Professional Designation "OCELT" Granted to TESL Ontario Accredited Members

TORONTO, ON--(Marketwired - January 31, 2017) - TESL Ontario (Teachers of English as a Second Language of Ontario) is pleased to announce that all TESL Ontario accredited members in good standing have been granted the registered professional designation of Ontario Certified English Language Teacher or OCELT. The designation has been officially registered as a certification trademark with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.

"We are thrilled that the OCELT designation for our accredited members has now been approved," says Renate Tilson, Executive Director of TESL Ontario. "TESL Ontario's Certificate of Accreditation has now become the industry norm in Ontario and our certified teachers are being hired by government-funded programs and private schools in Canada, and by international employers."

The OCELT designation serves to:

• identify qualified language teachers with specialized knowledge and skills in Ontario;
• acknowledge the professionalism, integrity and high quality language instruction of TESL Ontario certified teachers;
• recognize the ongoing professional development of TESL Ontario certified teachers and their commitment to the TESL Ontario Code of Ethics; and
• enhance the respect for the TESL profession.

TESL Ontario started the Standards and Certification Project in 1994 and completed it on March 31, 2001. The mandate of this project was to ensure that the TESL profession in Ontario maintained a high quality of instruction; and that adult ESL teachers were provided with ample professional development opportunities on a regular basis.

In 2016, TESL Ontario began the process of applying for the professional designation OCELT (Ontario Certified English Language Teacher) to enhance the recognition of TESL Ontario accreditation. It was granted in early 2017.

The OCELT designation signifies that TESL Ontario accredited members: have met TESL Ontario certification standards; have distinct knowledge and skills specific to teaching adult ESL; are qualified to teach in both government-funded and private programs in Canada and in international settings; and belong to a community of highly educated, responsible and dedicated professionals who seek to further the best interests of the learners.

TESL Ontario accredited members in good standing are encouraged to use their new OCELT professional designation consistently on business cards; in all forms of signatures; on presentations and research papers; and in all introductions to students, colleagues, employers and audiences.

More information and FAQs can be found in the OCELT Information Guide on the TESL Ontario website.

TESL Ontario, established in 1972, is a non-profit organization serving the needs of teachers of English as a Second Language. It represents more than 4,600 language training professionals working in immigrant serving agencies, school boards, publicly funded sites across Ontario, colleges/universities, elementary/secondary and private language training schools. TESL Ontario's expertise is in teaching, advocacy, accreditation and professional development. The organization is instrumental in influencing the success of many thousands of English language learners throughout the province.

For more information visit www.teslontario.org and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest.

Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2017/1/31/11G128892/Images/OCELTGuide_ImageV2-4a39d756aa95bcc6b629154c3c4e922e.jpg