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Policies, Regulations Forms and Bylaws

1160-30 | Equivalency for Credit Grade 11 and 12

Date Approved: June 17 1997
Date Reviewed/Amended: July 19 2017

Equivalency is the process of granting credit for a Grade 10, 11 or 12 Ministry developed or Board authorized course offered in the School District.

A.  Regulation

  1. Students registered at a secondary school in the School District, including home schooled students, are entitled to apply for an equivalency review of their credentials received from other educational jurisdictions.
  2. Equivalency credit will be available only for Grade 10, 11 and 12 courses.
  3. To qualify for an equivalency review, students must provide documentation to prove they have successfully completed a course.
  4. The School District will follow determinations about equivalency listed by the Ministry of Educationin the Handbook of Procedures for the Graduation Program or in the online Course Registry.
  5. Full equivalency credit will only be granted for credentials from other educational jurisdictions and institutions outside the regular school system which match at least 80% of the prescribed learning outcomes for Ministry developed or Board authorized courses.
  6. Partial equivalency may be granted for credentials which meet less than 80% of the prescribed learning outcomes of a Ministry developed or Board authorized course.
  7. There is no limit to the number of credits a student may be awarded through the equivalency process.
  8. Course credits which are received through equivalency will normally be assigned a letter grade and percentage, for transcript and reporting purposes. If the student's documents show only a letter grade or level, schools may choose to assign a percentage, based on the mid-point of the matching British Columbia letter grade range.
  9. "Transfer Standing" may be used if it is not possible to determine a letter grade and a percentage from the documentation.
  10. The principal will be responsible for implementing procedures for determining equivalency.
  11. If a student requests an Equivalency Review for a provincial course with credentials not listed in the Table of Equivalencies, the student must follow Prince Rupert School District No. 52 procedures for establishing equivalency.

B.  Ministry Recognized Equivalency

  1. In order to be eligible for an Equivalency Review students must provide a credential, document, diploma or certificate stating what course was completed and giving an evaluation of the student's performance, translated into English if necessary.
  2. After the student's credential is verified, provincial equivalency will be granted and credit value will be assigned in accordance with:
    • Selection and Challenge of Learning Resources (B.C. Ministry of Education, 1991).
    • Secondary Education in Canada: A Student Transfer Guide (Council of Ministers of Education of Canada, 1991).
    • The International Guide to Qualifications in Education (The National Academic Recognition Information Centre for the United Kingdom, Mansell Publishing Ltd.).
  3. The school counsellor, in consultation with the principal, is responsible for assigning a letter grade and percentage, or a transfer standing, to the learning.

C.  Procedures for Establishing Equivalency

  1. If the credential is not listed in the list of resources under C.2 then the following procedure will be followed:
    • The student will fill in an "Application for Equivalency" form.
    • The student will provide a credential, document, diploma or certificate stating what course was completed, an evaluation of the student's performance, and a copy of the course syllabus describing learning outcomes, translated into English if necessary.
    • The school counsellor, in consultation with the principal, will decide whether or not there is a match of at least 80% of the learning outcomes between the syllabus and the course for which full or partial equivalency is being sought.
    • The principal will contact the Director of Instruction or Assistant Superintendent, who will convene a District Review Panel consisting of at least one principal, one counsellor and one subject specialist to determine the credibility of the institution and the qualifications of the instructor, and to evaluate the criteria used to assess and evaluate student performance. Consultation with community resource people may need to occur.
    • The District Review Panel will recommend to the Superintendent of Schools whether or not equivalency should be granted and what credit value should be assigned.
    • Once equivalency is granted, this information should be communicated to schools under the title "School District 52's Table of Equivalencies".
    • The school counsellor, in consultation with the principal, is responsible for assigning a letter grade and a percentage, or a transfer standing, to the learning.
  2. Schools are responsible for establishing reasonable timelines for students to apply for equivalency.
  3. Schools are responsible for ensuring this Regulation and procedures are communicated to students and parents.
  4. If equivalency is not granted, students can apply to challenge the course.

REFERENCES:

Ministry Policy - Earning Credit through Equivalency, Challenge, External Credentials, Post Secondary Credit and Independent Directed Studies

1160-20 – Challenge Regulation

REFERENCES
1160-20 - - Challenge