Requirements for Teachers of Technological Education

To become a certified Teacher of Technological Education in Ontario, you need to fulfil the following requirements:  

1. Ontario Secondary School Diploma or Equivalent

You must have an Ontario Secondary School Diploma or have completed courses that are considered by the College to be equivalent to this diploma.

2. Teacher Education Program

In addition to your secondary school diploma or its equivalent, you need to complete an acceptable teacher education program.

To be considered acceptable, your teacher education program must equal one year of full-time post-secondary study in education in the country where it was undertaken, and must lead to certification to teach in the jurisdiction where it was undertaken. In addition, your teacher education program must meet the following criteria:

• 40 per cent of the program must focus on teaching methods, including preparation in how to teach students in particular grades or subject areas; generally, the instruction you receive must prepare you to teach in at least one of the divisions in Ontario schools. Please see the page About Teachers of General Education in this website for detailed information about the students and subjects that your methodology courses must have prepared you to teach.
• 20 per cent of the program must focus on education foundations, including the history, philosophy, and psychology of education.
• 20 per cent of the program can focus on any other area of education.
• the program must include a minimum of 40 days of practice teaching supervised by the program provider. If your program does not meet this practice requirement, the College will accept evidence that you have at least one year of teaching experience as a certified teacher.

Concurrent programs that combine academic and teacher education courses and that equal four years of full-time study beyond the equivalent of the Ontario secondary school diploma (Grade 12) are also considered. The term "concurrent" means that during your four-year bachelor's degree program you are also taking teacher education courses throughout. If you completed a four-year degree that included a teacher education program, at least one-quarter of the course work must have focussed on teacher education.

Teacher education programs are different in every country. The Ontario College of Teachers will evaluate each application individually.

The College will recognize a portion of your teacher education program completed via distance education as long as the program included a face-to-face practicum or if you have had one year of teaching experience in a jurisdiction outside Ontario where you hold teacher certification. To be eligible for certification, you need to complete two methodology courses in a face-to-face environment and meet the academic and language proficiency requirements for certification.

Employment-based programs are not considered acceptable for the purposes of registration with the Ontario College of Teachers.

3. Teacher Education Program Must Lead to Certification in the Jurisdiction Where it Was Undertaken

As noted above, you must provide evidence that you satisfied requirements for a basic teaching certificate in the jurisdiction where your teacher education was completed. You must have been certified/authorized to teach in the jurisdiction where you completed your teacher education program, even if you have never taught there. If your country does not provide teaching certificates, the College will discuss other options with you have completed and sent in your application for registration.

4. Proof of Competence in Your Technological Field

Your competence in a selected area of technological education is determined based on your academic records, your certification in the related trade, if applicable, proof of work experience, and any other training you may have completed.

5. Work Experience

You need to show that you have worked for wages, other than in teaching, in your technological field.

To do this, you need one of the following:

• five years of work (for wages) experience in the relevant business or industrial sector where you used your skills and knowledge in the relevant technological field

or

• a combination of post-secondary education and work in business or industry, all in the relevant technological fields, for a total of five years, including either
  • at least two years of relevant work experience in the technological field, of which at least four months must be continuous employment, or
  • two years of work experience in the field in combination with completion of a post-secondary education program in the field acceptable to the College, which included at least six semesters of academic study.

Please see the Path to Becoming a Certified Teacher section for details and explanations of the various documents you will have to send in when you apply to show evidence of your work experience.

6. Proficiency in English or French

ITo be certified as a teacher, you must demonstrate proficiency in one of Ontario's official languages, English or French. If you completed an acceptable teacher education program in English or French in any of the countries listed below, you meet the language proficiency requirement and do not need to provide further proof of language proficiency.

Countries whose teacher education programs satisfy the language requirements:

If your teacher education program was completed in a country other than the ones listed above, you must provide proof of your proficiency in English or French in one of the following ways:

• If your teacher education program was taught entirely in English or French, you can ask the head of the educational institution to send a letter directly to the College. The letter must indicate when you attended the program and confirm that at the time you attended the program, the language of instruction for the whole program was either English or French. In addition, the College must determine that your program is otherwise acceptable under the criteria listed above.
• If your primary or your secondary and post-secondary education were in French or English, but your teacher education program was in another language, you can arrange to have letters sent to the College from your primary or secondary school, and your post-secondary institution. The letters should confirm that the language of instruction for the entire program was either English or French.
• You can complete a language proficiency test. The results of the test must be sent from the testing agency directly to the the College. You must do the test within two years of the date the College receives your application. The Ontario College of Teachers accepts proof of proficiency from the following tests:

• International English Language Testing System (IELTS) [academic test only]
• Test of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-based Test (TOEFL iBT)
• Test pour étudiants et stagiaires au Canada (TEStCan)

You are responsible for the cost of the language proficiency test. Prices may vary. For more information on language proficiency and classes, see the Language Classes and Testing section.

International English Language Testing System (IELTS) [academic test only]

You need to provide proof of achievement of an overall score of at least 7, with scores of at least 6.5 in reading and listening and scores of at least 7 in writing and speaking.

Next Steps

Once you are familiar with the above requirements, please see the Path to Becoming a Certified Teacher section of this website for full details on how to apply to the Ontario College of Teachers to become certified. This section of the website will provide you with a detailed list of all the documents you need to submit when you apply. Many of these documents, including those from educational institutions, must be originals sent directly from the institution to the College. The College will notify you once these documents have been received by the College, and if the documents are not in English or French, you must arrange for translations that meet the College's requirements. To avoid delay, it is important that you understand what documentation is needed and that you make arrangements to request the required documents.

The Ontario College of Teachers encourages all those interested in becoming certified in Ontario to begin the certification process by completing an online application and arranging for all the required documents to be forwarded directly to the College. The College cannot determine the outcome of your application before it has received all your documents.

You will receive an individual assessment of your qualifications. Each case is different. In some cases, it may be necessary for the College to request additional documentation from you if your educational transcripts or other documents do not provide sufficient information for the College to make a decision.

Do not be discouraged if the College requires some further information from you or if the College decides that you require additional coursework before you can be certified to teach in Ontario. Teaching is a rewarding career choice, and the investment in your career is worth it. There are many benefits to being a certified teacher in Ontario.