A Vancouver high school teacher was handed a 10-day suspension and is facing further consequences after a string of complaints against him.
School District 39, based in Vancouver, made a report to the BC Commissioner for Teacher Regulation about Frank Ian Weniger.
Weniger was the subject of several matters, the first of which occurred in a Socials 10 class in Fall 2021.
According to the Commissioner, Weniger often appeared “frustrated, impatient and angry with students” and he frequently raised his voice, leading to anxiety and discomfort in students.
The Commissioner’s report states that Weniger made inappropriate, sarcastic, and demeaning comments to students.
In one instance, a student put their head on a desk, leading Weniger to ask, “Have you gotten enough sleep?”
On a separate occasion, in a class about immigration, Weniger gestured to a student and said, “I’m guessing you’re not from here. If you knew how many diseases there were in Canada, would you still have come here?”
In one incident, Weniger grew frustrated with a student and said, “Don’t test me.”
The report says that in another incident, when Student A and Student B were chatting, Weniger folded his arms, raised his voice and said, “Do you want to teach the class?”
Then, he sarcastically said, “No, let’s listen to what they have to say, professors [Student A] and [Student B].”
In an exchange about math, Weniger responded to students who weren’t familiar with the terms “median” and “average.” He said, “Do you know anything about math? How did you pass grade 7, 8, 9 math?”
On Sept. 27, 2022, the school district issued a letter to Weniger, informing him of a suspension of five days without pay, which he served that month.
Matter 2 concerned events that occurred during the 2023/2024 school year, while he was teaching an English Language Learner class.
Weniger would appear visibly frustrated and angry, and would raise his voice in class, leading to reports of students feeling nervous, scared and intimidated. One student reported feeling stupid, according to the Commissioner’s report.
The report says Weniger would sometimes repeat students’ mistakes out loud until people laughed.
In another instance, Student D, a Grade 11 student, had to go to the washroom. Weniger said they could only go after they answered a question about class material, which the report says was Weniger’s general practice. Because of this experience, Student D said they stopped asking to use the washroom, even if they needed to.
Weniger knew that Student E had anxiety but would get exasperated when the student fidgeted with their fingers or a small object to self-soothe. Student E reported being scared they’d be humiliated based on how Weniger treated other students.
As a result, Student E had frequent panic attacks and often cried in class.
“Student E reported being afraid to ask to use the washroom in the event that Weniger would humiliate Student E or make fun of Student E in front of the class. Student E subsequently had a mental health crisis, a contributing factor to which was Student E’s experience in Weniger’s classroom,” the report states.
Another report, involving Student F, pertained to Weniger attempting to send a Grade 11 student in his class an anonymous Valentine’s gift as part of a school program.
“The student council members to whom Weniger submitted the completed form were uncomfortable with completing the order and, after consultation with their staff sponsor, decided not to process it. Student F was not aware that Weniger had submitted the order,” the report says.
On Sept. 4, 2024, the school district issued a 10-day suspension, but Weniger never served it because he resigned in July.
As a result of both matters, and due to not modelling appropriate behaviour or creating a positive, safe and inclusive environment, the Vancouver teacher agreed to a three-day suspension of his certificate of qualification, from March 11 to 13.
Do you believe the consequences fit the teacher’s actions?