Supervised Alternative Learning Provincial Meeting April 2012

1. Supervised Alternative Learning Provincial MeetingApril 2012

2. Welcome • Welcome • Review of Agenda • Housekeeping items

3. Is your clicker working? • Yes • No

4. Are you from a French-language school board or an English-language school board? • French-language school board • English-language school board

5. What region are you from? • Barrie • GTA • London • North Bay/Sudbury • Ottawa • Thunder Bay

6. What is your role? • Teacher • Attendance counsellor • Social worker • SO/Director • SSL • School Principal • Ministry staff • Other

7. Are you a primary contact for SAL students in your board? • Yes • No • Not applicable

8. Data • Source #1: End of year June 2011 report • 71 boards responded • 43 of 71 boards had SAL students • Source #2: January 2012 report • 64 boards have responded • 42 of 64 boards had SAL students.

9. Data Interesting note: 56% of all SAL students in 2011 were males

10. SAL students by age

11. IEPs • According to June 2011 reports, 29% of enrolled SAL students had an IEP • Comparatively, only 13% of the general student population had an IEP • According to January 2012 reports, 27% of enrolled SAL students had an IEP.

12. Exceptionalities • Behaviour • Behaviour disability • Communication • Autism, Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Speech Impairment, Language Impairment, Learning Disabilities • Intellectual • Gifted, Mild Intellectual Disability, Developmental Disability • Physical • Physical Disability, Blind and Low Vision • Multiple • Multiple Exceptionalities (2 or more prominent)

13. Of the SAL students you know with an IEP, please rank the top three exceptionalities they most frequently have. • Behaviour • Autism • Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Speech Impairment, Language Impairment, • Learning Disabilities • Gifted • Mild Intellectual Disability, Developmental Disability • Physical • Multiple • Don’t know

14. Type of activity

15. Activities offered by board

16. 2011 Delivery of SAL activities

17. 2011 Credits Earned • 76% of SAL students were enrolled in credit courses • Average 1.9 credits per student • 55% success rate for credits earned

18. Course Delivery Type

19. Certifications • 412 certifications earned by students in SAL • Students may have earned multiple certifications

20. SAL Model

21. Does your school board utilize SAL as a viable re-engagement strategy for students between the ages of 14 and 17? • No – we don’t have any SAL students • Yes • Don’t know

22. Do you know who your attendance counsellor(s) is for the board? • Yes • No

23. Are all school boards in Ontario required to appoint one or more attendance counsellors? • Yes • No • Only if the board is running a SAL program

24. A female student under the age of 18 has been absent from school because she was pregnant and gave birth to a child.  She has a medical note excusing her from attending school for a period of 6 weeks after the birth of the child.  Question A:Is this student required to return to school after the 6 weeks are up?  • Yes • No

25. A female student under the age of 18 has been absent from school because she was pregnant and gave birth to a child.  She has a medical note excusing her from attending school for a period of 6 weeks after the birth of the child.  Question B:Is SAL a possibility?   • Yes • No

26. A student is working 30 hours per week. She is living independently and needs to work to support herself. She has not completed any secondary school credits. Can she earn co-op credits for the time she spends at work? • Yes • Yes, if she meets all the requirements of Cooperative Education (pre-placement, integration, etc.) • Yes, if she is also taking another credit course. • No • Both 2 and 3

27. Once a student has a SALP does it need to be renewed for the next year? • Yes, by June 30 each school year. At the end of the first year, only if the parents request an extension. • Yes, it can be extended for one year (by June 30). After one renewal, a full SAL application process must occur. • Yes, by June 30 each school year for up to two years. • No. once a student has a SALP it is good until the student turns 18.

28. Can a student who turns 18 in November start SAL? • Yes • Yes, if he has not earned all of his compulsory credits • Yes, if he is in his 4th year of high school • No

29. Can a student who turns 18 in March continue in SAL to the end of the year? • Yes • Yes, if she has not earned all of her compulsory credits • Yes, if she is in her 4th year of high school • No

30. Which course does not count towards the 70 minutes of classroom instruction for the purpose of reporting a SAL pupil as full time? • Cooperative education • E-learning • Night school class • Home instruction

31. Is an academic component required as part of a SALP? • Yes • No • Don’t know

32. In the new SAL regulation, there is a provision for the principal to allow one year of part-time attendance for 16-17 year olds on compassionate grounds. Which of the following statements is not true regarding this provision? • A SAL committee does not need to approve these students as being part-time • Students will be fully funded • A principal may use his/her discretion • Students may be part-time for medical reasons

33. A pupil who is 14-17 years old has been referred to an attendance counsellor and the file is still active. How long can the pupil remain on the register? • Until the file is no longer active • Until the pupil has 60 consecutive school days of absence • Until the pupil has 30 consecutive school days of absence • Until the pupil graduates. • 1 & 2 (whichever comes 1st)

34. Other Non-SAL Data • 16 & 17 year old students attending school part-time: 2,584 students • 37 boards reporting • 14-17 year olds on board non-attending lists: 965 • 35 boards reporting