Grievances

Profile

Beijing World Youth Academy (BWYA) is an independent, international, day school located in Beijing. Founded in 2001 with a small cohort of students studying the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, it has now grown into a large K-12 school with over 1100 students. BWYA has developed a reputation for academic excellence coupled with a strong sense of community. We educate students with English and Chinese as the main language of instruction, as well as with a commitment to the Chinese government education policies for national students. BWYA is authorised with International Baccalaureate Organisation (IB), Cambridge International Examinations (CIE), and accredited by Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC). The school is also a member of Association of China and Mongolia International Schools (ACAMIS) and East Asia Regional Council of Schools (EARCOS).

Mission

Beijing World Youth Academy strives to provide members of our community excellent learning opportunities that incorporate critical investigation, exposure to different cultural perspectives and assessment against objective criteria. Our mission is to develop principled, open-minded thinkers who are capable of integrating with diverse international communities and who are empowered to shape their environs for the improvement of quality of life for themselves and others.

Values

As a school community, these are our values:

Compassion
We respect and empathise with the rights, opinions, culture and feelings of others.
Trust
We believe that honesty, integrity and reliability in ourselves and others, forms the cornerstone of our community.
Solidarity
We value harmony and oneness while recognising the individuality of each person in our community.
Collaboration
We recognise that the development of the student is the shared responsibility between the student, the family and the school.

Schoolwide Learner Outcomes

We have adopted the International Baccalaureate ® (IB) Learner Profile, which describes a broad range of human capacities and responsibilities that go beyond academic success, as our Schoolwide Learning Outcomes as part of our commitment to help all members of the school community learn to respect themselves, others and the world around them.

As learners we strive to be:

Inquirers
We nurture our curiosity, developing skills for inquiry and research. We know how to learn independently and with others. We learn with enthusiasm and sustain our love of learning throughout life.
Knowledgeable
We develop and use conceptual understanding, exploring knowledge across a range of disciplines. We engage with issues and ideas that have local and global significance.
Thinkers
We use critical and creative thinking skills to analyse and take responsible action on complex problems. We exercise initiative in making reasoned, ethical decisions.
Communicators
We express ourselves confidently and creatively in more than one language and in many ways. We collaborate effectively, listening carefully to the perspectives of other individuals and groups.
Principled
We act with integrity and honesty, with a strong sense of fairness and justice, and with respect for the dignity and rights of people everywhere. We take responsibility for our actions and their consequences.
Open-minded
We critically appreciate our own cultures and personal histories, as well as the values and traditions of others. We seek and evaluate a range of points of view, and we are willing to grow from the experience.
Caring
We show empathy, compassion and respect. We have a commitment to service, and we act to make a positive difference in the lives of others and in the world around us.
Risk-takers
We approach uncertainty with forethought and determination; we work independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies. We are resourceful and resilient in the face of challenges and change.
Balanced
We understand the importance of balancing different aspects of our lives — intellectual, physical, and emotional — to achieve well-being for ourselves and others. We recognise our interdependence with other people and with the world in which we live.
Reflective
We thoughtfully consider the world and our own ideas and experience. We work to understand our strengths and weaknesses in order to support our learning and personal development.

Rationale

The purpose of this policy is to provide details about the school’s approach to communication and managing concerns and complaints. We aim to ensure that students, parents and staff are heard and have their concerns managed efficiently and consistently. These guidelines also aim to facilitate the smooth functioning of the school and to assist students, parents and staff to successfully work together.

BWYA seeks a culture in which stakeholders clearly understand that their concerns will be taken seriously. We see this as one of the means of receiving information for improvement. We believe that complaints are more likely to be resolved smoothly if they are approached with an attitude of respectful communication, responsiveness, fairness and objectivity. This document outlines the approach and procedures taken by the school to manage such complications.

Definition

A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction with a real or perceived problem. A complaint may be made against the school, a teacher, a student/s, a process or other aspect of the school’s management. A complaint may be made by a stakeholder if they think that the school has, for example, done something wrong, failed to do something it should have done or acted unfairly or impolitely.

In this document, the word "grievance" is used interchangeably with the word "complaint".

Terms Used

Guiding Principles

The school has expectations that communication between staff and students will be clear and caring, with well-understood boundaries. Students are expected to communicate clearly and politely to adults and peers.

Communication between teachers and parents includes information evenings, parent-teacher-student conferences, the student planner, emails, Managebac, and appointments to meet face to face.

The school acknowledges that students, parents and staff may sometimes have a complaint about a decision, behaviour, act or omission that they feel is unacceptable. Whilst most issues can be resolved through direct discussion with the parties, there may be instances in which this is not possible.

The school is committed to the following principles to ensure complaints are addressed appropriately.

Policy and Implementation

Roles of Responsibility

Parents and Students

Parents have a responsibility to be familiar with and act in accordance with this policy, and to advocate for their child and inform their child of their rights under this policy. Parents also have a responsibility to read communications from the school.

Students will be given instruction on the complaints process and how to play an active role in it.

Staff

The Staff Code of Conduct is written as a guide to staff expected behaviours both on and off campus.

Staff have a responsibility to comply with this policy. The complaints process should be explained to students. Workshops can be useful in teaching students how they can support others and in reinforcing that student views are important to the school.

If staff members are approached about a matter that lies outside their area of responsibility, the parent or student will be referred to the staff member concerned or to the Principal.

The School

The school will respond sensitively and in a timely manner to all complaints raised by students, parents and staff. The Principal will define an appropriate period to resolve the complaint, and explain the steps that will be taken to both the person making the complaint and the person affected by the complaint. The Principal will be responsible to ensure that the grievances and complaints process is followed and is procedurally fair and just.

General Guidelines for Communication Regarding Grievances

Any person who believes that they are the brunt of an unwelcome or offensive act is recommended to address the individual telling them that the behaviour is not welcome. Recognising that hierarchy is prevalent in schools, the grievant may choose to involve a third party mediator.

Individuals may make an oral or written complaint to the Principal or Human Resources Manager if they feel any of the following:

In most cases, the grievant is suggested to have an informal meeting with the person they have a grievance with. The Principal, Human Resources Manager, or other person may sit as mediator in this case. This meeting is an opportunity for the grievant, with mediated support, to state their complaint against an unwanted behaviour, that it is unwelcome, unwarranted, inappropriate, and/or offensive. Evidence of the grievance is to be submitted to the mediator prior to the meeting.

This procedure is not applicable in the case of reporting suspected child abuse, where the grievant and/or any other knowing parties must report to the proper authorities in accordance with the laws of China. Where child abuse is suspected, BWYA will follow the Child Protection Policy.

The steps in this procedure are listed as steps in the flow chart below.

If the informal meeting does not resolve differences, the following steps are to be taken:

Grievance Procedures

A person may feel unable to approach the relevant person directly, or not be satisfied by their response. An inquiry at the reception may be the first point of contact. The office staff will refer the grievant to the Principal who then determines the section of the school concerned.

Student

A student, or parent or legal guardian on the student’s behalf, may file a grievance against another student, another parent, or school employee.

Parent or Member of the Public

If any member of the public reports to the school of allegations against a student, parent, or employee, it is the duty of the school to follow through.

Staff

If any staff wishes to file a grievance, it may be done so through the Principal or Human Resources Manager.

Response to the Complaint

School Responsibility Regarding Grievances

It is the moral, ethical and legal responsibility of employees to report allegations of misconduct to the school administration and the Human Resources Manager. Failure to follow up or act on those allegations may lead to legal actions against employees or the School.

Receiving a grievance:

Disciplinary Measures

The purpose of the Grievance Policy is for all parties to be able to work together in the future. Out of the investigation of any grievance, it may be discovered that a stakeholder has violated one or more policies of the school, which may make disciplinary measures necessary. In any case, when the laws of China come into effect, the School will pay due diligence to the law, informing the proper authorities, with documentation of all activities. Where the School’s own policies or procedures have been broken, actions will be addressed outside of the grievance process.

Students

Student disciplinary issues should be referred to in the BWYA Behaviour Policy.

Parents

Parents who are active or passive as participants in any type of discriminatory, bullying, or harassment issues will be asked to sit through the same reflective process as students in that situation.

At no time, when a participating parent’s child is not participating in the negative activity, shall the child be involved in the resolution process or penalised for said parent’s behaviour.

Staff

Staff who are active or passive participants in any type of discriminatory, bullying, or harassment issues will be held accountable for their actions. This accountability may range from positive behavioural interventions to disciplinary charges including suspension and termination. Where necessary, the law enforcement authorities may be called to intervene.

Suggested Disciplinary Steps for Employees

  1. Admonishment

  2. Removal from classroom setting

  3. Loss of privileges

  4. Referral to counsellor

  5. Suspension

  6. Termination (immediate or with end of academic year)

  7. Legal action

Additional Actions for All Perpetrators

  1. Restitution (apologies and conversation) and restoration (financial restitution in the case of damaged goods only)

  2. Counselling support

  3. External behaviour assessment

  4. Treatment/Therapy

However, there may be circumstances in which some of the steps outlined above are not appropriate and the school will determine, in its absolute discretion, on a case-by-case basis the most appropriate method of handling the grievance.