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Anyone been to Teacher's College in Ontario?


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I'm thinking about applying to Ontario Teacher's Colleges this upcoming cycle as a backup. I'm obviously going to teach Biology and Chemistry. I know nothing about any of the Ontario schools and I'd like to find out about:

 

-General experience

-Curriculum structure

-Courseload

-Pass/fail or grades?

-Course difficulty

-Classmates

-Free time during school

-Is the school fabulous?

 

Please share your first-hand and second-hand knowledge on these schools:

 

Faculty of Education, Brock University

Faculty of Education, Lakehead University

École des sciences de l'éducation, Université Laurentienne

Faculty of Education, Nipissing University

School of Education, University of Ontario Institute of Technology

Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto

Faculty of Education, University of Ottawa

Faculty of Education, Queen's University

Department of Education, Redeemer College

Faculty of Education, University of Western Ontario

Faculty of Education, University of Windsor

Faculty of Education, York University

Teacher Education Application Service (TEAS)

 

I'm guessing Laurentienne is french-only?

 

My girlfriend went to Queen's. So, the only thing that I know is that Queen's is totally fabulous, easy, full of out-going classmates, pass/fail, and highly recommended.

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Hi there! I actually just completed teacher's college at UWO this year with teachables in Biology and Chemistry (although Queens was a close second!) so I'll try my best to answer all of your questions and give you a general overall impression:

 

1) I absolutely loved my time in teacher's college - super relaxed and such an extreme change from my undergrad experiences at U of T (although I loved it there as well).

 

2) At Western, we had three required courses: social foundations of education, ed psych, and spec ed. In addition, there are full year required courses for each teachable subject. The rest of your free space is dedicated to electives. In the Intermediate/Senior stream we end up with 6.0 full credits and we are assigned percentage grades for course work.

 

3) Most importantly, beyond all in-class work is our three block practica within high schools. At Western, it is structured so that practicum one takes place for three weeks in October, practicum two takes places for three weeks in December, and practicum three takes place for four weeks in March/April. Each associate teacher that you have will write you a report and it is this report that will allow you to interview with schools boards and ultimately find a job within a school - essentially a reference letter. It is definitely a lot of work, but the kids make it all worth it. Practicum is Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory.

 

4) Courses are fairly easy. If you put in a minimum amount of effort you'll be fine. Marks do not count in terms of securing a job, so many people tend to slack off. I personally put a decent amount of effort in and ended up with a 4.0, as did many of my friends there, so there is honestly no need to stress about the academic side of things. We have one or two final exams and a couple of multiple choice midterms. Grades largely come from small assignments/presentations.

 

5) You will by-and-large find the nicest people in teacher's college. Everyone is super friendly, the profs are really approachable as your class sizes are very small (in my teachable courses, my classes were 10-20 people).

 

6) You will have a ton of time outside of classes. I maybe had 10 hours a week of class, if that. There are tons of intramurals, clubs, student council. social commitees, to become involved with. In week one of teacher's college, I was already part of a social committee and we three a coffee house together. Also, I found it great because I was able to continue with my volunteering/work in anticipation of med school apps for the following year.

 

7) YES, the school and program were absolutely fabulous. Such a relaxed atmosphere full of energetic people. I also loved London and had the opportunity to travel outside of the university into more rural locations for some of my placements which I found to be the best experience ever.

 

As a side note, my best friend went to OISE this year and she would concur with all of this information. I know she loved her program as well, although the curriculum is structured a bit different in terms of placement time.

 

You will apply through TEAS (it is through OUAC, much like OMSAS) and I believe the application deadline is around December 1st each year. Generally each school has you answer a few mini questions in regards to teaching and you fill in some other information, but they are far less work than med school apps for sure.

 

Sorry for the lengthy post, but I hope this helps you out. Let me know if you have any other questions and I'll be glad to answer them. Good luck with the applications and remember to get some good teaching-related experience in before December because you will need it to complete your experience profile and some schools (like York and Trent) require reference letters!

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remember to get some good teaching-related experience in before December because you will need it to complete your experience profile and some schools (like York and Trent) require reference letters!

 

How much teaching related experience do you need?

 

I have tons of personal training and first aid instructional experience, but it's been a year now since i've done anything.

 

How much experience do I need to be competitive?

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I think if you have shown several months of commitment to a teaching-related activity you should be fine. Much like meds, you have to be able to write about the experience passionately and indicate how it has prepared you with the skills necessary to be a great teacher. Your experience sounds great! Teacher's college is always looking for people with non-traditional teaching experience (ie, outside of a classroom) and I don't think it matters for the most part when you completed the activities as they don't ask for dates or times. Also, if you have done any tutoring, I would include that if given the chance.

 

Apply to a couple of schools, but I wouldn't go overboard and apply to every single faculty. As a side note, York and Ottawa are probably two of the more difficult schools to get into. I think I applied to: OISE, UWO, Queen's, Ottawa, Windsor, and Trent. But take a look at the websites for the programs and see which one fits you best. Good luck and let me know if I can help with anything!

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  • 11 months later...

Reviving tooty’s old thread....

 

Anyone have suggestions, advice, or experiences they could please share or add about applying to B.Ed. programs in Ontario?

I'm looking mostly at intermediate / senior (high school) programs. Thus far, I've been encouraged to apply to UWO (#1) and UofT (#2).

To be honest, I don't know how B.Ed. programs differ out of province, as I haven't thoroughly researched any. That being said, I’d be open to OOP programs as well.

(Disclaimer: Despite the fact that this is pm101, I know there's people on here that have gone this route or are already teachers).

 

Thank you for your input!

:)

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Something you might want to think about is what school boards the university has a partnership with (ie. where you can do your practicums), and where you want to end up living/teaching.

 

For instance if you want to work in Peel and you do a practicum at a school with the Peel Board, you'll have a reference from that school's principal/department head. The principal/vp of the school you apply to has a higher chance of knowing your reference, which can carry more weight.

 

And while they may not admit it, what teacher's college you go to can definately matter. York and OISE are considered by many to be the best ones in Ontario (my mom works for the Peel Board and there were many discussions about this when my brother was applying for Teacher's College this year).

 

As far as OOP, all I know is that some of the US teacher's colleges are looked down on. Overseas ones (Scotland and Australia are the most common as far as I know) seem to be ok though. Depends again on the board you are wanting to get into.

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Something you might want to think about is what school boards the university has a partnership with (ie. where you can do your practicums), and where you want to end up living/teaching.

 

For instance if you want to work in Peel and you do a practicum at a school with the Peel Board, you'll have a reference from that school's principal/department head. The principal/vp of the school you apply to has a higher chance of knowing your reference, which can carry more weight.

 

And while they may not admit it, what teacher's college you go to can definately matter. York and OISE are considered by many to be the best ones in Ontario (my mom works for the Peel Board and there were many discussions about this when my brother was applying for Teacher's College this year).

 

As far as OOP, all I know is that some of the US teacher's colleges are looked down on. Overseas ones (Scotland and Australia are the most common as far as I know) seem to be ok though. Depends again on the board you are wanting to get into.

 

Thanks for the post! I appreciate it!

 

I've been warned about the importance of choosing your school wisely and investigating where the practicums are, based on where you may want to work in the future.

 

That being said, is it more important to pick a BEd program based on reputation or on what areas I'd like to do my practicums? In my situation, UWO, UofT, and Nippising win practicum-wise; however, I'm not stuck on living/working anywhere in particular.

 

What about BEd programs out of province?

 

Thanks again :)

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I am not entirely sure anymore, but when I went through teacher's college a few years ago I was told that Ontario is the only (or one of few) province where teacher's college is a 1 year program. The others were 2 year programs. I don't know the accuracy of this information anymore but it may be worth looking in to.

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I am not entirely sure anymore, but when I went through teacher's college a few years ago I was told that Ontario is the only (or one of few) province where teacher's college is a 1 year program. The others were 2 year programs. I don't know the accuracy of this information anymore but it may be worth looking in to.

 

Yes, I looked at a couple websites for BEd programs in different provinces. Either way, they seem longer than the standard 8-month Ontario programs.

 

I guess I just know the Ontario system better, but I am open to other provinces :)

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Thanks for the post! I appreciate it!

 

I've been warned about the importance of choosing your school wisely and investigating where the practicums are, based on where you may want to work in the future.

 

That being said, is it more important to pick a BEd program based on reputation or on what areas I'd like to do my practicums? In my situation, UWO, UofT, and Nippising win practicum-wise; however, I'm not stuck on living/working anywhere in particular.

 

What about BEd programs out of province?

 

Thanks again :)

 

Well in terms of UWO, UofT and Nippising, Uoft has the best reputation, then UWO. I think you should probably apply to all of the schools that interest you (for whatever reason) and then wait to see where you get in. In my opinion it would probably be best to take into consideration a combination of reputation and practicums.

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My parents are both high school teachers and I was accepted to Lakehead for the coming year. I was thinking of going if I had not got into med school.

 

No one has addressed the itty bitty problem going on right now: there are no jobs!!!!!!!!!!!!! The declining enrollment is very serious in almost all parts of Ontario. One can get jobs in perhaps Alberta, Sask, native reserves or international but be aware of the huge no job situation before you apply.

 

Go to thecanadianteacher.com. There are some good postings about the seriousness of the no jobs.

 

If you want international or somewhere where there are jobs this is a good year to apply. Teacher's College is the cash cow for universities and they are not willing to lower their number of spots despite the fact that way fewer potential candidates are applying. So almost anyone gets in. York, OISE, UWO and Queens are great but make sure you can do your practicums in the board where you want to teach because of the need for networking even to get on a supply list.

 

Queens has a great international fair drawing great schools from all over the world. It is held in early Feb. and you get priority if you attend Queens for TC.

 

If you have French ignore all the no job warnings.

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Well in terms of UWO, UofT and Nippising, Uoft has the best reputation, then UWO. I think you should probably apply to all of the schools that interest you (for whatever reason) and then wait to see where you get in. In my opinion it would probably be best to take into consideration a combination of reputation and practicums.

 

My feeling as well. I'm not sure how competitive the admissions process is; so, I'll have to apply to find out :)

 

Thanks!

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My parents are both high school teachers and I was accepted to Lakehead for the coming year. I was thinking of going if I had not got into med school.

 

No one has addressed the itty bitty problem going on right now: there are no jobs!!!!!!!!!!!!! The declining enrollment is very serious in almost all parts of Ontario. One can get jobs in perhaps Alberta, Sask, native reserves or international but be aware of the huge no job situation before you apply.

 

Go to thecanadianteacher.com. There are some good postings about the seriousness of the no jobs.

 

If you want international or somewhere where there are jobs this is a good year to apply. Teacher's College is the cash cow for universities and they are not willing to lower their number of spots despite the fact that way fewer potential candidates are applying. So almost anyone gets in. York, OISE, UWO and Queens are great but make sure you can do your practicums in the board where you want to teach because of the need for networking even to get on a supply list.

 

Queens has a great international fair drawing great schools from all over the world. It is held in early Feb. and you get priority if you attend Queens for TC.

 

If you have French ignore all the no job warnings.

 

Congrats on getting into med school and teacher's college this last 'round!

 

Are you sure it's easy to get into to teacher's college? I hear so many complaining about it and having to go to school abroad. I mean, it's not med school applications, but it's still a professional program.

 

Yes, I am well aware of the not-so-positive job situation in Ontario. As such, I plan on planting my applications strategically based on where I'd like to do my practicums and where I have my best networking opportunities. That being said, I'm willing to move for a job as I don't have many reasons to stay in my current location. Plus, I could continue to apply to med school, haha!

 

Are your parents happy with their career choice?

 

Thanks for the link! I don't think I've seen that site before. Most excellent! And, thanks for the post :)

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In my experience, admissions was a breeze compared to medical school. :) The classes were very fun and I enjoyed student teaching a lot.

 

There IS a shortage of jobs if you do not specialize. As stated before, FRENCH is a good thing to have, and so is MATH or SCIENCE. You should also be flexible as to where you want to start your career.

 

Good luck!

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In my experience, admissions was a breeze compared to medical school. :) The classes were very fun and I enjoyed student teaching a lot.

 

There IS a shortage of jobs if you do not specialize. As stated before, FRENCH is a good thing to have, and so is MATH or SCIENCE. You should also be flexible as to where you want to start your career.

 

Good luck!

 

Thanks for the post!

 

I'll have a variety of teaching subject; plus, I'm flexible in terms of work.

 

How did your teaching experience reflect on your med school applications?

 

:)

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Thanks for the post!

 

I'll have a variety of teaching subject; plus, I'm flexible in terms of work.

 

How did your teaching experience reflect on your med school applications?

 

:)

 

I think that meds and teaching are very similar, in my philosophy -- Physicians and teachers give students/patients tools with which to better themselves, such as opportunities through programming and education.

 

I found that during my interviews, I used a lot of experiences from teaching, both in the classroom as part of student teaching and when I taught ESL classes (volunteering). So, I would assume it reflected positively :)

 

Good luck!

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Congrats on getting into med school and teacher's college this last 'round!

 

Are you sure it's easy to get into to teacher's college? I hear so many complaining about it and having to go to school abroad. I mean, it's not med school applications, but it's still a professional program.

 

Yes, I am well aware of the not-so-positive job situation in Ontario. As such, I plan on planting my applications strategically based on where I'd like to do my practicums and where I have my best networking opportunities. That being said, I'm willing to move for a job as I don't have many reasons to stay in my current location. Plus, I could continue to apply to med school, haha!

 

Are your parents happy with their career choice?

 

Thanks for the link! I don't think I've seen that site before. Most excellent! And, thanks for the post :)

 

My parents very much like teaching. But their board, like most in Ontario, had some layoffs this year.

 

As recently as two years ago it was much harder to get into teacher's college but if you go on OUAC you will see that has changed dramatically. Applications are way down and so are the job prospects.

 

Are you interested in international teaching? That will help you while waiting for the demographics to change.

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My parents very much like teaching. But their board, like most in Ontario, had some layoffs this year.

 

As recently as two years ago it was much harder to get into teacher's college but if you go on OUAC you will see that has changed dramatically. Applications are way down and so are the job prospects.

 

Are you interested in international teaching? That will help you while waiting for the demographics to change.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

I'll check out the OUAC site. That other forum was helpful too! But our forum is much better :) I was giggling about the posts relating to people using teaching as an alternative plan to med school, haha! Busted! :o

 

International, remote, rural, Nothern, out West, out East; all of the above sound good to me :) That being said, I'll be able to work in my current field until I get a teaching job, so even a supply position in ON would work.

 

Thanks again for eveyone's help!

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Thanks for the info!

 

I'll check out the OUAC site. That other forum was helpful too! But our forum is much better :) I was giggling about the posts relating to people using teaching as an alternative plan to med school, haha! Busted! :o

 

International, remote, rural, Nothern, out West, out East; all of the above sound good to me :) That being said, I'll be able to work in my current field until I get a teaching job, so even a supply position in ON would work.

 

Thanks again for eveyone's help!

 

I landed an ESL job in China before I got drafted into medical school. Another rural school (30 min from my hometown) really wanted me to teach science in Grade 7/8classrooms... So...

 

And there is always a shortage of GOOD and QUALIFIED supply teachers.

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I landed an ESL job in China before I got drafted into medical school. Another rural school (30 min from my hometown) really wanted me to teach science in Grade 7/8classrooms... So...

 

And there is always a shortage of GOOD and QUALIFIED supply teachers.

 

Thanks, Renin! I'm trying to think positively :)

 

p.s. "drafted" into med school! haha!

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