As part of its legislated regulatory function, the BC Teachers’ Council (BCTC) is responsible for conducting cyclical reviews of BC’s nine Teacher Education Programs (TEPs). One important aspect of this process is called the Maintenance Review. A Maintenance Review involves a site visit to the TEP from a four-person Program Assessment Team (PAT). A PAT visit will also be required should the BCTC receive a proposal from a post-secondary institution wishing to establish a new TEP. Specific details are outlined under Process A and Process D in the Teacher Education Program Approval and Review Framework. You can read more information about approved BC TEPs and TEP Approval Standards.

The Teacher Education Program Approval and Review Committee (TEPARC) establishes each Program Assessment Team that goes out on a site visit. The training, responsibilities, and criteria of individual PATs is outlined below:

Training

Training will be provided to each PAT prior to a site visit so that they can review procedures and become acquainted with the institution, its programs, and teacher candidates.

Training will take place in-person or by videoconferencing prior to the site visit. The facilitator will be a senior Ministry of Education and Child Care staff member with full knowledge of the TEP and of related procedures and protocols. Prior to a site visit, the TEP will complete a Self-Study, which will be referenced in this training.

Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the PAT include the following:

  • Selecting a Chair by consensus
  • Arranging for travel to/from the TEP (site visit should take 2-3 days)
  • Interviewing internal and external stakeholders as appropriate
  • Drafting a report of the findings with recommendation regarding approval
  • Sending the draft report to the TEP for review
  • Finalizing the report and gathering any response from the TEP on the report
  • Sharing the report including TEP response with the institution and BCTC
  • Clarifying any questions from BCTC
  • Notifying the TEP when the report will be presented to BCTC for decisionoAt the BCTC meeting:The PAT Chair or designate presents the final report to the BCTCThe TEP is provided the opportunity to address the BCTCThe BCTC reviews the final PAT report in-private for decision
  • Ministry of Education and Child Care staff will facilitate all document exchange.

Criteria for Educator PAT

The BCTC requires the educators from the field to have meaningful experience with teacher education programs. For inclusion in the Pool, candidates must:

  • Hold a valid Certificate of Qualification
  • Have extensive knowledge and recent experience with teacher candidates’ summative practica, either as a classroom sponsor/mentor teacher or in a supervisory role for a TEP. Supervision occurred within the last 5 years with a minimum of 2 experiences and involved mentoring, observing, and evaluating the Teacher Candidate (or equivalent experience)
  • Have some experience with committee work
  • Not be a current employee of the Ministry of Education and Child Care or the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills (including secondments
  • Not be elected to or a declared candidate for public office in the provincial government or a board of education
  • Agree to due diligence screening as required
  • Be willing and available to take training as provided

If you meet the criteria and are interested, please submit your name and your teaching certificate number to Surrey Teachers’ Association (sta@surreyteachers.org) and we will draw using a lottery system.

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