The case of Dinu Lipatti, where a teacher who allegedly sexually abused a 13-year-old student in 2011 continues to teach, brings back to public attention questions related to how misconduct is handled in the education system. From insults to students and emotional abuse to physical or sexual assaults, such accusations against teachers have surfaced repeatedly over the years, mostly anonymously or in whispers. Although the law provides multiple ways of sanctioning teachers with disciplinary violations, in practice they are rare. We requested statistics from the Education Inspectorate of the Municipality of Bucharest (ISMB) regarding the number of complaints in recent years and the measures taken by educational institutions. The institution does not have any kind of record of data.
What irregularities are considered violations and what sanctions are provided by law
In the Education Law it is clearly specified that the teaching staff has the obligation to exercise their profession respecting the law, but also the best interest of the child. Disciplinary offenses are considered, among others:
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physical and verbal violence against students or colleagues;
- facts or attitudes that endanger the health or physical and mental integrity of students;
- manifestation of political beliefs and religious proselytism in the school space;
- activities that harm the image, dignity or rights of children
The methods of sanctioning employees who violate these rules are multiple and related to the seriousness of the violations: written warning; reduction of the basic salary by up to 15%, for a period of 1-6 months; the suspension, for a period of up to 3 years, of the right to enroll in a competition to obtain a merit grade, to occupy a management position or a higher teaching position; suspension of the right to be part of the commissions for the organization and conduct of national exams, for a period of up to 3 years; termination of the employment contract.
Disciplinary sanctions can be decided and applied, primarily, by each individual educational unit, based on the report of a disciplinary committee. In very serious cases, reports may be requested from the DGASPC.
Although they do not apply sanctions directly, the school inspectorates have several powers: they can be reported or self-reported, they can order checks, monitor situations and verify measures, going as far as canceling them, after analyzing appeals.
There is no centralized data on reports of verbal or physical violence
The capital is undoubtedly the administrative-territorial unit with the most educational units in the country. We requested more information from the School Inspectorate of the Municipality of Bucharest regarding notifications and sanctions:
- how many checks they carried out, in the last five years, following reports of physical or verbal violence against students
- what were the sanctions ordered by the educational units
- how many sanctions have been contested in court
- how many employment contracts were opened
ISMB’s official response: there is no centralized record of these cases.
“At the level of the School Inspectorate of the Municipality of Bucharest, there is no distinct centralized situation that reflects all the cases you refer to. The School Inspectorate of the Municipality of Bucharest manages the referrals received according to the legal powers, each case being analyzed on a case-by-case basis. At the same time, according to the normative framework in force, educational units have the responsibility to keep track of each individual case, as well as to dispose accordingly”.
How to escape unpunished in the department
Although the law allows for sanctions and there are clear provisions, in practice they are rare. And teachers whose inappropriate behavior is known not only remain in the system. How is that possible? Alexandra Chirea, a 17-year-old teacher, says:
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“They stay in the system because they are allowed to. It is not impossible to fire a teacher, let alone sanction him. You just have to want to. What is missing is the will to do something and take action. It is based on the fact that we do not interfere. We all know, we’re all surprised, but somehow “it’s none of our business”, “we don’t get involved”, “if he sues us”.
At the same time, it also speaks of a generalized fear at the institutional level: of taking decisions.
“I think that this fear is from the smallest to the largest and vice versa. Teachers are afraid, they don’t want to be part of a disciplinary committee, because they don’t want to investigate a colleague without understanding that there is no collegiality here and that if there is an irregularity it must be investigated and charged. The principals don’t take it on, and the teachers know they don’t have the principals behind them. And then they are even more afraid. Directors don’t take it on because they know they don’t have help from above, from the inspectorates and, above all, from the legal departments in the inspectorates”.
Added to all this, says the teacher, is the fear of scandal. Alexandra Chirea also recounts a concrete situation, in which she was part of a disciplinary committee.
“I did my work with my colleagues and the investigation I did in that committee found the teacher guilty. But the School Inspectorate of the Municipality of Bucharest lifted the sanction, probably to avoid scandal and lawsuits. It was a case of manipulating a student.”
Why are students and parents silent?
On the other hand, the teacher talks about another type of situations often encountered in practice:
“It happened to me that a child complained about something, and then the parents withdrew their complaint and no longer recognized what they said, and I was accused of denigrating and threatened to be sued. And then people get scared because they can’t rely on that either.”
Other times, the teacher says, parents and students do not report the irregularities at all.
“Do not advertise for fear that the child will suffer something, that he will not be persecuted after, etc. (…) And to some extent they are right”.
“I find the hatred I see towards children incredible”
In many of the cases where students talk about abuse, practice shows that the initial reaction of a good part of society is to question the credibility of the child. The idea that he “did something” or that he caused the teacher’s reaction, thus shifting the responsibility from the adult to the student, often appears. This kind of discourse helps discourage reporting and perpetuates silence. Professor Alexandra Chirea strongly criticizes this perspective:
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“I find the hatred I see towards children incredible. Children are of all kinds. They are in training, they can change. We’re adults and we’re there just so we don’t react like that.”
“If we all complain, I think things will move a little”
In the absence of a clear institutional commitment, how can we talk about less inappropriate behavior directed at children – from humiliation and insults to harassment and physical aggression – ? Professor Alexandra Chirea believes that change can come from the constant pressure exerted by those who choose not to ignore the irregularities:
“I have a principle: if I notice an irregularity, I always report it. Even though I know nothing is happening. If we all complain, as many times as we see things like this happening, I think that a little, a little bit things will move. If a teacher is complained about by 150 students every year, I think he can’t be overlooked for that long”.
