Kingslea School, above, is at the Te Maioha o Parekarangi youth justice facility at Horohoro south of Rotorua. Photo / File
Kingslea School, above, is at the Te Maioha o Parekarangi youth justice facility at Horohoro south of Rotorua. Photo / File
A Bay of Plenty teacher has been censured for serious misconduct after he kicked one student and threw plastic cones at another.
The New Zealand Teachers Disciplinary Tribunal censured Justin Raymond Timoti and also placed conditions on his practising certificate.
The tribunal's recently-released written ruling reveals the two misconduct offences were committed at Kingslea School on May 1, 2018.
The school is located at Te Maioha o Parekarangi, a youth justice facility outside of Rotorua. The students at the school reside at the facility following remand or sentence by the Youth Court.
Timoti was teaching a physical education class on the sports field at the school where he was employed at the time.
During touch rugby drills, when a student knelt down to tie his shoelaces, Timoti told the student to hurry up before kicking him and pushing him in the upper leg with the sole of his foot.
Kingslea School is found at Te Maioha o Parekarangi. Photo / File
The student was not injured or harmed, the written judgment said.
The second student took exception to Timoti's actions and had a verbal altercation with him.
In the course of the argument, Timoti had thrown a handful of plastic cones being used the touch rugby drills at the second student, some of which hit him in the face.
Police investigated Timoti's actions and referred the matter involving the first student to the iwi community panel, Te Pa Oranga.
The panel and Timoti implemented a plan involving three counselling sessions to address his actions and the police took no further action involving the second student.
The matter was referred to the tribunal by the Teaching Council's Complaints Assessment Committee.
Timoti explained to the committee he had been encouraging the first student to hurry up and used a controlled kick to move him on, rather than cause him any harm.
Timoti said the second student's behaviour made him feel anxious and "unsafe" so he threw the cones out of fear and had not intended hit the student.
Following the two incidents he "realised that his actions were not of a professional standard" and had undergone counselling.
The Tribunal found Timoti's actions amounted to serious misconduct.
The Tribunal said kicking the first student was assault and Timoti's behaviour was "likely to cause upset and indignation in any student".
The Tribunal also considered it "very foolish behaviour" that constructed physical abuse but not at the most serious end of the scale.
It considered Timoti's conduct towards the second student "more serious", saying there was "simply no excuse for throwing anything at a student".
"It was likely to cause harm and adversely affect the wellbeing of [the student] and others around him," the Tribunal said.
Timoti's lawyer told the Tribunal her client was "deeply ashamed' of his actions, and has expressed remorse and demonstrated insight into his actions.
Timoti accepted responsibility and was highly unlikely to offend in this way again, she said.
The Tribunal not only censured Timoti but he is required to undergo mentoring by a senior teacher for 12 months and complete an appropriate course of student management agreed by the Teaching Council.
Timoti is required to undergo mentoring by a senior teacher for 12 months. Photo / File
Timoti was also ordered to pay $1,717.55 in costs to the Teaching Council's Complaints Assessment Committee.
Timoti applied for permanent name suppression for himself and the facility.
But the Tribunal said it was not proper to make such an order after it applied the public interest test and the students involved.
