Winter Session: January 13 to March 7, 2025

OSCA-ACOSO is pleased to announce that they will continue to offer Part 1, Part 2 and the Specialist in Guidance and Career Education Additional Qualifications courses this summer. Additional sessions will take place in the fall and winter. Advantages of taking the course with OSCA are the instructor is a current guidance teacher-counsellor, a one year OSCA subscription is included ($55 value if currently not active) and a downloaded copy of Ethical Guidelines ($25) is included. As part of the OSCA subscription, participants have the opportunity to attend the fall conference at a member rate, gain access to webinars throughout the year on topics related to guidance and career education, receive the weekly OSCA News to keep up to date with guidance/career topics, and receive the tri-annual OSCA Today, the professional magazine of the association.

Cost: $675 plus HST.

To register: www.osca.ca --> Next AQ course

Registration closes Friday, January 3 at 11:55 pm. This is a FIRM deadline.  

Teaching experience forms (Part 2 and Specialist) are all due no later than Wednesday, January 8.

Please register early to reserve your seat!

Navigating through Grief - Bereaved Families of Ontario
Tuesday, December 17th at 1:00 PM

OSCA/ACOSO is excited to host representatives from Bereaved Families of Ontario to lead us through our next free subscriber webinar! Grief, bereavement, and loss are complex and deeply personal emotions that affect everyone at some point. As Guidance Teacher-Counsellors, we are often called upon to support students in our school communities as they deal with loss in their lives. This webinar is designed to provide valuable insights and strategies whether you're navigating your own grief journey or supporting others through theirs. We hope you will join us for this informative session!

This 60-minute webinar will focus on the following topics:

• Myths and Facts About Grief
  
• Grief and Loss Terms - The Basics
  
• How Grief Manifests (physically, emotionally, socially)
  
• Uniqueness of Grief
  
• Unhelpful and Helpful Things to Say and Do
  
• Tips to Support Yourself and Others
  
• Coping Strategies for Triggers
  
• Ways to Honour Loved Ones
  
• Q & A

Register here!

High school students interested in studying at Ontario’s newest university can apply for 2025
undergraduate programs directly through the University of Niagara Falls Canada website,
unfc.ca.

Are you seeking comprehensive ways to support all students in their pathways planning? myBlueprint is here to help! This education and career/life planning platform aligns with Ontario's inquiry-based learning and Pathways to Success program, offering tools for self-awareness, goal setting, career exploration, and more.

With access to over 18,000 post-secondary programs and 500 occupations, myBlueprint helps students discover opportunities that match their unique interests. The Forwards & Backwards Planning guide supports students at every stage of their journey, whether they are beginning their career exploration, or already have a clear direction.

Students can map out their High School Plan from grades 9-12, and the Pathway Eligibility tool reveals post-secondary options based on their course selections. This empowers informed decision-making for smooth transitions to college, apprenticeship, university, or the workforce.

For students with a specific career in mind, the backwards planning approach allows them to explore Occupations, discover related post-secondary programs, and select the appropriate high school courses. Students can then set goals directly in myBlueprint to ensure they are on track for success!

Families can also create accounts to support their students' career planning, fostering collaborative conversations about future pathways. Ready to expand students' horizons? Our new discussion cards spark meaningful conversations about career planning, ensuring no student is left behind. Click here to discover what Ontario educators are saying about the benefits of using myBlueprint to support students on their career and life planning journey!

Support is just a call or email away: 1-855-901-5505 or support@myblueprint.ca.
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Vous cherchez des moyens complets de soutenir tous les élèves dans la planification de leurs parcours? myBlueprint est là pour vous aider! Cette plateforme de planification de l’éducation, des carrières et de la vie s’aligne sur l’apprentissage par investigation de l’Ontario et le Programme de planification d’apprentissage, de carrière et de vie (Destination réussite), offrant des outils pour la connaissance de soi, la définition d’objectifs, l’exploration de carrières, et bien plus encore. 

Avec l’accès à plus de 18 000 programmes postsecondaires et 500 professions, myBlueprint aide les élèves à découvrir des opportunités correspondant à leurs intérêts uniques. Le Plan vers l'avant et le Plan à l'envers soutiennent les élèves à chaque étape de leur parcours, qu'ils soient au début de leur exploration de carrière ou qu'ils aient déjà une orientation claire.

Les élèves peuvent planifier leur secondaire de la 9e à la 12e année, et l’outil d’admissibilité aux parcours révèle les options postsecondaires en fonction de leurs choix de cours. Cela favorise une prise de décision éclairée pour des transitions harmonieuses vers le collège, un apprentissage, l'université ou le marché du travail. 

Pour les élèves ayant une carrière précise en tête, l’approche de planification à l’envers leur permet d’explorer des professions, de découvrir des programmes postsecondaires connexes et de choisir les cours du secondaire appropriés.  

Les familles peuvent également créer des comptes pour soutenir la planification de carrière de leurs élèves, en encourageant des conversations collaboratives sur les parcours futurs. 

Contactez l'équipe de soutien de myBlueprint: 1-855-901-5505 ou support@myblueprint.ca

 

Recently, we sat down with representatives from Ontario’s colleges to answer 20 frequently asked questions from applicants like you. Read on to find answers to questions you never knew you had!

Applying for college or university can be stressful for students; it’s common for high school students to have uncertainty when selecting a program or school. Fortunately, Ontario’s postsecondary transfer and pathway system allows students to transfer between schools, programs, and courses more easily. However, many students aren’t aware of their transfer and pathways options.

Stories help ground our understanding of ourselves and those around us. Narrative career counselling involves engaging in a person’s story and developing that story to help inform their career decisions and related actions. Here are resources to help practitioners who are interested in applying narrative career counselling.

I recently had a debate with a friend about what it means to be empathetic. He believes empathy is about feeling for an individual’s suffering and understanding what they go through. I think empathy takes more than just listening to alleviate suffering.

Neither perspective is wrong; it just depends on context. As a Registered Psychotherapist who practices career-focused counselling, empathy is complex, especially for clients with multi-faceted career issues.

Last July under idyllic summer conditions, the Canadian National Exhibition received a record number of visitors. The gate-crashing crowds didn’t come to fawn over farm animals or catch an airshow.

Rather, more than 37,000 people – nearly double the number from the year before – showed up for the CNE Job Fair hoping for one of 5,000 positions such as short-order cooks, retail associates, and cashiers.

The Russ Seltzer Award for Contribution to Counsellor Education in Ontario
Mélanie Gamache, Centre des écoles catholiques du Centre-Est

The Marion Axford Award for Elementary Guidance 
Carolina Greco, Toronto Catholic District School Board

The Career/Life Skills Resources Award for Excellence in Career Education
Elizabeth Lessard, CSC MonAvenir

 

 

 

The Phil Hedges Award, Contribution to Guidance and Career Education

East (Ottawa) Region - Sarah Abrams, Ottawa Catholic School Board
Toronto Region - Tina Brochu, Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir
Northwest (Thunder Bay) Region - Tamara McLean, Rainy River District School Board 
Toronto Region - Liliana Mavrogiannis, Toronto Catholic District School Board

The Olive Diefenbaker Award of Merit 
Jennifer Boston, Peel District School Board
Diane Pounall-King, Peel District School Board

Nomination forms for both Student and Guidance Teacher-Counsellor awards for 2025 will be open soon on www.osca.ca.  Educators are strongly encouraged to nominate early in meeting deadlines for consideration! In the meantime, feel free to use the following links to act early!

Anthony DiLena Student Awards
Guidance and Career Education Awards (including the Olive Diefenbaker Award, available for distribution throughout the school year)