Prior learning includes the knowledge and skills students have acquired, in both formal and informal ways, outside of Ontario’s secondary school system. The prior learning assessment and recognition (PLAR) process evaluates skills and knowledge against the overall expectations of the Ontario Curriculum.
Students transferring into an Ontario secondary school may have their skills and knowledge evaluated in order to earn credits toward the Ontario Secondary School Diploma. PLAR procedures are carried out under the direction of the school principal, who grants the credits.
The implementation of PLAR is mandatory when assessing prior learning for credits. There is no fee charged to students.
The PLAR process is different for regular day school students as opposed to mature students.
The PLAR process for regular day school students enrolled in secondary schools involves two components:
- PLAR Challenge is the process of assessing students’ prior learning for the purpose of granting a grade 10, 11, or 12 credit from the Ontario Curriculum.
- PLAR Equivalency involves assessing credentials from other jurisdictions.
The Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) challenge process allows students who have acquired knowledge and skills outside an Ontario secondary school to have their skills and knowledge evaluated against the expectations outlined in provincial curriculum policy documents in order to earn credits towards the secondary school diploma. Students may earn up to four credits through the challenge process, with a maximum of two credits in any given discipline. All credits granted through the PLAR process represent the same standards of achievement as granted to students who have taken the course.
Students may not challenge for credit for the following:
- any grade 9 course;
- a course for which a credit has already been granted or for which there is significant overlap with a course for which credit has been granted;
- a course in any subject if a credit has already been granted for a course in that subject at a later grade;
- a course a student has previously taken and failed;
- a transfer course, a locally developed course, or a cooperative education course;
- a course in English as a Second Language (ESL) or English Literacy Development (ELD) if the student has already earned a credit from a course included in the English curriculum policy document;
- a course in French as a Second Language if a student has already earned a credit from a course included in the Français curriculum policy document.
All students who intend to challenge a course in the RRDSB must register for an Orientation Session held by the school by March 1, and attend the session and complete the application form and package by June 1 of the year prior to the challenge.
If it is determined that the student has presented reasonable evidence for success, the challenge may proceed to the next step. Assessment and evaluation will include formal testing (balance between written work and practical demonstration) that will account for 70% of the final mark and a variety of other assessment strategies appropriate for the course that will account for 30% of the final mark.
Contact the Principal or Guidance Department of the school for information about the PLAR challenge process.
Students who are eligible for PLAR equivalency credits are those who transfer to Ontario secondary schools from non-inspected private schools or schools outside Ontario. Equivalency credits are granted for placement only. The principal of the receiving school will, in the process of deciding where the student should be placed, determine, as equitably as possible, the total credit equivalency of the student’s previous learning, and the number of compulsory and optional credits still to be earned. The guiding principle of this process is that all credits must represent the same standards of achievement as credits granted to students who have taken the Ministry approved courses for Ontario.
RRDSB PLAR policies and procedures for day school students follow Policy / Program Memorandum 129 from the Ministry of Education. See PPM 129 and contact your local secondary school principal for more detail.
RRDSB PLAR policies and procedures for mature students follow Policy / Program Memorandum 132 from the Ministry of Education. See PPM 132 and contact your local school principal for more detail.
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