his pupils yesterday.

The 32-year-old man -- who sat next to the 11-year-old boy and repeatedly fondled his private parts in class -- showed no emotion when he was found guilty in Supreme Court.

The jury's majority verdicts were announced after more than three hours of deliberation. And the accused hung his head as Chief Justice Austin Ward ordered him remanded in custody for sentencing on September 1. A social inquiry report has also been ordered.

The defendant, who resigned from the school in January 1994 and was most recently employed at a US university, was found guilty by a 9-3 majority verdict of touching the youngster for a sexual purpose while in a position of trust between October 1 and December 31, 1993.

And he was found guilty by the same 9-3 majority verdict of inviting the boy to touch him for a sexual purpose between those dates.

In his summation, Mr. Justice Ward told the ten-woman, two-man jury: "If it (the touching) was deliberate you have to consider what purpose it was for.'' During the trial the jury heard the boy, now 16, say that he was moved from the front of the classroom to the rear, next to the teacher's desk. He described the room with all of the desks facing the blackboard and his and his teacher's desk behind his classmates.

The boy said that sometime in October his teacher began to "scratch'' his thighs in a circle with his long fingernails.

After several days the teacher began to touch the boy's penis through his pants.

The boy said that after he reported the teacher in December 1993, the teacher approached him and asked him to deny the allegation.

"He said it was a mistake and he was sorry, and it wasn't my fault,'' the teen said. "I told him that I would change my story so that I could go back into the class.'' "I didn't change my story though. I was scared and embarrassed people would call me names.'' In his defence, the teacher said he was not afraid to touch his students to encourage them.

Under questioning by his lawyer Archie Warner, the man flatly denied he "rubbed and played with'' the boy's leg and touched his penis. He said the boy was moved next to him to better handle disruptive behaviour and to help him with schoolwork.