florrie2011

Hi

Can anyone help please with a question about teaching secondary school in Ontario.

I have a BA (HONS) History and would like to teach secondary if we relocate from UK to Ontario.

Is there anyone who has successfully transferred their PGCE in UK to Ontario and teaching?

Am I better off waiting and training as a teacher in Ontario at a Uni? has anyone experience of this with their UK qualifications?

Thanks

christmasoompa

This Wiki article may help.................http://britishexpats.com/wiki/Teaching_in_Canada

pinkmcfarquhar

Not in Ontario, but can give a little help!

I have my PGCE (Secondary, Computing) from Scotland. That allowed me to teach high school here in Newfoundland no problem at all - just a quick visit to the education board with my paperwork to get the certificate.

Since Computing comes under the heading of Technology here, that meant that the chances of me getting a job here were virtually non-existent. Teaching jobs are few and far between, and the fact that I had only one "teachable" reduced my chances even more.

So, as it had always been an area of interest to me, I went to University here and completed my Bachelor of Special Education. Now, although it hasn't helped immediately in the job front, it has given me some contacts. It also widens up the range of jobs I can apply for.


If you were to do your teaching over here - there would no doubt be a practical element which would give you valuable experience and contacts. As others will tell you, teaching over here is very very very (almost impossible) to break into, so any contacts you could build up would be a good thing.

hope that helps a little bit.

Novocastrian

It's quite different in Ontario. It'd take at least a year to get the unhelpful boneheaded bureaucrats in the OCT to recognized your UK qualifications.

The OP would be way better off to do her teaching credential here. (If she can get accepted to an Ontario University... the competition is stiff, although there a very few jobs afterward unless in French or Math/Science).

Good luck. (You'll need it).

Zoe Bell

18months for a New Zealand guy currently working where I do

He reckoned it was harder than getting PR

florrie2011

I appreciate your advice and had sort of come to those conclusions myself from the depressing research I had done!

Think I will attempt to train over there if I can get accepted at a Uni there for the teaching qualification otherwise look at a completely different career path - not great news!!!

Zoe Bell

To be honest even with a Canadian qualification it's tough to get into
I've posted before a out talented teachers working a few days supply and supplementing with bar work

You need another source of income until you can break into the market

Siouxie

This pdf has all the details on how to transfer an internation teaching certificate to Ontario:

http://www.oct.ca/become_a_teacher/r..._teacher_e.pdf

Ontario recognises foreign (internationally trained) teachers, however, you would need 1 year of teaching experience in the UK to be able to transfer your certification to Ontario... probably easier and cheaper to get trained here! http://www.oct.ca/iet/ and http://www.oct.ca/become_a_teacher/r..._ontario_e.pdf


There are 1 year post grad courses for teacher certification.

http://www.oct.ca/become_a_teacher/d...spx?lang=en-CA / consecutive (post grad) courses: http://www.oct.ca/become_a_teacher/faculties.aspx

Application for 1 year BEd course: http://www.ouac.on.ca/teas/

Ontario Faculties of Education (TEAS)

Use this application to apply for admission to a one-year BEd program leading to the Ontario College of Teachers Certificate of Qualification in a consecutive program at an Ontario university.

The Teacher Education Application Service (TEAS) is a non-profit centralized application service for applying to Ontario Faculties of Education.


An example:

http://education.uoit.ca/EN/main/137..._pj_admiss.php

Admissions Information:Bachelor of Education (Consecutive)

Lilipuddlian

Hi there,

To teach in Ontario you will need to take the Ontario Teacher's qualification which is a post-graduate course. Now the one tricky thing is that undergraduate degrees in Canada tend to be four years in length. To get into graduate programs (like teacher's college) you usually need a four-year degree. Not always, but usually. Just a word of warning to you.

For the most part, UK & Canadian qualifications tend to be somewhat similar, with the Canadian counterpart taking longer to obtain. There may be a recognition in place already. I would look at the provincial regulating body for teachers and email them re: qualifications.

On a sad note, and I don't want to be a 'downer' but I know a lot of people with useless degrees who then go to teacher's college in Ontario (some even go to the states and come back with the qualification) in hopes of finding work. In my city (Ottawa) there are not a lot of teaching positions, but there are LOTS of teachers. If you teach French or Science, you are much more marketable.

Ontario also segregates teachers into primary and secondary level teachers. It depends on how many 'teachables' you have. If you took a degree in Chemistry and Maths, for example, you would be able to teach at the high school (secondary) level, but if your degree is in a single subject, then you are only qualified to teach at the primary level.

Good luck!

P.S. Substitute teaching is very popular here as a way to get your foot in the door. There is a greater demand for teachers in rural areas than in Ontario's bigger cities, where competition is fiercer. You will definitely need to have the Ontario teacher's college program under your belt before being recognized by the province. Ontario teachers have a very, very, VERY strong union and salaries are considered quite good (in comparison to other professions, in my opinion). However, a lot of retired teachers tend to come back as part-timers, thus taking up the entry level positions for the newly qualified.

jen_0_0

Hi all,
I've stumbled onto this thread, and it's making for depressing reading!
My partner and I have been thinking of moving to Canada for some time, and would like to do so in the next few years.
I am a Secondary Mathematics teacher, PGCE qualified in Scotland, currently with 5 years experience.

"Ontario also segregates teachers into primary and secondary level teachers. It depends on how many 'teachables' you have. If you took a degree in Chemistry and Maths, for example, you would be able to teach at the high school (secondary) level, but if your degree is in a single subject, then you are only qualified to teach at the primary level."

I have a question about Lilipuddlian's post - my undergraduate degree is BSc (Hons) Mathematics - single honours. Does that mean in Ontario I can't teach at Secondary level at all? I studied Maths, Physics and Astronomy for two years and then completed my honours in Maths. Does that make a difference?
Many thanks
Jennifer

Novocastrian

Welcome aboard HMS BE, Jen. You don't say how many years you studied for your BSc (if it was in Scotland it would've been four, right?).

I think you'd be OK to claim competence to teach Math(s), Physics and general science at secondary level in Ontario. These are all areas where there are some shortages and therefore jobs.

See links earlier in the thread to OCT; they're the body who have final say.

Good luck.

fledermaus

Strangely enough you need no teaching experience or qualifications to teach in a Community College. Just experience in the subject you are teaching.- and that experience can be vague.

Novocastrian

Same with Universities, thank goodness.

jen_0_0

Thanks for that - it's put my mind at ease a bit. I did indeed study over 4 years for my degree, so hopefully that will be ok.

My other half is currently finishing his state registration in Medical Physics, so we need to wait about a year and a half before he's finished. Is it too early to start emailing around now to get an idea of what I might need to do to transfer?
Thanks
Jen

Zoe Bell

no harm in making enquiries but I'm fairly certain that in Ontario they won't start the recognition process until you are a PR.

At least you will be able to get the ball rolling as to what you will need to provide