Construction

Overview

The Specialist High Skills Major in Construction (SHSM–Construction) helps students build a foundation of sector-focused knowledge and skills before graduating and entering apprenticeship training, college, university or an entry-level position in the workplace.

This SHSM program has 5 required components: 

• bundle of 10 credits
• certifications and training recognized by the construction sector
• experiential learning and career exploration activities
• reach ahead experiences
• sector-partnered experiences (SPEs)

Find a list of some of the careers that this SHSM can lead to.

Variants of this SHSM

The SHSM–Construction can focus on a specific area (for example, home building, commercial building, sustainability and green building, or architecture and design) by varying the mix of its 4 major credits.

Where local circumstances allow, your school board may offer 1 or more variants of this SHSM.

Bundle of 10 credits

The SHSM–Construction requires students to complete a bundle of 10 Grade 11 and Grade 12 credits, made up of 4 major credits, 4 other required credits and 2 cooperative education (co-op) credits.

These credits are required for all students, regardless of the pathway a student chooses after graduation:

• apprenticeship training
• college
• university
• the workplace

Four major credits

These credits provide construction-specific knowledge and skills.

These 4 credits:

• can be any combination of Grade 11 and Grade 12 credits
• may include up to 3 construction-related co-op credits (these are additional to the 2 required co-op credits in the bundle)

We (the Ministry of Education) maintain an SHSM-approved course list for the construction sector. Contact the SHSM lead at your school board to get the list.

Four other required credits

These are required credits from the Ontario curriculum.

For students in the apprenticeship training, college and university pathways, these 4 credits must include:

• one English credit (a compulsory English credit is required in Grade 11 and Grade 12 to graduate)
• two mathematics credits (1 credit must be in Grade 12)
• one of the following:
  • science credit
  • business studies credit
  • additional major credit
  • additional construction-related co-op credit (in addition to the 2 co-op credits required in the bundle)

For students in the workplace pathway, these 4 credits must include:

• two English credits (a compulsory English credit is required in Grade 11 and 12 to graduate)
• one mathematics credit
• one of the following:
  • science credit
  • business studies credit
  • additional major credit
  • additional construction-related co-op credit (in addition to the 2 co-op credits required in the bundle)

Your school may commit to including a contextualized learning activity (CLA) for the construction sector in each of these 4 credits. If your school offers this, then:

• some of the course expectations for these credits are met through the CLA
• your school decides if the CLA for English is completed in Grade 11 or in Grade 12

Even if your school does not formally commit to including CLAs, it can still offer them in 1 or more of these credits.

Two cooperative education co-op credits

Co-op credits in the construction SHSM provide students with real learning experiences in a construction workplace setting. This lets students refine, extend, apply and practice:

• knowledge and skills they learned in the cooperative education curriculum
• construction-specific knowledge and skills learned through their SHSM program

Certifications and training

Students must complete 5 compulsory and 2 elective certifications and/or training courses/programs that are recognized by the construction sector.

Compulsory certifications and training

Students must complete:

• Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Level C — includes automated external defibrillation (AED)
• Standard First Aid
• Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) — generic, not site-specific, instruction
• working at heights
• Health and safety - basic

These are the proper names of the specific certifications or training courses/programs for this SHSM.

Elective certifications and training

These are names of an area, type or category of training. In these cases, your school board selects the specific certifications or training courses and programs.

Students must complete any 2 of the following electives:

• advanced training in a technique
• advanced training in a technology
• anti-oppression and allyship training
• basic electrical safety
• Canadian Welding Bureau (CWB) – flat
• chainsaw safety
• computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM)
• confined space awareness
• customer service
• elevated work platforms
• energy efficiency training (such as Energy Star, LEED)
• fall protection
• fire safety and fire extinguisher use
• first aid/CPR/AED awareness
• hoisting and rigging
• infection control
• insulated concrete forming
• land surveying basics
• leadership skills
• lockout/tagging
• ozone-depletion prevention
• portfolio development
• powder-actuated tools
• project management
• propane in construction
• scaffold safety
• sector specific software 1
• sector-specific vehicle operation and safety
• specialized skills training program/competition (such as Skills Canada provincial level, WoodLINKS)
• suspended access equipment
• traffic control
• trenching safety

Learn more about certification and training in SHSM programs.

Experiential learning and career exploration activities

Experiential learning and career exploration opportunities relevant to the construction sector might include instances where an SHSM student:

• observes a co-op student one-on-one at a placement in the construction sector (an example of job twinning)
• shadows a skilled tradesperson in the construction sector for a day (an example of job shadowing)
• works with a member of a construction sector professional for 1 or 2 weeks (an example of work experience)
• participates in a local, provincial or national Skills Canada competition
• tours of a municipal planning department
• attends at a construction sector trade show, conference or job fair
• volunteers with a non-profit organization such as Habitat for Humanity

Learn more about SHSM program experiential learning and career exploration opportunities.

Reach ahead experiences

The SHSM-Construction must provide students with 1 or more reach ahead experiences. These are opportunities to take the next steps along their chosen pathway – as shown in the following examples:

• apprenticeship: visiting an approved apprenticeship delivery agent in the construction sector
• college: interviewing a college student enrolled in a construction-specific program
• university: observing a university class in a construction-related program
• workplace: interviewing an employee in the construction sector

Learn more about reach ahead experiences.

Sector-partnered experiences (SPEs)

Students engage with a sector partner to learn about construction and how it connects with ICE (innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship), coding and/or math literacy skills.

Learn more about SPEs in SHSM programs.

Careers in the construction sector

These are examples of careers in the construction sector, sorted by the type of postsecondary education or training the careers usually require.

Information and resources

Partnership opportunities

For local labour market opportunities in construction, please contact your school board’s SHSM lead.

The SHSM model

This SHSM’s requirements are unique and geared to the construction sector. However, the design of all SHSM programs follows a consistent model with 5 required components.

Find more information about the components of an SHSM.

Resources

Checklist for planning and delivering an SPE