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Teacher Professionalism: the Canadian case

Teacher Professionalism: the Canadian case. For the Alliance Meeting August 2009. A Few Key Canadian Facts. Provincial jurisdiction in education (10 provinces) Immigrant society (1 in 5 foreign born; 70% live in three largest cities) Unionized teachers with few labour shortages

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Teacher Professionalism: the Canadian case

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  1. Teacher Professionalism: the Canadian case For the Alliance Meeting August 2009

  2. A Few Key Canadian Facts • Provincial jurisdiction in education (10 provinces) • Immigrant society (1 in 5 foreign born; 70% live in three largest cities) • Unionized teachers with few labour shortages • Relatively high international achievement and low disparity in achievement

  3. University Based Teacher Education • Evolved post 1945 from normal schools and teachers colleges funded and regulated by the government • Virtually all 56 universities offering teacher education are public institutions with public funding and regulated tuition • Programs certified by College of Teachers (Ontario and BC) or Ministry of Education (all others)

  4. Size and Content • 55,000 graduates annually, 24,000 from Ontario (3 per 1000 K-12 students in Canada) • Virtually all receive BEd degrees, either concurrent or consecutive with BA/BSc • Emphasis on practicum experience with curriculum, foundational subjects and “reflective” practice • Substantial focus on social justice and diversity

  5. Teacher Education across Canada • British Columbia: 12 months to 2 years • Alberta: 16 months to 2 years • Saskatchewan: 2 years • Manitoba: 2 years • Ontario: 8 months • Quebec: 2 - 3 years • Prince Edward Island: 2 years • New Brunswick: 18 months to 2 years • Nova Scotia: 2 years • Newfoundland: 12 months

  6. Current Context Increased complexity and need for expertise: - diversity of student language, culture, needs - higher expectations of schools - more data driven discussions - more research and scholarship

  7. Issues Affecting Professionalism of Teaching • Increased interprovincial and global movement of teachers leads to discussion of certification requirements • Public funding makes increasing investment in preservice teacher education difficult • Teacher unions are not particularly supportive of increasing preservice education • Induction programs, in service and graduate education are variable, often not university based, and poorly understood

  8. The Way Forward In our own jurisdictions, through our own partnerships, we must find a way to ensure teachers continue to increase their knowledge base, innovate in their practice and share their understandings. The university has a key role to play because of its commitment to knowledge building and knowledge sharing.

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