School Policies

Code of Behavior Policy

Introduction

Skerries Community College is a college in which the rights and responsibilities of all parties involved in the school - Management, Teachers, Pupils and Parents - are recognised. The Code of Behavior aims to respect the rights of all members of the college. In applying the Code of Behavior it is necessary to reach a balance between the interests of the individual student and the general welfare of the wider school community.

This policy was formulated in accordance with the requirements of the Education Act 1998 and the Education (Welfare) Act 2000 and is, in general cognisant of the Department of Education and Science's guidelines towards a positive policy for school behavior and discipline. This policy was drawn up in consultation with all the school partners, including Board of Management, Staff, Parents and Students.

Scope
This policy applies to students of Skerries Community College and relates to all school activities both during and outside of normal school hours.

Mission Statement
Our school promotes the development of the whole person, within the Christian context. With the assistance of parents, we aim to develop responsible citizens. Students, irrespective of economic circumstance, gender, religious or philosophical outlook, race or social situation are welcome to join us in the pursuit of knowledge. Our ethos is based on personal responsibility, independence, respect for people and respect for property. Our school seeks to cultivate integrity, the necessary skills for life, and valuing discipline and punctuality, to facilitate the best in the academic and non-academic areas. We value our culture, our traditions, our heritage and we seek to be a caring and compassionate community, where justice and truth are central elements.

Relationship to schools Mission Statement
This policy has been developed in line with our Mission Statement. The school strives to provide a safe secure learning environment for the development of our students. Our school code of behavior is based on respect for oneself, for others and for our environment, so that a positive and cooperative school atmosphere prevails.

Rationale
Many people work together in our school each day and therefore a high level of courtesy and consideration for others is necessary. Behavior which is ill mannered, annoying, dangerous or disruptive cannot be allowed. Our Code is one that is based on the recognition of the student as an individual and yet creates an environment in which the welfare of all is protected. The Code is designed to enhance the teaching and learning process, which is central to the work of the College.

Policy Goals
The aims of our code of behavior are:

  • To create a safe, secure learning environment for all students by promoting a sense of mutual respect among all members of the school community.
  • To have effective procedures in place which will allow for the day to day running of the school and which meet the demands of current legislation.
  • To promote good behavior and self discipline.
  • To allow for the appropriate involvement of all school personnel.
  • To ensure understanding by the parents, students, staff and management of the code of behavior and the reasons for it.
  • To emphasise the promotion and acknowledgement of good behavior.
  • To outline the strategies to be used to prevent poor behavior and the ways in which positive behavior is acknowledged.
  • To outline the structure of fair, consistent and agreed sanctions that will be used in response to negative behavior.
  • To outline the interventions to be used when a student repeatedly misbehaves.

Roles and Responsibilities
Our school acknowledges the contribution of all members of the school community. Each member has responsibility for the promotion of good behavior and a role in dealing with and minimizing negative behavior.

Students
The school expects that students will at all times do their best to uphold the code of behavior of our school.

Parents
The school acknowledges the role of parents in the development and operation of the code of behavior and expects them to support the code and encourage their sons/daughters to uphold it. The co-operation of parents is considered fundamental to the implementation of the Code of Behavior. Such co-operation may help to avoid the need for disciplinary action when unacceptable behavior occurs. It is the policy of the College to keep parents informed of instances of misbehavior. Parents have the right to come to the College, and may be invited to do so in order to discuss with the Principal, Deputy Principal, Dean, Year Head and teachers concerned, any misbehavior on the part of a student.

Teachers
The school acknowledges the role of teachers in the development and operation of the code of behavior. The school recognises that a teacher's main focus is in the area of teaching and learning, but that they also have a pivotal role to play in behavior management. That pivotal role forms a core element of this code. We have teachers assigned to each class and year group with special responsibilities for operating the code. Tutors/Year Heads/Deans/Counselors/ Learning Support Teachers/Chaplain/ Psychological Support Services/Outside Agencies/ Deputy Principal and Principal all have specific roles to play in upholding the code.

Other Staff
The school acknowledges the contribution of ancillary staff in the day to day running of the school. They too have a part to play in the successful operation of our code of behavior. In particular they have a responsibility to report incidents of misbehavior and examples of positive behavior they witness.

Board of Management
The Board of Management is the decision making body of the school. The school acknowledges its role in the development and operation of our code of behavior. All policies are developed with the authority of the Board of Management and must be approved by its members before becoming official school policy.

Content
The content of this code of behavior includes:

Implementation
This policy will be implemented by the Board of Management in a spirit of partnership through consultation with the school partners.

Review and Evaluation
The Board of Management in consultation with the school partners will, after one year and every two years thereafter review this policy. It will be the responsibility of the Principal to bring this policy before the Board for review at the appropriate time.

Any amendments which need to be made will be in keeping with the general philosophy of our code of behavior and will be communicated to the members of the school community in writing.