The transitional certificate is for teachers enrolled in a multi-session
program. When they complete their requirements, they will receive a
Certificate of Qualification and Registration.

End to 194-day requirement
Teachers educated outside Ontario will no longer need 194 days of Ontario
teaching experience before they can be certified. This facilitates labour
mobility across Canada and removes a barrier for internationally educated
teachers.

New AQs
The College has developed or revised 123 courses on a wide range of
subjects. Teachers can now take AQs like mentoring, American Sign Language,
outdoor experiential education and teaching, learning through e-learning,
and inclusive education.

Technological teachers will be able to choose from 64 new AQ courses that
make up an entirely new Schedule F. This new group of courses provides
technological education teachers with the opportunity to gain a greater
depth of knowledge in an area of expertise, such as Communications
Technology or Construction Technology.

A new three-course specialist Kindergarten program will start in 2011 and
there will be a new full-year program for teachers of the Deaf and Hard of
Hearing.

The Principal’s Qualification Program guidelines were completely revised,
and the Supervisory Officer’s Qualification Program soon will be.

“The content of the regulation and the courses that have been developed are
the result of a lot of consultation,” says College Council Chair Liz
Papadopoulos. “They’re the result of members giving feedback to the College
as to what they wanted. The changes that have been made are changes that our
membership wanted - our teachers, our principals and vice-principals, and
our supervisory officers. These are all changes that they have asked for.”

Over the course of the four-year project, thousands of College members
advised on changes to the AQs.

On March 26, the College Council passed the new TQR and consequential
amendments to the Accreditation Regulation.

The new TQR came into effect on May 20, 2010.

The changes are not yet finished. Work is proceeding on revising the
supervisory officers’ program and on other English and French AQ course
guidelines.

As well, the College is continuing with its plan to finish Phase 5 of the
Teachers’ Qualifications Review, which focuses on initial teacher

For Immediate Release – May 20, 2010

Having to face discrimination and being denied basic human rights are unacceptable facts of life for transgendered people. That’s why the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) is supporting a private member’s bill to amend the Human Rights Code to recognize “gender identity”.

‘Toby’s Bill – ‘Bill 70, An Act to Amend the Human Rights Code Respecting Gender Identity’, was introduced by Ontario NDP MPP Cheri DiNovo on May 17th, The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. The purpose of the Bill is to ensure that discrimination on the grounds of gender identity is prohibited under the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Toby’s Bill was named after a transgendered person at DiNovo’s church who committed suicide. It would provide transgendered people with the same basic rights as all other Ontarians.

“It is shameful and unacceptable that transgendered people continue to face considerable stigma and discrimination in our so-called ‘enlightened’ society. Passage of this bill would confirm the government’s support of an Ontario where all citizens have full access to employment, health care, housing, and social services,” says ETFO President Sam Hammond.

A main objective of ETFO is to foster a climate of social justice and equity and take a leadership role in confronting individual and systemic discrimination and inequality in all its forms. The federation has focused on lobbying for social change at the provincial level and developing classroom resources and professional development to share with educators across Canada and internationally.

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario represents 76,000 elementary public school teachers and education workers across the province and is the largest teacher federation in Canada.

This year, ETFO’s Summer Academy includes 76 dynamic and practical courses across the province to meet our members’ professional needs.  Most of the courses are designed around 20 hours of learning over a three-day period.  The courses have been designed to inform, motivate and refresh ETFO members as they plan for the upcoming school year.  Members will be amazed by the choices of courses offered again this summer!

 Check out the wide variety of course descriptions and locations on the ETFO website (www.etfo.ca).  Simply click on the Summer Academy icon and take a look through our extensive course listing and then complete the easy online registration process.

We look forward to another inspiring and invigorating summer of professional learning with our members across the province this July and August.

Please share this information with other members in your local.  

For more information, please contact Ruth Dawson (rdawson@etfo.org) or Joanne

Myers (jmyers@etfo.org) or Jane Bennett (jbennett@etfo.org) at the ETFO

provincial office.

Joanne Myers, Professional Services
Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario
1000-480 University Avenue
Toronto, ON M5G 1V2
Phone: 416-962-3836, extension 2279
Toll-Free: 1-888-838-3836
Fax: 416-642-2424

etfo-aq.ca

By teachers, for teachers

ETFO’s AQ (Additional Qualifications) courses are:

• Credible: ETFO is widely known and has a great reputation as an AQ provider.
• Excellent: Courses are developed and taught by successful, experienced teachers.
• Up-to-date: Information and instructional strategies are always current and innovative.
• Teacher-friendly: Course material is practical. ETFO focuses on teacher interests and needs.
• Affordable: ETFO’s courses are less expensive at $650 than comparable university courses
• Accessible: Courses are in your area and now available online.

Keep checking back for more information or contact ETFO-AQ: aqcourses@etfo.org