Certification Changes

Two new policy interpretations of the Certification Regulations have recently been made by the Certification Council/Certification Appeal Board. These new interpretations take effect October 5, 2009 and are available for viewing on the provincial website at www.osstf.on.ca [Services/Certification]. These changes may produce positive effects on re-evaluations for some members.

All teacher and occasional teacher members should be encouraged to review these changes to ensure familiarity with new opportunities for upgrading their Group placement.

Members may see positive changes to their Group placements or their requirements for advancement under the new policies. Certification Application Form #2 must be completed in order to have an existing file re-evaluated.

The new policies are:

• Overseas degrees obtained in jurisdictions (e.g. Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka) with less than 16 years of scholarity will now be accepted without the additional coursework that has been the requirement in the past.
• Courses in Educational Psychology and Philosophy of Education with EDUC labels, and not utilized in the completion of teacher-training, are now acceptable for a concentration in Social Science.

The Certification Regulations, their Policy interpretations, and some internal processes have changed significantly over time. Many members are missing out on opportunities for improved Group placement by failing to have their existing files re-evaluated.

All teacher and occasional teacher members who are not at Group 4 and have not requested a re-evaluation in recent years should submit Certification Form #2 found on the provincial website at www.osstf.on.ca [Services/Certification] for a review of their existing credentials.

Certification Regulation 5 states:
5.2 It is the RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MEMBER to be cognizant of the latest changes in Certification Regulations and to submit, using the current application form, to the Certification Department for a re-examination of their academic record based on announced changes.