Membership Services Answers
Frequently Asked Questions
In this issue, we answer some of the
questions raised in the question and answer session of the College’s Annual General
Meeting on May 30th. You can find all the questions and answers
here.
Q:
I am very concerned about the $90 fee and I’m wondering why it is the highest in
Canada for any other college?
A:
The College is the largest regulatory body in the country. Among Ontario’s 32
regulatory bodies, the nurses and the College of Teachers, both at $90, have the lowest
fee.
Ontario has a radically different and much more demanding mandate than the College of
Teachers in B.C. because the teacher qualifications system in Ontario is quite different
from the teacher qualifications system in B.C. In B.C., there is no such thing as an
Additional Qualifications system – one that has existed in Ontario for at least 50
years. Our College has to track all of that.
In Ontario, our College also accredits faculties of education on a rotating basis, not
just when there is a program change. B.C. also does not have a mandate to develop
professional and ethical standards for the profession – the Ontario College does.
B.C. is not responsible for developing a framework for ongoing professional learning
– our College is.
The Ontario College of Teachers provides services in French and English. B.C does not.
The fee is more than reasonable for the services provided.
Q:
Our local of FWTAO sponsors many opportunities for women for professional development.
My question is how can we get that accredited by the College of Teachers?
A:
A subcommittee of the Accreditation Committee is gathering information and held a
meeting for people who were interested in providing in-service programs. We anticipate
that within a year we’ll be getting back to the faculties and to the professional
organizations about the design of processes for accreditation of in-service teacher
education/professional development.
Q:
What are the lease costs for the College offices?
A:
The College has a 15-year lease at 121 Bloor Street East at 70 cents a square foot
plus utilities and taxes. The College’s lease was among the lowest deals for downtown
Toronto office space for any term signed in 1996. Similar space in our building was
recently leased for $20 a square foot.
Q:
How would the College defend a teacher when a complaint was registered if that teacher
were stressed or pressured by the administration of the school?
A:
The College is the regulatory body and your federation is the representative body if
you are in the tax-supported school system. And so it is the federation you look to for
assistance in that particular kind of case.
Q:
I have been assigned to teach new courses this year and I’ve been told that the
College requires me to take an Additional Qualification (AQ) course immediately. Why?
A:
Your Certificate of Qualification describes your basic teaching qualifications and any
additional teaching qualifications you may have acquired. This certificate is issued by
authority of Regulation 184 under the Ontario College of Teachers Act.
Regulation 298 under the Education Act, which is administered by the Ministry of
Education and Training, contains Section 19 "Qualification of Teachers." This
regulation restricts teaching in some subject areas to teachers who hold the actual
qualifications under Regulation 184. In other subject areas and assignments to divisions,
the school district has discretion.
For more information about the application of Regulation 298, call MET’s policy
branch at (416) 325-4336 or contact the MET office in your area. They are listed in the
blue pages of your telephone directory.
The College has informed school boards that anyone who has not completed the
Principal’s Qualification Course but is appointed as a principal or vice-principal
under a Temporary Letter of Approval must take immediate steps to complete their
principal’s AQ. The Temporary Letter of Approval is valid for only one year.
