Summary:
Skills for Change (SfC) provides learning and training opportunities for immigrants and refugees to access the labour market while fully participating in the workplace and wider community. Our vision is for a Canada where every immigrant succeeds. Over the course of its 35 years, SfC has had significant success assisting immigrants in meeting their career goals. In the last year alone, we’ve offered over 30 different programs and have had participation from over 14,000 different individuals across the Greater Toronto Area.
SfC has developed a cohesive approach to enhancing and expanding programs and services to meet the critical and emerging needs of our current client base – with emphasis on increasing services to youth, women and seniors in particular. Our success in developing innovative programs and services such sector specific employment training programs, mentoring, diversity and inclusion initiatives as well as English language instruction, integrated language/skills training, including French and English language assessment is evidenced by the numerous awards and recognition we have received. SfC has received the following recognition: Citizenship and Immigration Canada Citation of Citizenship Award; Conference Board of Canada Community Learning Award; and Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration Newcomer Champion Award.
SfC is committed to developing and delivering Construction Trades training and initiatives. Since 2008, SfC has been developing and delivering training for Internationally-Trained Tradesperson though our bridging program Trades Win Support Program (TWSP). Although this program has supported clients with licensure, technical skills and employment training we identified a gap with respect to language and communication at the level that employers feel clients are prepared to work on a construction site. Employers are concerned with instructions being understood by clients and ensuring safety on the worksite. The development of a curriculum for Construction Trades will support language improvements/enhancements and communication requirements and will increase the success of securing employment for clients in the Construction Trades.
The purpose of this project is to fund the curriculum design and staff training for a 5-week Construction Trades Sector-Specific and Employment curriculum. The curriculum will be geared towards Internationally-Trained Construction Trades Persons facing multiple barriers with opportunities to improve their English, acquire sector-specific knowledge, and employment strategy skills, in order to successfully settle and integrate into the Canadian environment. The curriculum should have built-in flexibility for adaptation into existing programming and must be designed to provide in class and online delivery. Each component of the curriculum will work together as part of an overall programme. In addition, each component should be able to stand-alone for inclusion in other courses and/or for use in both formal and/or informal teaching situations.
The service provider is expected to train staff to deliver the complete curriculum and adjust or add to the curriculum as needed.
The successful service provider will be expected to work closely with the Manager, Programs and Services and members of Immigrant and Refugee Settlement Hub to analyze and refine existing training tools as well as develop additional curriculum components to address any gaps that may exist.
Submission date: November 15, 2017
Contract not to exceed $10,000 is available for one award during the project period
Project Start Date: December 1, 2017
Project End Date: February 2, 2018
