Victorian teacher who called female students ‘bitches’ loses bid to work in early learning

A Victorian teacher who called female students “bitches” and a disabled student “lazy” has lost her bid to work in early learning.

A Victorian secondary school teacher who called students “bitches” has lost a bid to work in the early childhood sector. Picture: iStock

A Victorian secondary teacher who called female students “bitches” and a disabled student “lazy” has lost her bid to work in the early childhood sector.

The woman, Vi Huong Tran, who worked four at different schools including Mullauna College in Mitcham, was found to have “alarming aspects to her character” in a court ruling.

Ms Tran had her right to teach cancelled by the Victorian Institute of Teaching in 2021 and went to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal to overturn the decision but was not successful.

Deputy president Ian Proctor and member Paul Gysslink ruled this month Ms Tran was “seriously incompetent” and should not teach in early learning.

Ms Tran worked at John Paul College in Frankston, Narre Warren South P-12 College and Brentwood Secondary College before starting at Mullauna College in 2010, where she had a full-time job until her termination in 2020.

Evidence given to the VCAT hearing included reports of Ms Tran telling one student: “You’re being a big ho towards me”.

Another student said she was told by Ms Tran she and another girl were “acting like bitches”.

The tribunal heard Ms Tran told a student with an intellectual disability “you won’t get a good job” and “you can’t even pass a grade six maths test” because the student was “lazy”.

In another incident, Ms Tran allegedly inspected the wrists of a student who had cut himself with a Stanley knife and sent him out of class alone.

She was also accused of telling her fellow teachers that, unlike them, she worked for the love of the job, not money.

In other incidents mentioned in the judgement, Ms Tran was branded a “law unto herself” and had allegedly allowed her husband in the classroom as her support person.

Teachers gave evidence that she was ill-equipped for school camp, changed tasks for her students so they got higher grades and manipulated examinations.

In her response, Ms Tran alleged staff at the school had subjected her to racial vilification, discrimination, bullying and hostility.

Ms Tran alleged staff at the school subjected her to racial vilification and bullying. Picture: iStock

She said the principal at the time had directed her to clean the toilets – a claim strongly disputed by the school.

Ms Tran said moves to sack her were based on “the fact that I was Asian” and were an act of “racial discrimination”.

She argued that she was passionate about teaching and academically qualified.

The VCAT judges ruled Ms Tran had a “propensity to respond to justified questions from others with unwarranted accusations of bullying, harassment, racism and discrimination”.

They ruled it would not be in the public interest for Ms Tran to work in the early childhood sector and noted she had not produced any evidence that she was capable of teaching.

An earlier bid for her to work in a secondary school was dropped. Ms Tran argued that she was passionate about teaching and academically qualified, but the VCAT judges did not give weight to her evidence.