3.1 English language learners

English Language Learners / ESL and ELD Programs and Services: Policies and Procedures for Ontario Elementary and Secondary Schools, kindergarten to Grade 12 (2007) sets out policies and procedures for the development and implementation of programs and supports for English language learners (ELLs) in English-language elementary and secondary schools in Ontario, from kindergarten to Grade 12.

ELLs are students whose first language is a language other than English or a variation of English significantly different from the one used for instruction in Ontario schools.

Boards must ensure programs and supports are in place for ELLs by implementing program models that take into consideration the number of ELLs in the board or school. These programs and services should enable ELLs to continue their education while learning English.

ELLs may require focused educational supports to help them become proficient in English. Learning opportunities to support their development of English-language proficiency should be integrated into the curriculum in all subject areas. All teachers share in the responsibility for the English language development of these students. Teachers must adapt the instructional program to address students’ varying levels of proficiency in English and help these students adjust to a new linguistic, cultural and educational environment. This may require program adaptations, such as modifications, accommodations or the use of specific teaching strategies (see section 3.1.2).  

At the secondary level, ELLs may also need to take English as a second language (ESL) and/or English literacy development (ELD) courses.

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3.1.1 Placement of English language learners

A student’s level of proficiency in English will not influence the choice of grade placement. In elementary schools, each English language learner (ELL) will be placed with an age-appropriate group. In secondary schools, placement in a grade or specific subject will depend upon a student’s prior education, background in specific subject areas and aspirations. ELLs should be placed in a grade-level or subject-specific classroom for at least part of each day.

Final placement decisions are made by the principal in consultation with the student, staff and parent(s)/guardian(s). The principal will communicate the placement decision and rationale to the student and parent(s)/guardian(s).

See also section 4.3 on student transfers.

3.1.2 Programming for English language learners

For English language learners (ELLs) to be successful at each stage of learning English and/or developing English literacy, they may need program adaptations such as accommodations or modifications of some or all curriculum expectations.

At the secondary level, when modifications are made to support ELL needs, the principal should consult with the classroom teacher to ensure the integrity of the credit for credit-granting purposes.

3.1.3 English as a second language and English literacy development

English as a second language (ESL) courses are intended to help English language learners (ELLs) develop proficiency in the language of instruction so they can succeed in all subject areas at school.

English literacy development (ELD) courses are intended to provide students who had limited access to education before entering an Ontario secondary school with an accelerated literacy program. These courses support the development of the foundation they will need for further study.

For-credit courses must be developed from the ESL/ELD curriculum policy. A student entering the Ontario secondary school system at any grade level may be given credit for a maximum of three ESL/ELD credits toward the four compulsory English credits required for graduation. The remaining compulsory English credits will be earned at the Grade 12 level.

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3.2 French language learners

French language learners (FLLs) are students who have limited knowledge of the French language, primarily because a language other than French is used at home.

Actualisation linguistique en français (ALF)

Elementaire Actualisation linguistique en français and Secondaire Actualisation linguistique en français foster a positive attitude toward the use of French by aiming to support FLLs to acquire the necessary skills to pursue their studies in French and gain an appreciation of Francophone culture in French-language schools.

All teachers must pay special attention to students taking an FLLs program or course. Depending on the student’s French-language skills, in every subject, teachers should choose appropriate approaches, teaching strategies, assessment strategies and activities in consultation with the lead teacher for FLLs (when there is one).

Programme d’appui aux nouveaux arrivants (PANA)

The PANA program is aimed at newcomers to Canada who speak French or are French-language rights-holders but whose previous education was very different than the schooling received in Ontario’s French-language schools or whose education has been interrupted. This program aims to develop literacy and introduce students to Canadian society. It familiarizes newly arrived students with the unique features of the French-language education system in Ontario and with their new socio-cultural environment. In addition, at the elementary level, it helps students understand interpersonal communication conventions and develop their skills in numeracy, science and technology.

All teachers must pay special attention to students in a PANA program. In every subject, depending on the student’s needs, teachers should choose appropriate approaches, teaching strategies, assessment strategies and activities in consultation with the lead PANA teacher, if one is available. In some cases, at the secondary level, teachers can recommend that students enrolled in PANA courses take courses on learning strategies from the guidance and career education curriculum.

Anglais pour débutants (APD)

Programs and courses under the APD curriculum are designed to allow students who have little to no knowledge of English to gain sufficient English language proficiency so that they can attend and follow English programs (at the elementary level) or be enrolled in English courses (at the secondary level) in French-language schools.

The objective of APD programs and courses is to give students the language skills and knowledge needed to communicate in English within a majority anglophone society.

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3.3 Students facing barriers to success

3.3.1 Secondary school students facing barriers to success

Every secondary school must have a student success team to support students facing barriers to earning their Ontario Secondary School Diploma.

The student success team must include a student success teacher and at least one representative each from administration, guidance and special education. Other members may also be included based on local needs, such as classroom teachers, child and youth workers, graduation coaches, social workers and attendance counsellors.

The responsibilities of the student success team include:

  • supporting school-wide efforts to improve outcomes for students facing barriers to success
  • supporting students in their education and career/life planning
  • working with families and the community to support student success
  • providing direct support for differentiated instruction to meet the learning needs of students and improve their achievement, promote their school engagement, and support significant transitions
  • monitoring and tracking individual students’ progress
  • ensuring students have a voice in determining ways that they can engage meaningfully in their own learning
  • re-engaging early school leavers

3.3.2 Transition from Grade 8 to Grade 9

Student success teams in secondary schools are responsible for implementing strategies to promote a smooth transition from Grade 8 to Grade 9 for students who are facing barriers to success and may require additional supports to be successful in secondary school.

Transition strategies may include:

  • sharing student information (e.g., students’ Individual Education Plan, as applicable) between elementary and secondary schools, subject to privacy and disclosure rules
  • working with students and their families to identify and name the specific barriers students face in order to collaboratively develop intentional strategies for addressing them
  • creating individual student profiles that highlight strengths and interests, as well as learning, social and emotional needs
  • supporting students and their families during orientation and other pre-entry activities
  • providing individualized timetabling and support strategies, based on student strengths and needs
  • identifying advocates and mentors for students who need additional support
  • ensuring ongoing tracking and monitoring of student progress

In consultation with students and parent(s)/guardian(s), the student success team may implement timetabling strategies to address the particular needs of students who may have difficulty with the Grade 9 program. Some examples of timetabling strategies include:

  • delaying some compulsory courses until the second semester
  • considering substitutions for compulsory credit requirements
  • scheduling one-credit mathematics, English or science courses over the full school year to allow students more time to achieve the expectations of the course, coupled with a guidance and career education course to earn two credits over the full school year and ensure that the student does not fall behind in terms of credit accumulation (220 hours total)
  • ensuring timetables include a range of courses students find interesting and engaging and that are appropriate to students’ learning needs

See also section 2.4 on education and career/life planning programs.

3.3.3 Supervised alternative learning

Ontario Regulation 374/10, “Supervised Alternative Learning and Other Excusals from Attendance at School” outlines requirements for supervised alternative learning (SAL). Although most students will successfully complete secondary school, a small number of students are at risk of leaving school early. If retention and engagement strategies are not successful, supervised alternative learning (SAL) may be used to meet the needs of students who are at least 14 and up to 17 years of age. The goal is to help them maintain a connection to learning and to support their continued progress toward graduation or achievement of other educational and personal goals.

SAL may be requested by a parent, principal or student 16 years or older who has withdrawn from parental control through an application process. Review and approval of the application are made by a board’s SAL committee.

These students must continue to participate in learning under the supervision of the board and/or a school of the board. Eligible students may continue in SAL for multiple years, but renewal must be authorized annually by the SAL committee.

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3.4 Students with special education needs

Note: The term “students with special education needs” includes every student who is receiving special education programs and services, regardless of whether or not they have been identified as exceptional by an Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC).

Special education in Ontario, kindergarten to Grade 12: Policy and resource Guide (2017) provides information about special education legislation, regulation and policy to support school boards and schools in the effective delivery of programs and services for students with special education needs.  

Students with behavioural, communicational, intellectual, physical or multiple exceptionalities may need special education programs and/or services to benefit fully from their school experience. These students may be referred to an IPRC set up by the school board. Students identified by an IPRC must be provided with appropriate special education programs and/or services designed to build on their strengths and meet their needs as described in the Individual Education Plan (IEP).

Access to special education programs and/or services is not limited to students identified by an IPRC. Boards may provide special education programs and/or services to meet students’ special educational needs through an Individual Education Plan even if the student has not been formally identified as exceptional (see section 3.4.2).

The process for identifying a student as exceptional and determining a placement for that student is set out in Ontario Regulation 181/98.

Each school board must establish a Special Education Advisory Committee in accordance with Ontario Regulation 464/97. Each board must also maintain a special education plan in accordance with Ontario Regulation 306.

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3.4.1 Accommodations, modifications and alternative expectations

Students with special education needs should be given every opportunity to reach their full potential. This may mean providing these students with accommodations and/or modifications to the curriculum expectations and/or alternative expectations developed as part of an alternative program/course.

Accommodations are special teaching and assessment strategies, human supports, and/or individualized equipment required to enable a student to learn and to demonstrate learning. The provincial curriculum expectations for the grade are not altered for a student receiving accommodations.

Modifications are changes made to the grade-level curriculum expectations for a subject or course to meet a student’s learning needs. Modifications may include:

  • increasing or decreasing the number and/or complexity of expectations for the regular grade level curriculum expectations
  • applying expectations from a different grade level

At the secondary level, depending on the extent of the modification, the principal will determine whether achievment of the modified expectations makes a student eligible for the course credit. The principal will communicate this decision to the student and their parent(s)/guardian(s). 

Alternative expectations are developed to help students with special education needs acquire knowledge and skills that are not represented in the Ontario Curriculum. Because they are not part of a subject or course outlined in the curriculum, alternative expectations are not eligible for course credit at the secondary level (see section 7.4).

3.4.2 Individual Education Plans

An Individual Education Plan (IEP) identifies the special education programs and/or services specific to the student and outlines accommodations, modifications and/or alternative programs/courses, as well as specific instructional and assessment strategies to help the student achieve the learning expectations. IEPs are updated on a regular basis as students’ strengths and needs change.

An IEP must include:

  • a specific outline of the student’s strengths, learning needs and educational expectations
  • an outline of the special education programs or services the student is to receive
  • a statement of the methods by which the student’s progress will be assessed
  • a transition plan per policy/program memorandum (PPM) No. 156

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3.4.3 Meeting the needs of students with learning disabilities

PPM 8: Identification of and program planning for students with learning disabilities includes the ministry’s definition of learning disability, which must be used by Identification, Placement and Review Committees to identify students with learning disabilities. It also sets out school board responsibilities regarding the identification of, and program planning for, students with learning disabilities. With regard to program planning, this PPM also applies to any other student who demonstrates difficulties in learning and who would benefit from special education programs and/or services that are appropriate for students with learning disabilities, not solely those identified by an Identification, Placement and Review Committee (IPRC).

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3.4.4 Meeting the needs of students with autism spectrum disorders

PPM 140: Incorporating methods of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) into programs for students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD)

Provides direction to school boards to use applied behaviour analysis (ABA) as an effective approach to support students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), as appropriate and in accordance with students’ Individual Educations Plans. PPM 140 directs principals to ensure that relevant school board personnel and community personnel are invited to provide input and participate in the IEP process and that a plan for transition is in place for students with ASD.

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3.4.5 Transition planning for students with special education needs

Ontario Regulation 1 81/98, Identification and Placement of Exceptional Pupils requires school boards to establish transition plans for students identified as exceptional or aged 14 years or older (except students identified solely as gifted). These plans are to help students transition to appropriate postsecondary endeavours, such as work, further education or community living.

PPM 156: Supporting transitions for students with special education needs requires school boards to develop transition plans for every student with an Individual Education Plan (IEP), whether or not they have been identified as exceptional by an Identification, Placement and Review Committee. This includes students identified as exceptional solely on the basis of giftedness. A board may also, at its discretion, develop transition plans for students receiving special education programs or services who do not have an IEP and have not been identified as exceptional. The transition plan is developed as part of the IEP.

The learning needs of the student are considered in conjunction with other factors when developing a transition plan, to determine if the student requires support when making transitions. Students make transitions in a variety of contexts: upon entry to school; between grades; from one program area or subject to another; when moving from school to school or from an outside agency/facility to a school; from elementary to secondary school; and from secondary school to the next appropriate pathway.

Principals are responsible for ensuring the coordination and development of transition plans. There are many resources that may be useful in this area, including the “All About Me” portfolios and Individual Pathways Plans required as part of an education and career/life planning program (see section 2.4).

For students in care, treatment and/or receiving rehabilitation services the Guidelines for Approval and Provision of an Education and Community Partnership Program (ECPP) outlines the requirements for transition planning. For more information about ECPPs, see section 3.6.

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3.5 Provincial and demonstration schools

The Ministry of Education operates provincial schools and demonstration schools to provide education for students who are Deaf, hard of hearing, blind, low vision or Deafblind, as well as those with severe learning disabilities.

Admittance to a provincial school is recommended by a provincial schools admission committee and determined by the superintendent of the Provincial and Demonstration Schools Branch, in accordance with the requirements set out in Ontario Regulation 296, Ontario Schools for the Blind and the Deaf, R.R.O. 1990.

School boards, with parental consent, can apply for support or admission to demonstration schools on behalf of students. The provincial committee on learning disabilities determines whether a student is eligible, in accordance with PPM 89: The residential demonstration schools for students with learning disabilities: general information and details of the referral process.

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3.5.1 Centre Jules-Léger Consortium

The Centre Jules-Léger Consortium (CJLC) established in 1979, operates French-language provincial and demonstration schools. It was operated by the Ministry of Education until August 17, 2020, when its governance was transferred to trustees appointed from among the elected trustees of French-language school boards.

The provincial school, which includes a residential component, serves Francophone students who are deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind, whereas the demonstration school serves Francophone students with severe learning disabilities. The CJLC also offers consultancy services to French-language school boards, teachers and Francophone families who have children who are deaf, blind or deafblind.

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3.6 Education and Community Partnership Programs

Education and Community Partnership Programs (ECPPs) are exclusively for students who cannot attend regular school due to their primary needs for care or treatment or due to a court order.

The authority to conduct ECPPs is granted under subsection 171(1) of the Education Act. The Guidelines for Approval and Provision of an Education and Community Partnership Program (ECPP) provide direction to school boards regarding the approval and delivery of educational programs for students in an ECPP.

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3.7 Student Mental Health

PPM 169: Student Mental Health outlines requirements for school boards and schools to provide culturally responsive, evidence-informed student mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention services that respect students as complex individuals and provide appropriate supports for their diverse needs. PPM 169 also outlines the importance of school boards working within the broader provincial system of care to help provide clear pathways to and from more intensive community and hospital-based mental health services, when needed.

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