For the purposes of certification, a training officer is an individual who develops and evaluates training plans and programs, which include participant evaluation; coordinates the delivery of training; delivers training; and manages the training environment.
Your duties must include those in the definition of a training officer, and you must meet the recognized job performance standards, and educational/training and job experience requirements.
The Office of the Ontario Fire Marshal certifies training officers on a voluntary basis to the Ontario Fire Services Training Officer Standards based on the criteria developed by the Certification Council, approved by the Office of the Fire Marshal and agreed to by the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs.
The Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997 (FPPA) provides authority in Part III, clause 9 (2) (d) to the Fire Marshal. Part III, clause 9 (2) (d) states that it is the duty of the Fire Marshal to develop training programs and evaluation systems for persons involved in the provision of fire protection services and to provide programs to improve practices relating to fire protection services.
Certification formally acknowledges that a training officer in Ontario meets the recognized job performance standards and educational/training and job experience requirements as approved by the Office of the Fire Marshal and agreed to by the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs.
A training officer certificate is valid for five (5) years from the date of issuance and subsequent renewals.
There is no fee for certification or certification renewal, at this time.
Other jurisdictions determine their own requirements. It is possible for other jurisdictions to assess the Ontario Training Officer Certification Program against their requirements.
Information about the Ontario Training Officer Certification Programs available through locally conducted information sessions, a brochure and articles in the Messenger. Information is also available on the OFM Web site at www.ofm.gov.on.ca on the Ontario Association of Fire Training Officers Web site at www.firetraining.ca or by contacting the OFM Certification Office at 416-325-3142.
The Council is comprised of stakeholders, including representatives of the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office, the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs and the Ontario Fire Service who meet established criteria.
The current Certification Council members are:
Doug Goodings, Chairperson, Office of the Fire Marshal
Lorne Bradt, Firefighter, Lemington
Craig Cunningham, Assistant Chief of Fire Prevention, Toronto
Kevin Foster, Fire Chief, Midland and
representative from the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs
Paul Gawlik, Chief Training Officer, Richmond Hill
Mike George, Chief of Inspection Services, Wilmont
Scott Heard, Acting Captain, Vaughan
Shawn LePage, Training Officer, Mississauga
Brian Maltby, Division Chief, Fire Prevention, Brampton
Barry McKinnon, Chief of Emergency Management and
Response, Office of the Fire Marshal
Mike Rozario, Firefighter, Richmond Hill
Jim Sawkins, Fire Chief, Township of Muskoka Lakes
Michael Seth, Fire Chief, Six Nations Fire Department
Ex-officio
Lynne Lofquist, Section Manager,
Academic Standards and Evaluation, Office of the Fire Marshal
Ed Godden, Academic Manager, Ontario Fire College
Leslie Kennedy, Educational Consultant, Office of the Fire Marshal
Secretary
Uyen Ha, Coordinator/Administrative Assistant,
Office of the Fire Marshal
Sub-committee Members
Rocco Volpe, Training Officer, Richmond Hill
Jeff Weber, Training Officer, Kitchener
The mandate of the Council is to develop and recommend to the Professional Standards Setting Body, within the framework of the Professional Standards Process Model, the policies and procedures required for an ongoing, voluntary provincial certification program.
Yes.
There are number of benefits to certification.
Yes. A lack of certification is only an indication that the individual has not applied for or completed the requirements of certification.
Yes. Certification is not a means of determining who shall participate in the practice or profession of firefighting and its related activities.
No. However, the documentation of training and ability to perform to standards is a legitimate, valuable process for fire departments to follow. Because certification is a voluntary process, training officers may or may not choose to apply for certification, even though they meet the criteria.
Certification is a voluntary process. Any move toward mandatory certification would be a local matter.
The regular route is designed for those employed as training officers in an Ontario municipal fire department after May 31, 2005.
Certification is based on the candidate’s ability to:
This is the minimum amount of time a training officer would need to complete the academic and job experience requirements.
The person to whom the chief reports would sign the Application for Certification.
To qualify for certification and certification renewal, a training officer must demonstrate continuous job experience in a municipal fire department in Ontario. Continuous is defined by government Human Resources, as having a break in employment of not greater than thirteen (13) weeks. Extenuating circumstances will be considered on an individual basis, by the Certification Council.
No. Individuals are certified. You take your certification with you. That is why it is important to keep your own records of your educational/training and job experience achievements.
To ensure access to certification for all Ontario training officers, accessibility for individuals (training officers whose department is not participating in the certification program) has been determined. Training officers in this circumstance are encouraged to write to the Certification Council. Access to the system will be determined on an individual basis.
Possibly. However, they would still be required to complete the process for certification and demonstrate their ability to:
No, not automatically because the Ontario program is to the Ontario Fire Services standards and because the Ontario program has a job experience requirement. However, you may be eligible for academic credit.
You may be eligible for academic credit because some Company Officer Diploma Program courses are required to meet the academic requirement in the ‘Window’. However, credit for on-the-job performance cannot be given because each certification program is based on the standards for that role.
We recommend the use of the
OAFC Professional
Development Profile Record for Fire Service Personnel for documenting not only your education/training activities
but also a number of other career related issues. It is available for download from
the OAFC website at
Training Officers employed after May 31, 2005 are eligible to certify through the regular route. The academic component of the regular route is the Ontario Fire College Training Officer Diploma Program, which consists of two components:
Candidates employed as training officers in municipal fire departments in Ontario as of May 31, 2005 when certification was introduced are required to meet the following academic requirement.
Training officers are expected to have significant knowledge and skills in adult education theory and practice, in order to perform their roles. The learning outcomes identified by training officers as the basis of their academic program include many outcomes directly related to adult education.
Early in the design of the training officer academic program, it was jointly recognized by the OAFC/OFM partnership that most Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology offered certificate programs in adult education, which likely included most of the adult education learning outcomes. An analysis of community college adult education certificate programs validated that most of them matched at least 75% of the training officer learning outcomes.
Because these programs could be accessed across the province through the community college system, it was not deemed appropriate for the Ontario Fire College to develop courses that would duplicate this content. Therefore, a certificate in adult education from a community college became one part of the academic component of training officer certification.
The certificate programs in adult education offered by community colleges vary in number of courses from five to eight. Time to complete the certificate will vary for individual training officers based on the college they attend and the mode of study they choose (part-time, full-time, e-learning or traditional). For a training officer completing one course per semester, it would be possible to complete some certificates in two years.
Yes. Certificates in adult education can be earned via OntarioLearn, which is an e-learning system operated by a consortium of all the Ontario community colleges. Some certificate programs also have courses, which are offered via distance education.
Part of the planning process of the academic component of Training Officer Certification Program included assessing the accessibility of adult education certificate programs across the province. Because individuals can access OntarioLearn through any of the community colleges, it met the criterion for accessibility, regardless of geographical location. It also provides individual students with some flexibility in terms of when they participate in the courses.
No arrangements are confirmed, but the OFC is discussing with community colleges the possibility of offering courses in the adult education certificate program on the OFC campus in “intensive mode.” This approach would allow students to attend the courses at the Fire College in one-week blocks. If this approach is confirmed, course dates and registration procedures would be announced to training officers.
All community college certificate programs in adult education have been assessed for their match to the training officer learning outcomes. Nearly all programs have been found to match the learning outcomes. A summary chart of all the matching community college programs can be accessed from the OFM web site.
In some programs, it is necessary to take specific optional courses to achieve the match to the learning outcomes. Specific information on which optional courses to take in each program is also available on the OFM web site.
34. Terrorism and hazardous materials awareness are pertinent to the training officer role. Where can I access this information?
There is an excellent self-study course Terrorism/Hazardous Materials Awareness for Fire Responders in Ontario: Self-Study on the OFM web site.
It is expected that skills listed in the Job Experience Requirement Demonstration of Competence to the Standards document will be performed within the job experience component. Performance of skills may not predate the date of release of the revised Ontario Fire Services Training Officer Standards– fall 2003. The fire chief and the candidate's supervisor sign off the document provided that:
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The completion of the Job Experience Requirement Demonstration of Competence to the Standards document reflects performance of skills |
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The sign off is by an immediate supervisor |
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Required supporting documentation is included where required |
Your direct supervisor signs off some competencies. If s/he has not witnessed you performing a competency, a decision may be based on outcome and/or peer evaluation. Other competencies require your supervisor’s sign-off as well as supporting documentation such as a sample needs assessment, lesson plan or evaluation form. Your supervisor, the fire chief and you must sign the form and be accountable.
It is your responsibility to maintain a log of the training and related duties you perform. You must seek out your supervisor to sign off your Job Experience Requirement Demonstration of Competence to the Standards document. It is also your responsibility, while working within the policies and procedures of your department, to seek out the opportunities you need to complete the job experience component.
The Certification Council has determined that up to 5% (three competencies maximum) that are currently designated "A" (actual) for demonstration on-the-job may be approved by the Certification Council for demonstration in simulated circumstances. The fire chief shall submit to the Certification Office a letter outlining the rationale for requesting this and describing the simulations that will be used.
We recommend using OAFC Professional Development Profile Record for Fire Service Personnel for this purpose. It is available for download on the OAFC website at www.OAFC.on.ca.
Yes. They can use experiences from both departments provided both fire chiefs agree to this process and both are willing to sign the Submission for Certification.
Yes, provided it was after the fall of 2003 when the revised Ontario Fire Services Training Officer Standards were issued.
This is an internal issue. It is hoped that following assessment, the training officer and his/her supervisor would review the document. Together, they should develop a training plan and seek opportunities for the training officer to perform on-the-job.
In the ‘Window of Opportunity,’ you have three years from the date of implementation (June 1, 2005.) Training officers certifying through the regular route have up to five years to complete the process through the regular route.
Some skills can only be signed off if you have performed them to standard on-the-job. On-the-job is defined as, ‘while working in the training officer role developing training plans and learning materials, coordinating and delivering training programs, managing the training environment, assessing student performance, and evaluating ongoing programs.’
However, for some other skills, approved simulated situations can be created for you. Your supervisor must sign you off.
You could submit a letter, through your fire department, to the Certification Council requesting consideration because of extenuating circumstances. Identify the reasons for not completing the process and the time required to complete it.
Existing training officers must meet the academic and job experience requirements. A three-year ‘Window of Opportunity’ exists from June 1, 2005 to June 1, 2008 for all staff employed as training officers in a municipal fire department in Ontario as of May 31, 2005. Options exist for achieving academic equivalency.
See the answer to question 28 under the 'Window of Opportunity.'
Successful completion of the academic requirement is followed by the completion of the Job Experience Requirement Demonstration of Competence to the Standards document and application for certification.
In the 'Window of Opportunity,' training officers are being given credit for their years of experience, and alternate ways of completing the academic requirement are offered.
In the ‘Window of Opportunity,’ you have three years from the date of implementation (June 1, 2005.)
No, because the purpose of the ‘Window of Opportunity’ is to acknowledge the experience of Ontario training officers. To access it, you must have been a training officer in a municipal fire department in the province of Ontario prior to June 1, 2005.
The model for certification renewal will be developed based on the following guiding principles:
You may be eligible for academic credit because some Company Officer Diploma Program courses are required to meet the academic requirement in the ‘Window’. However, credit for on-the-job performance cannot be given because each certification program is based on the standards for that role.
In the event that certification is lapsed over ninety (90) days, the candidate will need to reapply and re-qualify based on current competencies. The Certification Council will determine the requirements.
Yes. The Fire Marshal, on the recommendation of the Certification Council, may suspend, revoke or deny certification to any fire service personnel when it is found that the individual:
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