Teachers victimizing students is a real problem in Utah schools, but it happens very infrequently, according to a State Office of Education review released Friday in response to a spate of recent high profile cases.

Less than two-tenths of 1 percent of Utah's licensed educators were reported to the state for misconduct over the past nine years, and the number of teachers reported to the state has not increased over that time, according to the review.

But the review shows it's a problem, nonetheless. And it recommends some changes to better prevent and catch educators who act inappropriately with students.

"The report does indicate there are opportunities for us to improve the policies and practices that ensure children are safe in our schools and educator conduct is at the highest standards," said Larry Shumway, state superintendent.

The review comes from a committee headed by former State Superintendent Patti Harrington and put together after a number of high-profile cases of teachers engaging in sexual misconduct with students grabbed attention over the past year. It also follows a 2009 legislative audit that showed 17 school employees with troubling criminal convictions.

Early tallies from a new Department of Public Safety database show that there have been nearly 7,000 arrests, criminal charges or convictions of public school employees, including both teachers and other workers, though not all those people are necessarily working in schools now, said Carol Lear, executive secretary for the commission.

The state office review includes those teachers who were referred to the Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission, which reviews whether to take action against the licenses of teachers in cases of misconduct.

The review noted that there may be more cases that aren't being reported for a number of reasons.

For example, some districts may deal with misconduct by disciplining teachers at the local level, but never report the action to the state -- meaning those teachers may still keep their licenses even if they lose their jobs. Also, the review noted that the state lacks a consistent system to guide teachers, parents and students in knowing when to report suspected teacher misconduct.

"Teachers and other school employees report that they are often aware of concerning behavior by other employees well before a building administrator is aware of such behavior, but may, as one of many concerns, be uncertain about the level of proof they need to make the report," the review says.

The review also found that training for teachers and administrators regarding such issues is inconsistent across the state.

Among other things, the review recommends a review of professional conduct standards for educators, "detailed training" for public school employees on professional conduct, the completion of an online course to teach professional and ethical conduct, the creation of a handbook to help school employees understand professional conduct and to help students and parents learn how to detect and report abuse.

The review also recommends creating a confidential reporting process for students, parents and school employees and possibly revising state policies about appropriate use of technologies.

"Even one case is one case too many," said Debra Roberts, state board chair.