New Sask. teachers regulation board unveiled

Saskatchewan's teachers will be seeing a big change in regulation by 2015.The Ministry of Education announced The Registered Teachers Act on Wednesday.

And along with it, will be the newly-created Saskatchewan Professional Teachers Regulatory Board (SPTRB).

The province says this new regulatory board will mean more fair decisions and greater transparency for the public than currently exists.

In the past, there have been concerns about conflicts of interest with the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation (STF).

Currently, the STF is responsible for investigating all complaints of teacher misconduct and incompetence.But the STF is also the union and advocate for all public school teachers in the province.

"The STF had a rigorous system of dealing with the complaints," said Education Minister Don Morgan.

"But the fact that they were in response to advocating on behalf of teachers, did not establish sufficient public confidence."

The aim of the new regulatory board is meant to create a more "arms-length" approach. It will be made up of a nine-person board of directors.Seven of them will be registered teachers and two will be members of the public.

"What we're looking to do is to have as much integrity and transparency as we can with the process," said Morgan.

The ministry took into account many stakeholders opinions, including the STF, the League of Educational Administrators, Directors and Superintendents (LEADS),the Saskatchewan School Boards Association (SSBA) and the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN).

Developing the legislation stretches back to April 2013, when the government asked the Ministry of Education to come up with new solutions.An eight person transition committee appointed this summer studied school board regulations in other provinces like Ontario and British Columbia.

The initial budget to put the board in place is being pegged at $2 million per year.

The results of the new regulatory board will also have to wait.An interim board of directors will be appointed this coming spring.

It is expected to be fully functioning by the fall of 2015.