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Teachers’ Provisional Licenses About To Expire
posted (February 3, 2016)

While all those initiatives and policies among many others are major improvements, there is one area that has been a concern for many years and that's teacher licensing. That was at the top of today's agenda. Although there has been a steady increase of teacher training over the years, many teachers are still not licensed to teach but are still in the classrooms. Well, that is going to change. Those teachers without a full license risk losing their jobs. Minister Faber reminded those teachers of the Education Training Act.

Hon. Patrick Faber - Minister of Education

"Section 29:7 said at a teacher in possession of a license other than a full licenses shall not be eligible for temporary employment on probation as a prerequisite for appointment but shall be eligible for temporary employment for a period not exceeding 5 calendar years to allow the teacher to acquire the necessary qualifications for a full license in accordance to this act and rules made under this act. Section 29:9 said a teacher who fails to acquire the necessary qualifications for the full license within the period prescribed in this section shall have his services terminated and that teacher shall not be eligible for further employment at any school or institution unless or until he acquires at his own expense the necessary qualifications for a full license. So today we are publicly informing that begun really over 15 years ago with the passage of the education rules of 2000; we're finally followed up with the memorandum issued by the chairperson of the TSE in 2011 as it relates to the requirements for being eligible for continued employment if you hold a provisional license to teach. The provisional license gives a person 5 years in which to acquire the necessary qualifications for a full license and failure to do so within the allotted time should have rendered holders of such licenses ineligible for continued employment."

So as you heard the Ministry is finally putting its foot down on these regulations. We say finally because this Teachers Act was finalized in the year 2000– that's 16 years ago and the Ministry is saying that teachers with a provisional license had more than enough time to acquire training and the proper qualifications to get a full license. But, Faber says they do have a measure in place where some teachers will be able to keep their jobs – that comes in the form of something called a special permit.

Hon. Patrick Faber - Minister of Education

"Those who have a provisional license and that license will expire in the school year 2016-2017. So in effect if you hold a license that will expire up to June of 2017, a provisional license and you have not met the requirement for a full license then we are in effect carving out a special permit for those teachers who meet the requirement for that permit. These are the criteria, first the applicants must be an in-service teacher at either the early childhood, primary or secondary level. Secondly the applicant must possess a provisionary license that was issued on or before June 30th, 2012. Why that 2012 because that takes us to June 2017 for it expiration which is the end of the school year that we are targeting."

So as you heard those who are in service teachers either at the early childhood, pre-primary, primary and secondary level and those who have a provisional license that was issued on or before June 30 th 2012 are eligible for a special permit. There are other considerations such as for those who have completed 70% or more of their training or education, those who did not have access to training, those who were not granted study leave and those who will retire in or before 2018. This special license is valid for only 3 years. Those who fit the criteria and want to apply for the special permit can find a copy of the application at all District Education offices or on the Ministry of EDUCATION website. Applications will be received starting today to March 15 th , 2016.

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