Burnaby teacher gets one-day suspension for throwing dumbbell at student

A Burnaby high school teacher found to have "failed to model appropriate behaviour expected of an educator" after throwing a dumbbell at a student has been given a one day suspension, according to a recent decision from the Commissioner for Teacher Regulation.

On Feb. 13, 2020, Lawrence Paul Ryan, a secondary school teacher in the Burnaby School District, retaliated after witnessing a student toss a dumbbell to another classmate, where it then fell to the floor instead.

Ryan, in anger, asked the student, "What is stupider, throwing a dumbbell across the gym or trying to catch it?"

The student tried to explain that it was an accident, the report reads, when Ryan then aggressively threw the dumbbell underhanded and asked, "does this look like an accident?"

The dumbbell would have struck the student's head had the student not caught it.

The Commissioner for Teacher Regulation handed Ryan a one-day suspension to be served on Feb. 12, 2021.

The resolution agreement stated that Ryan has called each student present to apologize for his behaviour, and the involved student's parents. He also attended counselling after the incident.

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