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Basis for behavioural grades insufficiently documented

Two girls, twins, had received a behaviour grade in their report cards at a secondary school in Upper Austria, which the mother of the two could not understand. According to the mother, the teacher had never referred to one of the girls in her criticism, even if neither of them had provided a reason for the complaint. Attempts to mediate conflicts with the class teacher did not bear fruit, and the reasons for the judgement were only general, so the woman turned to Ombudsman Walter Rosenkranz.

The Austrian Ombudsman Board asked the Director of Education for Upper Austria for a statement on the allegations made and had to request further clarification based on an initial, overly general response. Due to a lack of precise records from the secondary school, the Directorate of Education was unable to explain the behavioural grades of the two girls in a comprehensible manner. The Austrian Ombudsman Board therefore determined that the complaint was justified and that there was maladministration.

The Directorate of Education stated that it had instructed the secondary school to make proper records with date and time in future and also to make corresponding entries in the class register.

Translation was AI-generated

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