March 12, 1998

To: Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee

From: Commissioner, Community and Neighbourhood Services

Subject: General Education Development (G.E.D.) Preparation Courses

Purpose:

This report responds to Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee=s request to examine potential private sector funding of G.E.D. preparation courses.

Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

There are no immediate direct financial implications.

Recommendations:

AIt is recommended that this report be received for information.@

Background:

At the February 12, 1998 meeting of the Community and Neighbourhood Services Committee, Dr. Dale Shuttleworth, Executive Director of the Training Renewal Foundation, appeared before the Committee to seek funding through purchase of service under Ontario Works (O.W.) for the Foundation=s General Education Development (G.E.D.) preparation course.

The G.E.D. preparation course, offered via the Training Renewal Foundation, provides 60 hours of intensive work over two weeks, after which students take a certification test delivered through the Ministry of Education and Training=s (M.E.T.) Independent Learning Centre (I.L.C.). Candidates who successfully pass the test receive their Grade 12 equivalency certificate.

Until recently, the Foundation worked in partnership with the Metropolitan Separate School Board to provide the preparation course. Course costs, approximately $500.00 per person, were subsidized by the Board for social assistance recipients. However, as a result of a recent M.E.T. policy decision, funding for the course ceased to be available through the education system, effective December 1997. The Board subsequently ended its partnership with the Foundation. Dr. Shuttleworth was advised that funding for the G.E.D. preparation course could be obtained under the O.W. program and thus approached the City of Toronto to seek funding through O.W.

In response to Dr. Shuttleworth=s presentation, the Committee requested the Commissioner investigate programs similar to G.E.D. preparation courses offered in the private sector, including information regarding:

(a) what, if any, government funding is received; and

(b) what funding is available for similar programs.

The Social Services Division surveyed a range of G.E.D. preparation course providers, in both the public and private sectors. The M.E.T., along with the I.L.C., adult education co-ordinators and course providers were contacted.

This report summarizes the findings from the Division=s survey, and then outlines the Division=s position concerning the funding of G.E.D. through O.W. Study findings are provided in the Appendix 1.

Discussion:

I. What is General Educational Development (G.E.D.):

G.E.D. is an international testing program for adults who have been unable to complete high school. The G.E.D. tests, administered by the I.L.C., measure knowledge and skills that are usually acquired during a regular high school program of study.

G.E.D. Preparation Courses:

To provide candidates with the necessary background to successfully complete the test, preparation courses have been developed by several organizations.

Normally, there are two parts to a preparation course: assessment and the course itself. In the assessment phase, candidates who lack adequate facilities in mathematics and English are screened out, as they may likely require conventional upgrading via adult education. Individuals who are determined to have high competencies proceed through a program in the core high school curriculum areas of writing skills, social studies, science, literature and the arts, and mathematics. The courses include test taking strategies and techniques, and practice tests in each subject area.

Courses are offered by a variety of private organizations, as well as boards of education. Fees for an assessment range from no cost to $75.00. Course fees range depending upon the amount of hours

in a course, from $64.00, to $300.00, to $449.00. Students are normally required to purchase a textbook used in the course, at an additional cost of $20.00.

Funding:

Council specifically asked the Division to investigate funding sources for G.E.D. preparation courses. The primary private sector provider of G.E.D., G.E.D. Achievement, derives their funding through user fees. Boards of education who provide the preparation course are also funded through user fees. Currently, none receive grants or other forms of support from governments at any level to cover G.E.D. preparation course costs. Based on the Division=s survey, it appears that the substantial majority of individuals who take preparation courses cover the fees themselves. Even in cases where individuals are employed by private sector firms, it does not appear that firms subsidize the costs of the courses.

Course Users:

Course providers indicate that the average candidate is an individual in their thirties, with an average yearly income of mid-$20,000 to $30,000, and who, for personal satisfaction, has decided to obtain a high school diploma. As per G.E.D. course providers, very few course users are social assistance recipients. One provider indicated that the figure may be as low as 1 per cent. of all course takers.

Course providers also note that some users feel that obtaining a G.E.D. equivalency will assist them to continue their education at college or university. However, a Grade 12 diploma is not always a pre-requisite for college admission. Mature students, defined as nineteen years of age or older, can apply to college without a Grade 12 or equivalency diploma. Applicants do require an academic credit in Grade 12 English, and in some cases an academic credit in mathematics, depending on program pre-requisites. Admissions testing for mature applicants is also used in order to determine whether applicants possess the skills and aptitude necessary to succeed in the selected program.

When assessing a mature student applicant (which universities designate as someone twenty-one years of age or older) who does not meet the minimum entrance requirements, universities look for evidence that the individual will succeed at university level studies. Applicants must apply with six OAC=s, and enrolling in pre-university preparation courses is also suggested.

II. Mainstream Access to Obtaining the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (O.S.S.D.):

It should be noted that the G.E.D. preparation course is an alternative, in certain cases, to the mainstream education system. Adult learning co-ordinators, and G.E.D. course preparation providers indicate that the G.E.D. is a tool most helpful for high functioning students, who demonstrate strong Grade 11 English and mathematics competencies, and are directly and adversely affected by the lack of Grade 12 equivalency.

In fact, mature students can earn credits toward a high school diploma in a variety of ways, including courses offered by the I.L.C., independent studies, prior learning assessment (PLA), private schools, or adult upgrading (including adult basic education and continuing education.) The Education Act has a provision for Maturity Credits, where schools assess work experience, learning experience, and issue maturity credits to adult learners. In addition to these maturity credits, the student must take a minimum of 4 courses (Ontario Senior Division Credits - Grade 11, Grade 12 or Ontario Academic Credits (OAC=s.)

Returning to adult basic education to obtain a Grade 12 diploma, or as preparation for the G.E.D. tests, is still quite popular amongst adult students. One educator indicated that most students prefer to return to school for one or two semesters, rather than pay fees for a G.E.D. assessment and preparation course. In fact, M.E.T. reports that in 1997, 17,800 (full time equivalent) students were enrolled in adult credit courses in Toronto.

III. Funding G.E.D. Preparation Courses Under O.W.:

There are three separate components under O.W.: Employment Supports, Community Participation and Employment Placement. Funding can be provided directly to clients to assist them access courses or programs that will improve their ability to quickly find employment. Through Purchase and Contract Services, funding under each program component can also be directly provided to service providers who meet specific eligibility criteria.

Funding G.E.D. Through Purchase of Service:

It is the assessment of the Social Services Division that directly funding service providers of basic education, like G.E.D. preparation courses, remains outside the scope of O.W., and therefore should not be funded through purchase of service arrangements under the Employment Support component. To the best of the Division=s knowledge, no municipality funds G.E.D. course providers through purchase of service arrangements.

The Ministry of Community and Social Services has indicated in a recent communication to the Social Services Division, dated February 18, that delivery agents Ashould refer participants to available basic education and training programs where these are required to prepare a participant for employment, funded through the M.E.T.@ This is consistent with the Division=s understanding of current O.W. guidelines; namely that clients who require basic education should be referred to M.E.T. funded programs, and that the provision of funding for such programs through purchase of service arrangements is inappropriate.

Direct Funding to Clients:

The Division recognizes, that where the completion of a G.E.D. preparation course and subsequent attainment of Grade 12 equivalency, will lead directly employment, the preparation course may be considered an approved course. While in attendance, participants can qualify for income support, as well as Employment Related Expenses (E.R.E.) to defray the cost of participating in the course, and writing the test.

This practice is consistent with a number of other municipal O.W. deliverers contacted by the Division. Where successful completion of the course and the test will lead directly to employment, these municipalities will support a client through Employment Related Expenses (E.R.E.), for course related expenses, such as transportation. The cost of the G.E.D. test will also be covered. It was emphasized that client eligibility for G.E.D. preparation courses, will be carefully assessed on a case by case basis.

Funding Responsibility for Basic Education Programs:

Historically, the Ministry of Education and Training has had responsibility for funding basic education programs. This role was re-affirmed through the Who Does What process, which grants the Province exclusive responsibility for basic education. G.E.D. is clearly recognized by the M.E.T as a Grade 12 equivalent, and therefore, as a basic education program. Direct funding for service providers delivering basic education and academic upgrading courses, like G.E.D. preparation courses, has never been provided through the Division=s employment programs.

Municipalities directly funding service providers who deliver basic education and academic upgrading courses will establish a precedent, essentially transferring funding responsibility for a basic education program from the province, where it is funded one hundred per cent., to the municipality, which will have to provide twenty per cent. funding.

As a result of a motion passed at the last Community Neighbourhood Services Committee, the Committee=s Chair has forwarded a letter (see Appendix 2) to the Minister of Education and Training to clarify why the M.E.T. believes programs such as G.E.D. preparation courses no longer qualify for M.E.T. funding, and has requested a meeting to discuss this issue.

Conclusion:

The M.E.T., along with employers, colleges and universities, clearly recognize G.E.D. as a Grade 12 equivalent. The Ministry of Community and Social Services has confirmed that G.E.D. is basic education. It is the Division=s assessment that G.E.D. and G.E.D. preparation courses are legitimate activities when they represent the most direct route to employment. The Division will continue to support clients to take the course, and cover related costs including test fees. However, it must be noted that G.E.D., and the subsequent attainment of a Grade 12 equivalency certificate, remains an alternative to the mainstream education system, through which course are readily available to students at not cost.

To the best of the Division=s knowledge, no direct government funding is available for the providers of G.E.D. preparation courses. Directly funding the providers of basic education through purchase of service arrangements represents a duplication in that the municipality would be funding a service that already exists in the mainstream education system. Moreover, direct funding of basic education providers will potentially increase demands on the already limited funds available to clients through the Skills Development option.

The Social Services Division has determined that funding basic education remains outside the scope of O.W., and as they do not meet the criteria established for employment preparation programs, the G.E.D. preparation courses are not fundable under purchase of service arrangements.

Contact Name:

Heather MacVicar: 392-8952

General Manager, Social Services Division

Commissioner, Community and Neighbourhood Services

Appendix 1: G.E.D. and G.E.D. Preparation Courses - General Description

General Educational Development (G.E.D.):

G.E.D. is an international testing program for adults who have been unable to complete high school. The tests were first developed in 1942 for returning World War II veterans who had not earned a high school diploma before entering military service. G.E.D. tests measure the level of Aeducational maturity@, gained through experience. The tests are available in all Canadian provinces and Territories, except Quebec, in all of the United States, and in several other foreign countries.

The G.E.D. tests measure knowledge and skills that are usually acquired during a regular high school program of study. To write the G.E.D. Tests in Ontario, the candidate must:

• be at least nineteen years of age;
• not have graduated from high school;
• have been out of the school system for at least one full year; and
• be a resident of Ontario.

The tests are administered by the Independent Learning Centre (I.L.C.) of the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training. The five tests require a total of seven hours and thirty-five minutes to complete. The fee to write the test is $50.00.

In Toronto, 1997, 880 tests were administered. The I.L.C. does not survey test takers, and as such, no data is available regarding the numbers of test takers who are in receipt of some form of social assistance. According to the I.L.C., the Toronto success rate is, on average, 84 per cent. The 1996 Canadian average was 63 per cent.

G.E.D. Preparation Courses:

To provide candidates with the necessary background to successfully complete the test, preparation courses have been developed by several organizations. Most preparation courses combine computer-assisted assessment and training, with individual and group tutoring, and assist adult learners with test-taking strategies and techniques. Normally, there are two parts to a preparation course: assessment and the course itself.

In the assessment phase, candidates who lack adequate facilities in mathematics and English are screened out, as they may likely require conventional upgrading via adult education. Fees for the assessment range from a free assessment to $75.00. According to providers, approximately 60 to 80 per cent of candidates are determined to be at the appropriate level for intensive test preparation. Others are usually referred to some form of adult learning or basic education for upgrading.

Actual courses vary from computer-based learning to traditional pen and paper learning models. Most function with limited class enrollment (maximum of 15 individuals). Individuals proceed through a program in the core high school curriculum areas of writing skills, social studies, science, literature and the arts, and mathematics. The courses include test taking strategies and techniques, and practice tests in each subject area. Neither the M.E.T. nor the I.L.C. maintain statistics as to the success rates of course takers. However, based on information from providers surveyed, success rates range from 76 to 95 per cent.

Availability of G.E.D. preparation courses:

G.E.D. Achievement, a private firm based in Newmarket, Ontario, is one of the larger providers of preparation courses in the Toronto area. The organization collaborates with the Toronto Public District School Board (North York), York Region Public District School Board, and a number of school boards across southern Ontario. The course offered by G.E.D. Achievement is approximately twelve to fifteen hours in duration, with a few hundred course graduates.

The Waterloo Region District Board of Education offers a condensed G.E.D. preparation Arefresher@ course, which runs 10 hours in length, and reports two hundred graduates since December of 1996. Cost to the users is minimal. The programme is classroom oriented, and designed for high functioning individuals.

The Peel Board of Education offers a computer-based course in the Peel region and at the York Mills Centre in Toronto. The programme duration is approximately sixty hours and is mainly self-study based. However, a teacher is available in the classroom as students reach new levels of difficulty.

The Toronto District School Board (East York) has developed a preparation course, but it has not yet been utilized. The course uses traditional teaching methods, and is not computer based. Duration of the course will vary depending on individual student needs.

Funding:

All G.E.D. preparation courses investigated and currently in operation, derive their funding from user fees. None receive grants or other forms of support from governments at any level.

In cases where the provider has partnered with school boards (such as G.E.D. Achievement partnering with school boards across southern Ontario), these partnerships have been limited to the school boards offering space to the G.E.D. course provider. Certain providers, in co-operation with employers who have recognized a need for employee development, have (at no cost) advertised their services to the employees. This has in turn increased the volume of G.E.D. preparation course candidates using particular providers.