A Christchurch teacher has been censured after pulling a 5-year-old boy by the arm. (File photo)

A Christchurch primary school teacher used "unacceptable" physical force in pulling a 5-year-old boy by the arm, a disciplinary panel has found.

Jean-Marc Risuleo resigned from his job of 10 years at Christchurch Adventist​ School five months after the incident, during which the boy bumped his head.

He told the New Zealand Teachers Disciplinary Tribunal he had made a "serious error in judgement" and volunteered to deregister himself so he can no longer teach.

As of Thursday, he remained on the register of New Zealand teachers. Should he wish to teach again, he will have to inform the school of the tribunal's verdict – a finding of serious misconduct.

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The tribunal's decision, released this week, said "society's view of adults' use of physical force on children, whether in places of learning or in the home, has undergone a major refocus over recent decades".

Some uses of force in the classroom could amount to physical or psychological abuse, the tribunal said.

"A teacher's position does not legitimise actions that amount to crimes if committed in the community."

While Risuleo, motivated by frustration, used "more force than was required", his actions did not amount to physical abuse, the tribunal decided.

However, his transgression was considered severe enough to affect the child's wellbeing and bring the profession of teaching into disrepute.

Risuleo was teaching a class of year 1 and 2 students in October 2016 when the boy threw a felt pen on the ground.

Risuleo grabbed the child by the arm, pulled him out of his chair to where the pen had landed, and told him to pick it up.

"I said something to the effect that it was never OK to throw unwanted objects on the floor," he told the tribunal.

The boy fell and hit his head on the floor during the incident, but Risuleo said he did not see it.

"I had needed to react quickly to ensure that others did not copy this action, which could have become dangerous.

"After a very short time, [the boy] regained his composure and carried on normally for the rest of the afternoon."

When he got home that evening, Risuleo called the child's mother to explain what happened and apologise for acting on impulse.

A representative for Risuleo told the tribunal the use of force was not acceptable, but that it was not intended to be harmful, malicious, or demeaning.

The tribunal referred to its past cases regarding the use of force by teachers.

"The use of physical force – even at a lower level such as evident in this case – is unacceptable in New Zealand schools, and that any teacher who uses physical force ... puts his or her status as a teacher in peril."

Risuleo was ordered to pay $458 in costs and refused name suppression.