Kootenay Lake School District 8 (SD8) will not be changing its teaching certificate requirements for newly hired teachers on call (TTOCs), unlike Rocky Mountain School District 6 (SD6).
SD6 announced this week that it will be dropping the teaching certificate requirements for newly hired TTOCs to help address a TTOC shortage in the school district.
“The school district is facing difficulty in recruiting and retaining teachers who would be willing to teach on call at a level that would fill all of the absences we have in our organization,” said Steve Wyer, acting superintendent for SD6.
“When we don’t have a teacher available on call who can fill an absence, we have to pull services and supports from other areas. That impacts the district’s overall operations in a negative way.”
According to SD6 officials, the substitute teacher shortage is felt most heavily in the Windermere school zone.
Wyer said it was a difficult but necessary decision.
“It’s at the point where we want to take this unfortunate step because we always want certified teachers in front of students, but I think in the end, this is a step that will allow for better continuity for students,” explained Wyer.
SD6 is not the only school district in the province to enact this policy.
Prince George’s School District 57 recently reported that nearly 1 in 5 of its teachers are not certified.
However, when Vista Radio reached out to Kootenay Lake School District 8, officials said SD8 is not experiencing the same issues.
“No TTOCs are being hired without teaching certificates in SD8. All teachers here are required to hold a valid teaching certificate,” said SD8 in an email.
While TTOCs may not require a teaching certificate, applicants will still need some qualifications.
“At this point, you would need a bachelor’s degree that would qualify in a teaching area,” said Wyer.
Applicants will also need to pass a criminal record check and get a letter of permission from the Teacher Regulation Branch.
SD6 began advertising for non-certified TTOC positions on Tuesday.
