Procedure 2.1.8 SUPERVISED ALTERNATIVE LEARNING (SAL)
Approved: November 20, 2012
Revised: April 21, 2015
Procedures
Most students continue to be engaged in their learning through prevention and intervention strategies introduced at the class, school and/or board level. These strategies are described in the Checklist of Pre-SAL Procedures (Appendix A).
A few students may require alternative learning opportunities to earn credits and be successful. For these students, SAL should be considered. If the decision is that a student would benefit from SAL the procedures below, as outlined in Appendix B, should be followed.
Procedures Preceding a SAL application (“PRE-SAL”)
Principal
- Ensures that all appropriate alternative options have been considered
- Ensures that, if the student has an IEP, all supports, accommodations, and modifications have been implemented to optimize student learning
- Refers the student to the attendance counsellor and other appropriate support personnel
- Ensures that the parent and student are informed about SAL as an option, and are made aware of:
- The rationale for the recommendation to SAL
- The content of the SALP
- Their right to have input to the plan
Attendance Counsellor
- Receives the referral and follows the board’s procedures
- Reports on the student’s attendance history (elementary and secondary)
- Explores all options to improve attendance
- Considers SAL as a possible solution
Parent
- Ensures that the student attends school regularly until excused
- Meets with school staff to provide input
Student
- Attends school daily until excused
- Meets with school staff to provide input for a re-engagement plan
Student Success Team and Other School Staff
- Meet to discuss the student’s situation
- Generate a re-engagement plan
- Monitor the student’s re-engagement and attendance
- Communicate with the parent
1.0 Step 1: Application for SAL
A parent, a student who has withdrawn from parental control, or a Principal with the support of the parent and student may make a request for SAL. Once a decision is made to pursue SAL for the student, an application package is assembled that includes the following:
- Request for Supervised Alternative Learning (SAL) form is completed (Appendix C)
- Supervised Alternative Learning Plan (SALP) (Appendix D)
- An employer agreement (recommended), if the SALP includes employment (Appendix E)
- Other documentation that is relevant to the SAL Committee’s decision (e.g., attendance records, credit summary, IEP)
A face-to-face meeting will be convened at the school between the student, parent, and School SAL Committee (e.g. Principal, Attendance Counsellor, Student Success teacher and primary contact). The purpose of this meeting is to review the application and develop a SALP to include in the application to the Board SAL Committee. The meeting can occur if the parent does not attend, but it is highly recommended to have both student and parent in attendance.
The SALP includes a suggested primary contact for the student. The role of the primary contact is to monitor the student’s progress, make minor revisions or recommend significant changes to the SALP, and, ideally to act overall as a mentor to the student. Examples of individuals who might serve as a primary contact are a Guidance Counsellor, Attendance Counsellor or Student Success teacher. If the SALP includes credit courses, a certified teacher must be involved in that portion of the SALP.
The Principal has 15 school days from the receipt of a SAL request in which to submit the application package to the Student Success Administrator. If the Principal does not agree with the request, they should submit a written report outlining the reasons for their concerns, as well as a recommendation for a program for that student. The student is legally required to continue attending school until the SAL committee has made its decision.
Roles and Responsibilities
Principal
- Receives the parent’s request for SAL or initiates the request with input from the parent and student
- Participate in the School SAL Committee meeting
- Notifies the parent that the application has been submitted
Attendance Counsellor
- Organizes the School SAL meeting with the help of the Principal to consider the SAL application
- Prepares the SAL application, specifically the SALP in consultation with the student, parent, Guidance Counsellor and Student Success teacher – completed at the School SAL Meeting
- Submits the completed application electronically to the Student Success Administrator for consideration by the Board SAL Committee
Parent
- May initiate a request for a SAL program or provide input to the Principal’s application
- May be requested to complete a form giving consent to the release of information on the student and to submit it to the Principal, unless it has been previously completed or unless it is not required
- Works with the Student Success team and other school staff to develop SALP
- Encouraged to participate in the School SAL Committee meeting
Student
- Provides input to the development of the SALP
- Participate in the School SAL Committee meeting
Community Partners
- Contribute to the development of the SALP by providing documentation (e.g., an employer agreement)
2.0 Step 2: Consideration of the Application
The Board SAL committee is composed of the following individuals:
- Supervisory Officer who is qualified as a teacher
- Three regional board Trustees
- Three Attendance Counsellors
- Student Success Administrator
- Community partner
- Board Lead for Mental Health & Well-Being
The Board SAL committee must hold a meeting to review the application within twenty school days of receiving the SAL application package from the Student Success Administrator. To accommodate this, there will be a standing SAL committee meeting scheduled each month to review new SAL applications and monitor existing SAL students. The SAL committee will review new SAL applications after the school holds the face-to-face School SAL Meeting.
Within five school days of the entire committee reviewing all aspects of the SALP, the Attendance Counsellor provides the parent, the Principal, and the primary contact with written notification of its decision (Appendix F). The Principal and the parent each receive a copy of the SALP, including any modifications made by the committee, as well as contact information for the primary contact and the employer, if a work placement is included.
Roles and Responsibilities
Student Success Administrator
- Ensures all applications, including SALPs, are forwarded electronically to the Board SAL Committee for their consideration
Board SAL Committee
- Should convene monthly SAL meetings when required
- Approves the application for SAL and modifies the SALP if necessary
Attendance Counsellor
- Ensures that all parties are notified of the decision of the committee
Step 3: Implementation and Monitoring
Once approved by the SAL Committee, the SALP is implemented by appropriate board or school staff within the timelines specified by the SAL Committee. Before the student begins participating in an activity at a location that is not a board or school site, the site is visited and is checked with regard to health, safety, accessibility, and other considerations to ensure that it is appropriate. However, if school staff members are familiar with the site, the principal may deem the site to be appropriate and not require a site visit before the student starts the activity. Participation in SAL requires a commitment on the part of the student. Monitoring of the student’s involvement in SAL is carried out by the student’s primary contact and occurs monthly, at a minimum, during the term of the SALP. If the student’s attendance in SAL becomes problematic, the primary contact needs to discuss the issue first with the student and parent to resolve the problem.
Roles and Responsibilities
Principal
- If employment is part of the SALP, sends a letter to the employer stating that the student is excused from attending school for the purposes of participating in SAL
- Ensure that the SALP is implemented in the timelines established by the SAL Committee
- Ensures that staff of the school or the board visit the location where the student will be participating in SAL activities to check that the site is appropriate
- Ensures that, if a student has an IEP, accommodations are reflected in the SALP and provided to the student
Attendance Counsellor
- Implementation of the SALP
- Works directly with the primary contact to monitor attendance portion of the SALP and advises of any issues that may have an impact on the SALP and that may require intervention or other support
Primary Contact
- Contacts the student, at least monthly, to monitor progress, and documents contacts with a “C” code attendance entry in Aspen
- Documents the student’s performance and/or progress via Aspen
- Informs the Principal of any concerns regarding the student’s compliance with the SALP or any issues regarding the SALP
- Assists the student in addressing any issues that become apparent, or refers the student to appropriate Board or community resources
Parent
- Maintains communication with the primary contact, as required
- Supports the student in meeting the requirements of the SALP
- Advises the primary contact of any issues that have an impact on the SALP and that may require consideration
Student
- Participates in the program, as prescribed in the SALP
- Maintains regular communication with the primary contact, as required
- Advises the primary contact of any issues that have an impact on the SALP and that may require consideration
- Builds SAL portfolio if possible, by filing artefacts showing progress and/or achievement
Student Success Team
- Assists in the implementation of the SALP, as required
- Advises the primary contact of any issues that may have an impact on the SALP and that may require intervention or other support
Community Agency or Employer (if applicable)
- Maintains regular communication with the primary contact, as required
- Advises the primary contact of any issues that may have an impact on the SALP and that may require intervention or other support
4.0 Review, Renewal, and Transition Planning
The SALP, which describes the student’s program, must be reviewed at least fifteen school days before the plan expires. It is recommended that the SALP be reviewed at least once per semester and whenever a change is required. After the review, the Principal may recommend that the SAL committee renew the SALP for a maximum of one year. If the student turns eighteen while participating in SAL, they may choose to continue participating in SAL until the SALP expires or is terminated.
All Supervised Alternative Learning Plans expire on or before June 30th of the current school year.
4.1 Review of the Student’s SAL
The primary contact responsible for the student’s SALP provides regular updates to the Student Success Team and the school Principal. The Board SAL committee will convene at least twice a year, once in January and once in June to review all SALP’s. The committee will be informed of the progress made by the student. The Attendance Counsellor will share a statement on the appropriateness of the SALP and the impact of the SALP on the student’s success. The committee will make recommendations on whether or not the student should continue to participate in SAL.
Roles and Responsibilities
SAL Committee
- Convene a meeting towards the end of each semester to review all SALP in the board
Supervisory Officer
- Approves significant modifications to the student’s SALP based on recommendations from the primary contact and SAL committee
Principal
- Reviews the primary contact’s report on the student’s SALP a minimum of fifteen school days before it expires
- Reviews the primary contact’s report in collaboration with the primary contact, parent, student, and other members of the School SAL committee
- Ensures that, if there are significant changes, approval is obtained from the Board SAL Committee and the revised SALP is provided to the student and parent
- Ensures that the review is filed in the OSR
Parent, Student, Student Success Team and Attendance Counsellor
- Participate in the review of the SALP, as required
Primary Contact
- Prepares a report to be shared with the school Principal and School SAL committee in which they review the SALP. The review report contains the following:
- Information on the progress made by the student
- A statement on the appropriateness of the SALP and the impact of the SALP on the student’s success
- Recommendations on whether or not the student should continue to participate in SAL
Community Partners
- Participate in the review of the SALP, as required
4.2 Renewal of SAL for the Student
Roles and Responsibilities
SAL Committee
- Reviews the requests for renewal (Appendix G) at the end of each semester
- Approves or does not approve the request to renew the SAL. This decision must be made within twenty days of the receipt of the Principal’s recommendation. The decision options regarding renewal are as follows:
- Renew SAL for up to one school year (one time only), without the need for another application or revised SALP
- Revise SALP as needed and renew SAL for up to one school year (one time only)
- Not renew SAL and require the student to enter another Board or school program
- Notifies the parent, regarding the committee’s decision
Principal
- Notifies employer of the committee’s decision if a work placement is included in the SALP
Parent and Student
- Participate in the renewal request, as required
Attendance Counsellor
- Submits the request for renewal (Appendix G) to the SAL committee
- Coordinates the renewal request
- Modifies the SALP, if required
4.3 Transition Plan
If the SALP is terminated or not renewed, a transition plan will be developed to support the student’s transition from SAL to their next step (Appendix H). A transition plan, required for every student in SAL, assists the student in making a successful transition from SAL to a regular school, to an alternative education program, or to the next step after secondary school. The transition plan will be filed in the OSR.
Appendices
Appendix A: Checklist of Pre-SAL Procedures
Appendix B: Steps in Supervised Alternative Learning
Appendix D: Supervised Alternative Learning Plan (SALP)
Appendix F: SAL Approval Letter
Appendix H: Transition Plan
References
Ontario Regulation 374/10