On June 4, 2024, the President of the Republic presented a bill on coexistence, good treatment, and the well-being of educational teams, aimed at preventing and eradicating bullying, discrimination, and all forms of violence in schools.
- Content of the Bill
The bill addresses and promotes educational communities as spaces of protection and well-being, encouraging comprehensive, systematic, and effective actions to prevent and eradicate bullying, violence, and discrimination within educational establishments. The bill proposes a series of measures grouped into four essential axes:
- Establishing the role of the State in promoting coexistence and good treatment.
- Strengthening the role of coordination and management instruments for educational coexistence.
- Enhancing institutional functions that guide a pedagogical approach and establishing a new standard for coexistence management.
- Defining the responsibility of the school owner and the school in matters of school coexistence and reinforcing the duty of prevention and protection concerning educational teams.
Regarding the first axis, the bill seeks to amend the General Education Law, adding and clarifying in its Article 4 the State's duty to adopt measures to promote good coexistence and good treatment in educational communities. To this end, it replaces Article 16 C, establishing that the Ministry of Education, through the Undersecretary of Education, will develop and define the guidelines and measures through the National Educational Coexistence Policy, which will provide the framework for action for various bodies and educational establishments.
The second axis is strictly related to intersectoral strengthening to develop and coordinate the multiple needs arising from the establishments concerning coexistence. In this sense, the bill incorporates the duty of coordination of the Undersecretary of Education for the development and execution of actions within the framework of the National Educational Coexistence Plan, with at least the following bodies:
- Ministry of Social Development and Family
- Ministry of the Interior
- Ministry of Health
- Ministry of Women and Gender Equality
- Ministry of Justice and Human Rights
Regarding the third axis, the bill proposes a series of changes, establishing requirements for managing school coexistence within educational establishments to provide the appropriate conditions and tools. Among the changes, new requirements are set for the position of School Coexistence Officer, minimum content for the Coexistence Management Plan, and greater participation of the educational community in developing and updating the Management Plan and the Internal Regulations.
Finally, concerning the fourth axis, the bill establishes provisions to reinforce and develop recent modifications made by Law No. 21,463, which incorporates new obligations for the prevention and protection of workplace harassment, sexual harassment, or violence, by making particular modifications to education professionals and assistants. The bill proposes recognizing the particularities of the education sector to identify and assess psychosocial risks in the application of protocols. Additionally, it establishes the duty of the school owner to accompany minimum evidence in cases where a teacher or assistant has requested the classification of a mental illness.
- Legislative Process of the Bill
Currently, the bill is in the first legislative stage, i.e., bill initiative, being studied by the Education and Finance Committees of the Chamber of Deputies. The following stages include discussion, approval, sanction, final approval, and finally, promulgation and publication in the Official Gazette.
It is of utmost importance that the various educational communities stay informed and prepared for these changes, being attentive to keeping internal regulations updated along with proper training for educational teams.
Should you require additional information on this matter, please contact Macarena Naranjo (mnaranjo@jdf.cl) y a Sofía Ortúzar (msortuzar@jdf.cl).
