Background

Over the past year, the Nova Scotia Department of Education has researched the benefits and potential of developing an external credentialing policy for high-school students in the province.

By recognizing credentials gained outside of school for high school credit, the policy will acknowledge the value of student learning outside the public school system and provide students with a new option for enhancing their high school transcripts.

The Department of Education acknowledges that learning opportunities come in many forms for high school students.

These include courses offered through the provincial Public School Program and avenues for recognizing other learning experiences through provincial Independent Study and Challenge for Credit policies.

In adopting an external credentialing policy Nova Scotia, like many other provinces in Canada (see Figure 1), will also be able to recognize the contribution that a range of high quality courses and programs offered outside of the public school system make to students' learning experiences.

Figure 1 - Provincial External Credentialing Policies
Province	Policy?	Courses and Programs	Number of Credits
British Columbia	Yes	Languages, Sports, Officiating, Coaching, Industrial and Occupational Courses, Youth Development Courses.	Unlimited
Alberta	Yes	Private Music Study, Green Certificate Program, Special Projects Credits, and Registered Apprenticeship Progams.	10 of (80 mandatory and 20 elective credits required for graduation)
Saskatchewan	Yes	Special Project Credit, External Music Programs, and Cadet Training.	1 for special projects and cadet training. 3 for external music programs.
Manitoba	Yes	Student-Initiated Projects and Credit for Community Service.	1
Ontario	Yes	Royal Conservatory of Music Programs.	1
New Brunswick	No	n/a
Prince Edward Island	No	n/a
Newfoundland and Labrador	Yes	Cadet Training, Royal Conservatory of Music.	4

Credits earned through approved external providers are not meant to replace learning opportunities in Nova Scotia’s high schools. As such, the Department of Education has defined clear parameters for possible courses and programs, ensuring that they do not duplicate or impact funding for courses that are part of the province’s Public School Program.

Based on research into similar policies in other Canadian jurisdictions, discussions with an advisory group of educators and community program providers, and feedback from Provincial Program Directors and Coordinators the Department of Education created a Draft External Credentialing Policy for consultation with education partners and community stakeholders in the province.

Outcomes of the consultations, which are scheduled to take place between November 2007 and February 2008, will be considered by the Department of Education as they develop a final version of the policy for possible implementation in the 2008-2009 school year.