Reprimand for BC teacher who played horror movies for students

A BC teacher who showed a Grade 9 class R-rated movies along with other misdemeanours has been given a formal reprimand.

According to an Oct. 13 BC Commissioner for Teacher Regulation decision, Raymond Alejandro Rojas Peralta played his students the movies Scream and The Conjuring, along with showing a student a meme containing a racial stereotype.

He also sprayed a student in the hallway with a water gun and attempted to discuss a school investigation about a Grade 9 student with the student in the hallway.

“Rojas Peralta repeatedly failed to maintain appropriate boundaries with students,” the Commissioner said in the decision. “(He) failed to role model appropriate behaviour expected of an educator…(and) Rojas Peralta failed to create a positive and inclusive learning environment for students.”

On another occasion, Rojas Peralta noted that the student under investigation was not in his class and made an “inappropriate” comment about the student’s departure.

The decision said Rojas Peralta became licensed to teach in BC in 2018 and the issues happened during the 2022 and 2023 school year while teaching at an unnamed high school in Surrey.

In June 2023, the school district suspended him for one day and passed the files to the provincial regulator.

The teacher signed a consent agreement admitting to his behaviour.

“It is a mitigating factor that Rojas Peralta has taken responsibility for his conduct and has taken proactive steps to address his shortcomings,” the decision read.

Along with the public reprimand, Rojas Peralta will have to complete the course Reinforcing Respectful Professional Boundaries.