Teacher who falsified letters regarding experience suspended from register for two months

A secondary school teacher who submitted to the Teaching Council “falsified” letters of professional standing regarding her teaching experience in Northern Ireland has been suspended from the register for two months, a fitness-to-teach committee has ruled. The 29-year-old teacher admitted on Thursday to submitting to the Teaching Council in 2024 two letters of professional standing issued by the General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland (GTCNI) as part of her registration process. The teacher, whose identity was anonymised, admitted to altering a letter of professional standing dated June 11th, 2024, and to altering a further letter dated September 6th.The chairwoman of the committee, Jean Beswick-Duignan, said the conduct of the teacher, who is from Belfast, was dishonest and that the alterations were “not technical in nature”. READ MORERegarding mitigating factors, Beswick-Duignan pointed to “a glowing reference” from the principal of the teacher’s current school, her apology and that she accepted full responsibility for her conduct. Aggravating factors identified by Beswick-Duignan included that “there was more than one incidence” of the teacher altering documents. Her conduct was “deliberate and premeditated and essentially dishonest and calculated to mislead”.She said the short suspension marked the serious view the committee took of the teacher’s conduct and sent an appropriate message to the public and other teachers regarding the “falsification of important documents”. The committee had earlier found the teacher guilty of professional misconduct and breaches of the Code of Professional Conduct for Teachers, which were also admitted to by the teacher. The teacher, who was at times emotional when giving her evidence, described the effect the inquiry process has had on her: “It’s been hard to carry, something that I’m probably ashamed of … I’m probably a little less social,” she said, adding she did not understand, looking back, why she did it. Kate Egan, barrister for the director of the Teaching Council, told the committee that in 2024 the teacher decided to move to the Republic of Ireland to be with her partner.That summer, she spoke with the vice principal of her current school, who told her there was a position available and advised her to register with the Teaching Council. The teacher said she found the registration process “very difficult”. In August she was asked into the school for interview and was offered a job, which began in October. She said that during the summer of 2024 she was under pressure and that the school year in Northern Ireland was coming to an end.The inquiry heard that the professional standing letter issued in June did not include confirmation that the teacher had completed the Induction and Early Professional Development (EPD) course. The teacher was then registered with a condition attached of completing the “Droichead” induction process for teachers. Consequently the teacher requested in August a second letter of professional standing from the GTCNI, which issued in September, to include proof of her induction training. The teacher said that a colleague in her current school told her to get the Droichead condition removed from her registration as it might affect her pay. She said that she added to the professional standing letter of September 6th a phrase that indicated she had an early professional development qualification, and experience to show the Teaching Council that she had completed the EPD course.The Teaching Council liaised with the GTCNI regarding the documentation submitted, with the latter confirming that these were not the letters issued by them. The inquiry heard the GTCNI notified the matter to the PSNI who called to the teacher’s home place in Belfast.The teacher, who had previously taught for five years in Northern Ireland, self-reported the matter to the Teaching Council.