/2019 school year when she was teaching a Grade 7/8 French Immersion class, she crossed professional boundaries, according to a Consent Resolution Agreement published this week.

Lepine said, in the presence of students, she could not wait for summer so that she wouldn’t have to deal with them anymore, the B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation stated in its decision.

More physical interactions with students were also reported.

“On a number of occasions, Lepine physically interacted with students in an inappropriate manner including, removing earphones from Student A’s ear by tugging on the wire; holding Student B by the collar and pulling them while directing them back into the class and on another occasion, pulling Student B by the ear,” according to the agreement.

Lepine was issued a letter of discipline and suspended without pay for one day Oct. 11, 2019 for the lapses in professionalism. She was also ordered to complete the course Building your Communication Toolbox.

The school district also directed Lepine to interact with students and staff in a civil, courteous and professional manner, set consistent classroom expectations, and to use constructive and age-appropriate methods to hold students accountable for their behaviour.

She was also advised to refrain from using physical contact to redirect students except in an emergency or while stopping a student from harming themselves.

She’s also been directed to “seek assistance from school administration if she becomes frustrated or emotionally triggered by the behaviour of a student or a group of students.”

The matter was referred to the Commissioner which has advised her to take a course with the Justice Institute of B.C. If she doesn’t complete it by April 1, 2021 her teaching certificate will be suspended.

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