The Additional Qualification Dance Part 1 Course is an introduction to the pedagogical and practical applications of dance in elementary and secondary schools as both a distinct discipline and teaching methodology. Active and experiential sessions provide candidates with an opportunity to develop skills and confidence in the use of dance across the curriculum. Through the lens of equity and inclusivity, Dance Part 1 focuses on differentiated instructional design and effective lesson planning and implementation within the classroom context. Candidates have the opportunity to become familiar with theoretical foundations, pedagogical frameworks, teaching/learning strategies and practices available to assist with program planning, development, implementation, assessment and evaluation.

Prerequisites

• An undergraduate degree acceptable to the Ontario College of Teachers
• Be a member in good standing with the OCT

Documents Required

• NONE

The Additional Qualification Dance Part 2 Course explores the theoretical and practical applications of teaching dance in both elementary and secondary programs. Building upon the concepts and skills developed in Dance Part 1, candidates deepen their practice through an active exploration of dance education, with an emphasis on inquiry, advocacy, curriculum planning and effective unit design explored through diverse forms of dance expression. Within the context of equity and culturally relevant practices, candidates have the opportunity to critically examine a range of learning materials, pedagogical frameworks and teaching/learning strategies available to assist with program planning, development, implementation, assessment and evaluation.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 1 completed
• Minimum ONE year of certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming required teaching experience

The Additional Qualification Course: Dance Part 3 Specialist employs a critical, pedagogical lens to explore in a holistic and integrated manner theoretical and practical applications of teaching dance in both elementary and secondary programs. Building upon the concepts and skills developed in Dance Part 2, candidates examine instructional design and practices, assessment and evaluation, the learning environment, research and ethical considerations related to teaching and learning of dance across the divisions.

Within the context of equity and culturally relevant practices, candidates have the opportunity to critically examine a range of learning theories and considerations for program planning, development and implementation. Through these explorations, candidates strengthen professional efficacy by gaining in-depth knowledge, refining professional judgment, and generating new knowledge for practice. The underlying purpose of the Additional Qualification course Dance Part 3 Specialist is the development of capacity for curriculum leadership in candidates.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 2 completed
• Minimum TWO years certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification including ONE year in Dance

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming teaching experience

The Dramatic Arts Part 1 Additional Qualification Course develops candidates’ theoretical and practical knowledge and skills for classroom use through an introduction to the multiple perspectives of key drama theorists and scholars embedding in practical course components. Through experiential learning focused on a range of instructional design and assessment practices, candidates develop their professional practice as they explore their individual understanding of drama education as both a discrete arts discipline and an integrative methodology.

All learning is situated within a context of social justice, inclusion, and culturally relevant pedagogy. Focused practice in lesson planning, design, and implementation engages candidates as both learners and teachers in recurrent cycles of inquiry, action, and reflection. Through such processes, candidates gain deepen knowledge of the Dramatic Arts subject area, develop professional judgment, and generate new knowledge for practice.

Prerequisites

• An undergraduate degree acceptable to the Ontario College of Teachers
• Be a member in good standing with the OCT

Documents Required

• NONE

The Dramatic Arts Part 2 Additional Qualification Course extends the theoretical and practical knowledge and skills addressed in Part 1 by reviewing the multiple perspectives of key drama theorists and scholars and embedding these in practical course components. Through experiential learning focused on a range of instructional design and assessment practices, candidates refine their professional practice and, thus, increase individual understanding of drama education as both a discrete arts discipline and an integrative methodology.

All learning in Part 2 is situated within a context of social justice, inclusion, and culturally relevant pedagogy. For example, building upon earlier lesson-planning practice, candidates design a drama-program study unit by engaging both as learners and as teachers through participation and reflection from both perspectives; and, through collaborative creation processes, they learn in, through, and about Documentary Theatre and Children’s Theatre by engaging in recurrent cycles of inquiry, action, and reflection. Through such processes, candidates gain deeper knowledge of the Dramatic Arts subject area, refine professional judgment, and generate new knowledge for practice.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 1 completed
• Minimum ONE year of certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming required teaching experience

The Dramatic Arts Specialist Additional Qualification Course builds on the theoretical and practical learning of Dramatic Arts Part 1 and Part 2 while focusing specifically on leadership theory and approaches related to drama education. Candidates acquire knowledge and skills for initiating and providing leadership–informal and formal–within the school and the larger community. Thus, the course program calls upon candidates to generate ideas and initiate activities that promote and nurture leadership within and beyond the group.

Dramatic Arts Specialist candidates employ a critical pedagogical lens to theoretical foundations and learning theories related to drama education by engaging in increasingly complex and experiential creative collaborations. At the same time, they refine instructional design and assessment through critical inquiry, dialogue, and professional collaboration, always through learning situated within a context of social justice, inclusion, and culturally relevant pedagogy and through authentic connections to theatre artists, theorists, and practices. Through recurrent cycles of inquiry, action, and reflection, candidates consolidate their identities as innovative leaders-practitioners in the field of drama education.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 2 completed
• Minimum TWO years certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification including ONE year in Dramatic Arts

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming teaching experience

The Additional Qualification Course: Honour Specialist Dance employs a critical, pedagogical lens to explore in a holistic and integrated manner the theoretical foundations, learning theory, program planning, and development and implementation of dance in an educational context. Through the lens of leadership, candidates explore and consider Instructional design and practices, assessment and evaluation, the learning environment, research, and ethical teaching practice for dance. Through these explorations, candidates strengthen professional efficacy by gaining in-depth knowledge, refining professional judgment, and generating new knowledge for practice. The underlying purpose of the course is to develop the candidates’ capacity for curriculum leadership in candidates.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• FOUR-year (20 full courses) academic undergraduate degree, (excluding education courses)
• NINE full courses (non-education) in the subject of the Honour Specialist (Dance), with a minimum B average
• Minimum TWO years certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification including at least ONE year in Dance

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming teaching experience
• Official transcript(s) sent directly to the Professional Learning Office from the granting institution before course start date

The Additional Qualification Course: Honour Specialist Dramatic Arts employs a critical, pedagogical lens to explore in a holistic and integrated manner theoretical foundations, learning theory, program planning, development and implementation, instructional design and practices, assessment and evaluation, the learning environment, research and ethical considerations related to teaching and learning across the divisions. Through these explorations, candidates strengthen professional efficacy by gaining in-depth knowledge, refining professional judgment and generating new knowledge for practice.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• FOUR-year (20 full courses) academic undergraduate degree, (excluding education courses)
• NINE full courses (non-education) in the subject of the Honour Specialist (Dramatic Arts), with a minimum B average
• Minimum TWO years certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification including at least ONE year in Dramatic Arts

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming teaching experience
• Official transcript(s) sent directly to the Professional Learning Office from the granting institution before course start date

This Visual Arts Part 1 AQ Course provides candidates with a theoretical and practical introduction to the teaching of visual arts at the elementary and secondary levels. The course focuses on lesson planning, sequential lesson development, and classroom implementation within a context of culturally relevant pedagogy.

Through exploration of the elements and principles of design using a variety of media, candidates connect professional practice to the developmental stages of students’ art as they learn to use a variety of authentic assessment strategies and practical evaluation instruments. The course also includes art history and appreciation, aesthetics and criticism. Hands-on workshops expand candidates’ understanding and skill in the use of visual arts techniques, thus increasing confidence and ability to deliver appropriate, challenging studio activities to meet curriculum policies and standards and to address attendant Issues of safety and liability.

Prerequisites

• An undergraduate degree acceptable to the Ontario College of Teachers
• Be a member in good standing with the OCT

Documents Required

• NONE

The Visual Arts Part 2 AQ Course extends candidates’ exploration of theoretical and practical ideas related to teaching at the elementary and secondary levels. It focuses on the creation of study-unit planning in drawing, painting, mixed media, ceramics, sculpture, photography and digital media within a context of social justice and culturally relevant pedagogy.

Through exploration of the elements and principles of design and post-modern principles of possibility using a variety of media, candidates connect professional practice to the developmental stages of students’ art and learn to use a variety of authentic assessment strategies. Candidates also learn through art appreciation, history, aesthetics, and criticism, which are embedded in the course curriculum. Hands-on workshops expand understanding and skill with visual-arts techniques and experiences, thus increasing candidates’ confidence and ability to deliver appropriate, challenging studio activities to meet curriculum policies and standards while addressing Issues of safety and liability.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 1 completed
• Minimum ONE year of certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming required teaching experience

The Visual Arts Part 3/Specialist AQ Course enhances professional leadership practice and the collective integration of knowledge and skills through critical reflection and inquiry. Candidates explore topics and issues of particular relevance to the context in which they work, focusing on change and innovation in Visual Arts practice.

Through a critical, pedagogical lens, candidates explore in a holistic and integrated manner the theoretical foundations of visual arts, learners’ development and the learning environment, program planning and implementation, instructional practices, assessment and evaluation. Critical to course implementation is the modeling of a positive learning environment reflecting care, diversity, and equity that supports candidates’ ongoing learning and enhancement of professional knowledge and instructional leadership.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 2 completed
• Minimum TWO years certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification including ONE year in Visual Arts

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming teaching experience

The Vocal Music P/J Part I AQ Course equips and enables candidates to explore ways of incorporating music into all areas of the Primary/Junior curriculum. Through examination of the renewed Ontario Arts Curriculum and music’s big ideas, candidates learn ways to encourage their own students to be creative and critical thinkers who can use and enjoy using movement, voice, and instruments to express thoughts and feelings.

Course activities introduce and support candidates’ practical use of the recorder, Orff instruments, percussion, and ukulele in the music classroom. Theoretical and pedagogical aspects of the course equip candidates to design a music program that addresses and encompasses the Ethical Standards and Standards of Practice for the Teaching Profession and to implement instructional and assessment practices that meet the needs of students in relation to relevant curriculum policies and expectations. The course also supports candidates as they identify and develop ways to create positive learning environments to encourage students’ well being.

Prerequisites

• An undergraduate degree acceptable to the Ontario College of Teachers
• Be a member in good standing with the OCT

Documents Required

• NONE

The Vocal Music P/J Part 2 AQ Course extends candidates’ exploration of ways to incorporate music into all areas of the Primary/Junior curriculum. In addition, candidates deepen their examination of the renewed Arts Curriculum as well as music’s big ideas, doing so to increase their knowledge and capacity to encourage students’ creative and critical thinking and use of movement, voice, and instruments for expressing thoughts and feelings.

Course activities support candidates as they develop/refine their ability to use recorder, Orff instruments, percussion, and ukulele in the music classroom; advance understanding of theoretical and pedagogical aspects of music education to encompasses and reflect the Ethical Standards and Standards of Practice for the Teaching Profession; expand their repertoire for implementing instructional and assessment practices to meet the needs of students through the Ontario Education Curriculum, Elementary Division; and, explore increasingly innovative ways to create and nurture positive learning environments and integrated learning opportunities.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 1 completed
• Minimum ONE year of certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming required teaching experience

The Vocal Music P/J Specialist AQ Course extends and refines candidates’ exploration of ways to incorporate music into all areas of the Primary/Junior curriculum and, at the same time, to develop leadership competence for building and nurturing a music community. Candidates closely examine the renewed Ontario Arts Curriculum and music’s big ideas to acquire knowledge and skills for encouraging and nurturing both students’ and colleagues’ creative and critical thinking as well as use of movement, voice, and instruments for expressing thoughts and feelings.

Through course activities, candidates increase their grasp of music education’s theoretical foundations, program planning, Instructional design and practice, and assessment and evaluation. They also explore varied approaches to leadership for establishing and maintaining positive learning and teaching environments. Opportunities for exercising authentic leadership build candidates’ individual capacity and ability to carry out and share research on effective practice, consider ethical issues related to the role of the teacher-leader, and to make impactful decisions with students’ and colleagues’ well being always in mind.

Prerequisites

• Be a member in good standing with the OCT
• Part 2 completed
• Minimum TWO years certified teaching experience by the first day of the course, subsequent to certification including ONE year in Vocal Music

Documents Required

• Signed Supervisory Officer's Form by course end date confirming required teaching experience