3.1 Purpose of Home Instruction
If a student registered in a DDSB school is temporarily (period must be more than six weeks) unable to attend school for medical (mental health), social emotional reasons, or other special circumstances, a parent/guardian, school team or school Principal may request Home Instruction to provide instructional support during the temporary absence.
Home Instruction generally lasts up to three months. A review, including of new medical and/or supporting documentation, may be conducted to extend Home Instruction.
Eligibility for Home Instruction
3.2 Schools must provide remediation and academic support for the first 15 days of a student’s absence. After 15 consecutive days of absence, Home Instruction may be requested to support students based on one or more of the following circumstances which prevent their regular school attendance:
- Long-term physical circumstances: a long-term disability or illness (e.g., cancer treatment, brain injury)
- Short-term physical circumstances: a temporary physical condition (e.g., broken leg or surgery)
- Social-emotional reasons: a range of complex social or emotional issues or challenges (e.g., severe anxiety, depression)
- Special circumstances: behavioural or legal issues.
3.3 In addition, and in consultation with Psychological Services, Social Work and/or other medical professionals, and with the consent of parents/guardians, the Superintendent of Inclusive Student Services may consider and approve Home Instruction for a student awaiting a placement in a treatment centre.
Processing a Request for Home Instruction
3.4 Each request will be assessed on an individualized basis and will consider the student’s unique strengths, circumstances, restrictions and needs.
3.5 The Guidelines for Approving and Establishing Home Instruction will assist the Principal.
3.6 The Principal will request that the parent/guardian provide relevant medical documentation to support the Home Instruction request. The DDSB will accept other supporting documentation at its sole discretion. The documentation must include the:
- Nature of the circumstances that prevent the student from attending school. (Note: A medical diagnosis is not required.)
- Steps, services or accommodations taken or in place to mitigate or address a barrier(s) to school participation.
- The expected duration of the circumstances that require temporary Home Instruction.
In cases of chronic illness, the request and the medical documentation must be renewed
each September.
3.7 The Principal may request additional information about the student’s medical or other needs, limitations/restrictions and/or special circumstances to determine eligibility for Home Instruction and facilitate the process.
Guidelines for Establishing and Approving Home Instruction
3.8 The Guidelines for Establishing and Approving Home Instruction are drawn from the Ministry of Education Ontario’s document “Enrolment Register Instructions for Elementary and Secondary Schools” and checked each year for any changes impacting this procedure.
3.9 If the Principal is satisfied that Home Instruction is required based on the Guidelines, the Principal will submit a completed Request for the Establishment of Home Instruction form (Appendix A) and a copy of medical documentation or other relevant information to the Superintendent of Inclusive Student Services and/or designate.
3.10 Home Instruction requests based on special circumstances will be collaboratively reviewed and assessed by the Superintendent of Inclusive Student Services and/or System Lead for Inclusive Student Services for decision.
Home Instruction Program: Teachers, Credits, Amount of Instruction, Location
3.11 Upon approval of Home Instruction, the Principal arranges and confirms a DDSB teacher to provide the instruction. The Principal will be supported by the central team (Inclusive Student Services and Human Resources/Hiring) to secure a Home Instruction Teacher when the student's classroom teacher or another teacher in the school is not available.
3.12 Only Ontario Certified Teachers (contract or occasional) employed by the DDSB are eligible to provide Home Instruction services. The number of Home Instruction students should be limited to two students per full-time teacher unless permission is granted by the Superintendent of Education/Inclusive Student Services.
Home instruction will only be provided if an Ontario Certified Teacher employed by the DDSB accepts the assignment.
Home instruction teachers do not grant credits. The decision to grant credits rests with the Principal who will make the determination based on the student’s achievement of the overall expectations of a given course.
Amount of Instruction
3.13 Once a student is approved for Home Instruction the following guidelines apply, and the Principal will review these expectations with the Home Instruction Teacher:
- Elementary: 180 minutes/week (3 hours). Note: Occasionally, hours for elementary students may be extended by the Principal in consultation with the Superintendent or System Lead for Inclusive Student Services, to no more than five hours per week.
- Secondary: Full-time students 300 minutes/week (5 hours).
- Home Instruction must occur on Instructional days of the student’s schools of registration.
- Home Instruction is not provided on days designated as school holidays.
- For students who are part-time, approval of hours for Home Instruction will be based on FTE (e.g., 2 course, approval for 150 minutes per week).
- Home Instruction is to occur outside of a permanent teacher’s work schedule; it cannot occur during a teacher’s scheduled prep time.
Home Instruction is not intended as a replacement for a regular school day. The DDSB will make reasonable efforts to keep students up-to-date in all subjects to provide meaningful access to education within the limits of Home Instructions, such as limits on hands-on and group based learning.
Location of Instruction
3.14 Home Instruction may be scheduled to occur in a public setting (for example, a library), hospital, school (after regular instructional hours) or in the student’s home.
Implementing and Supporting Home Instruction
3.15 The Principal/school team is responsible for providing the necessary learning resources to support Home Instruction. This includes when technology is required (for example, a Chromebook) and where a student does not already have access [e.g., Specialized Equipment Amount (SEA) funded device)].
3.16 The Principal is responsible for supervising the work of the Home Instruction Teacher and arranging for periodic conferences between the Home Instruction Teacher and the student's regular teacher(s). The Home Instruction Teacher will provide appropriate assessment and/or information to support the student’s regular teacher(s) for use in assessment reporting including report cards.
3.17 The Home Instruction Teacher must submit a Home Instruction Monthly Report (Appendix B), signed by the Principal, to Inclusive Student Services at the end of each month no later than the 20th of the subsequent month.
3.18 An anticipated end date or review date is communicated within the notification of approval for home instruction. It is the joint responsibility of the Principal and Inclusive Student Services to follow up jointly prior to the date for each individual student.
Confidentiality
3.19 Information related to a Home Instruction request is confidential and sensitive. Therefore, in processing Home Instruction requests, DDSB staff shall abide by the DDSB Privacy Policy and Procedures with respect to personal information.
Review of Home Instruction
3.20 The Home Instruction arrangement will be reviewed, in whole or in part:
- Course enrollment and related hours of home instruction as set out in the Home Instruction approval notice to the parent/guardian/adult student
- If the student’s Home Instruction needs or circumstances change
- When warranted by update to appropriate medical or other relevant documentation or information.
The parent/guardian or Home Instruction Teacher will advise the Principal of any issues or challenges with the Home Instruction arrangement, or of new/changing medical or other related needs that may impact Home Instruction, as soon as possible.
End of Home Instruction
3.21 Discontinuation of Home Instruction occurs when:
- the student is able to return to school, including on a part-time basis;
- the student moves to another educational jurisdiction; or
- the period of approved Home Instruction has ended, subject to new medical or supporting documentation.
Temporary suspension of home instruction may be necessary when a satisfactory level of instruction cannot be maintained (e.g., scheduling conflicts, environmental concerns, teacher safety).
When the Home Instruction concludes, the Principal will assess and put in place (as may be required) appropriate accommodations, educational resources, and mental health and wellbeing supports to assist the student’s successful transition to in-class instruction.
