What's New?

• School grade configurations will be streamlined from eight to five, which means fewer transitions to new schools for students.
• Some schools may have different grade levels (e.g., K-3, K-6, K-8).
• Students will move schools either at the end of Grade 3, Grade 6 or Grade 8.
• Cohorts will move together in more cases.

What's New?

• Some school boundaries will shift. A school locator that will allow parents/caregivers to identify their designated school will be released to the public at the end of February 2025.
• Schools currently designated as Alternative will transition to community schools.

How Will This Affect My Child’s Education?

• When all neighbourhood children attend the same school, there are more opportunities to interact with peers and form friendships—before, during and after school.
• The closer proximity of the school can lead to increased parental involvement and engagement in school life.
• The school becomes a hub for the neighbourhood, fostering community development and partnership opportunities for sports and other recreation and learning activities.
• More children are able to walk to school or have a shorter commute by bus.

Students and schools will be better integrated into their community.

Image description: A cross-section of a tree trunk with the word "Community" in the outermost ring. The next ring inward features the word "School," and at the very center, the word "Student" is displayed.

What's New?

• Enhanced English (EE): 84% English instruction, 16% French (increased from 12.5% of French in the current model).
• French Immersion (FI): 60% French instruction in Grades 1-6, 50% in Grades 7-8. (English-language instruction in Grade 1 will increase.)

Image description: A tree diagram. The bottom of the trunk, near the roots, symbolizes Kindergarten. The trunk splits into two intertwined sections, representing Enhanced English and French Immersion programs for Grades 1-3. The upper section of the trunk represents Grades 4-8, culminating in a crown of leaves.

The English with Core French Program designated as Alternative and Middle French Immersion will be discontinued, with transition details to follow.

Kindergarten Program remains 50/50 bilingual (no change).

There will continue to be some schools that will offer only French Immersion, and a few that will offer only Enhanced English, where a dual-track option was not feasible. Both programs will adjust the amount of instruction in the languages of English and French, as shown in the chart below, to meet students’ needs.

How Will It Affect My Child’s Education?

Research shows that children who have the option to learn in a French Immersion environment possess significant strengths, including enhanced cognitive skills, improved cultural understanding and increased future opportunities.

Recognizing the many benefits of French Immersion, the program will now be more accessible and provide dedicated literacy time in the English language in Grade 1, by increasing the amount of English instruction offered. As well, the amount of French instruction in the Enhanced English program will increase.

The following chart provides an overview of the English and French instructional minutes in the proposed model, and the change it represents from what is currently in place:

Image Description:

Enhanced English Program (Grades 1-8)

• 84% English (1,260 minutes per week)
• 16% Core French (240 minutes per week)
• Change: Core French increases from 200 to 240 minutes per week

French Immersion Program

Grades 1-6:

• 40% English (Math and English: 600 minutes per week. All other curricula: 900 minutes per week)
• Change: FI Grade 1: English increases from 20% to 40%

Grades 7-8:

• 50% English (Math and English*: 750 minutes per week)
• 50% French (French*: 750 minutes per week)
• No Change

Kindergarten (2 Years)

• 50% English
• 50% French
• No Change

*Including some other curricular areas.

What's New?

• Starting in Grade 1, students can choose either Enhanced English or French Immersion.
• Students can enter the French Immersion program at the beginning of Grades 1, 2 or 3.
• Students in Grades 4 through 8 may continue in their selected program through their remaining elementary years.
• Students in French Immersion can choose to move to Enhanced English at any point in time.

How Will It Affect My Child’s Education?

• The ability to enter French Immersion in Grades 1, 2 and 3 provides more opportunities for all students to benefit from the program.
• This improvement will provide more equitable access, particularly for families new to the city or those facing other barriers.

Students can now enter the French Immersion program in either Grade 1, 2 or 3. The fluid entry point for the primary grades provides greater flexibility of choice for parents and caregivers.

What's New?

English as a Second Language/English Literacy Development (ESL/ELD) Classes

• All 15 ELD classes that currently exist at the junior and intermediate levels will be modernized and remain in place with an increased focus on maximizing integration.

Relevant research has shown that the provision of targeted, intensive support for multilingual learners can accelerate their learning trajectory and facilitate their successful integration into general classrooms.

Specialized Program Classes (SPCs)

• 103 of 142 SPCs that currently exist will remain in place, be modernized and continue to serve students with the most complex learning profiles. This includes:
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder Program
  • Behaviour Intervention Program
  • Deaf/Hard of Hearing Program
  • Developmental Disabilities Program (Including Specialized Schools and Semi-Integrated classes)
  • Dual Support Program
  • General Learning Program - Intermediate
  • Gifted Program - Junior/Intermediate
  • Physical Support Program

How Will It Affect My Child’s Education?

• Roles and responsibilities of classroom teachers and support staff will be continuously review as they related to instruction, intervention and optimizing resources.
• There will be a continued focus on building capacity for staff in trauma informed and high impact teaching practices.
• A shift in priorities will involve moving from assessment for placement to assessment for learning, with a continuation of collaborating, understanding and intervening.

What's New?

The following 39 of 142 SPCs will be gradually phased out, with future students receiving necessary supports in regular classrooms at their neighbourhood schools:

• General Learning Program - Junior (over three-year period)
• Gifted Program - Primary (over three-year period)
• Language Learning Disability Program (over two-year period)
• Learning Disabilities Specialized Intervention Program (over two-year period)
• Primary Special Needs Program (over three-year period)

How Will It Affect My Child’s Education?

• These changes aim to shift services to students, not students to services; to provide early intervention and monitoring to inform programming and keep options open; and to maintain a continuum of inclusion, prioritizing in-class support with withdrawal as needed.
• Students will receive necessary supports from the school-based and central special education teams.
• For students in the Primary Special Needs Program and Junior General Learning Program, phasing out these programs lessens the risk of prematurely making early placement and pathway decisions that inadvertently limit pathway opportunities later on.

Infographic with 8 sections:

Full Day Kindergarten: 50% English and 50% French.

English with Core French: Starts in Grade 1. 200 minutes Core French per week.

Early French Immersion: Starts in Grade 1 (entry point) with 80% French/20% English. Grades 2-6: 60% French/40% English. Grades 7-8: 50% French/50% English.

Middle French Immersion: Starts in Grade 4 (entry point) with 66% French/34% English. Grades 7-8: 50% French/50% English.

Alternative Program: Kindergarten-Grade 6 in 4 schools. Grade 7-8 in 1 school. Tenets shape the program. 200 minutes Core French per week.

Ottawa-Carleton Virtual School: Kindergarten-Grade 8. Offers English with Core French and Early French Immersion (50% French/50% English).

Resources and Supports

Special Education: Support in the regular classroom. 11 types of Specialized Program Classes (SPCs).

English as a Second Language/English Literacy Development: Support in the regular classroom (for ESL and ELD). Semi-congregated classes (for ELD).

Kindergarten: Full-day, two-year program offering 50% instruction in English and 50% instruction in French.

English with Core French: All subjects are taught in English with the exception of Core French learning (200 minutes per week). This program begins in any grade, starting in Grade 1, although students can be welcomed at any grade.

Early French Immersion (EFI): In Grade 1, 80% of instruction is in French and 20% of instruction in English. In Grades 2-6, 60% of instruction in French with 40% of instruction in English. In Grades 7-8, 50% of instruction in French with 50% of instruction in English. This program begins in Grade 1, although students can be welcomed up to Grade 3.

Middle French Immersion (MFI): In Grades 4-6, 66% of instruction in French with 34% of instruction in English. In Grades 7-8, 50% of instruction in French with 50% of instruction in English. This program begins in Grade 4, although students can be welcomed up to Grade 6.

Alternative Program: Offered at 4 schools in Grades 1-6 and at 1 school in Grades 7-8, this program is aligned with student-centered learning and guided by the alternative program tenets.

Ottawa-Carleton Virtual: Students can learn in an English program with 200 minutes of Core French per week or in a French Immersion program with 50% English and 50% French learning. All students across the district are welcome at all grade entry points.

The majority of the District’s students with special education needs are served through programming at their community school in the regular classroom.

The District also runs 143 elementary Specialized Program Classes (SPCs) which accommodate approximately 2,000 students, system-wide. There are 11 types of elementary SPCs that support students with specific exceptionalities and/or learning profiles. While SPCs can be partially integrated, the majority are fully self-contained with limited opportunity for the integration of students.

English as a Second Language (ESL) and/or English Literacy Development (ELD) services and supports are provided to students identified as multilingual learners based on the Ministry's Steps to English Proficiency (STEP) Framework.

Students may receive supports and interventions in a regular classroom (for ESL and ELD) or in a semi-congregated class (for ELD in some instances). The location of the class is dependent on the needs of the learner and the program availability across the District.