Penwood maths teacher loses dismissal appeal

The Teacher’s Appeal Tribunal has upheld the decision of the Board of Management of Penwood High School in St Andrew which fired mathematics teacher Christopher Hayley in December 2016.

Hayley was fired for neglect of duty following a hearing into a complaint that he failed to mark and produce the grades in mathematics for the 2016 end of year exam for students from several classes.

Attorney-at-law Hugh Wildman, who represented the school board, said the tribunal ruled last week that there was no merit in Hayley’s appeal.

The school’s principal Donna McLaren had made a complaint in September 2016 to the institution’s personnel committee which ruled that there should be a hearing.

The committee conducted a hearing in November 2016 and found that Hayley was guilty of neglect of duty and recommended to the school board that he should be dismissed.

Hayley was fired by the school board that December.

The school board noted that Hayley’s actions caused confusion and distress to other teachers who could not complete their work as well as to the administration which could not meet the deadline to deliver the students' report cards.

Hayley did not dispute the charge against him but he explained that he failed to fulfil his duties as a teacher because he had to relocate due to life-threatening violence.

The personnel committee found that Hayley’s excuses were not plausible because technology was available to submit the students’ scores remotely had the scripts been marked.

Hayley took the matter to the Teacher’s Appeal Tribunal which upheld the school board’s decision.

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