Careers in BC Education
Independent Schools
Careers in BC’s Independent Schools
British Columbia’s independent schools offer a choice and unique experiences for students and teachers. Independent schools follow the BC curriculum; however, they may also offer an alternative pedagogical focus as well as a religious foundation to their school programming.
Some of BC’s independent schools cater to a particular faith community and provide educational programming aligning to a faith community’s values and beliefs, e.g. Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh and Christian schools.
Other groups of independent schools offer the BC curriculum with a unique pedagogical perspective, e.g. Waldorf, Montessori, and International Baccalaureate.
Some independent schools focus on working with particular groups of students, from those with special needs to those who are gifted. Some independent schools have a specific focus on outdoor education, technology, arts, athletics and academics. Besides bricks-and-mortar schools, there are also distributed learning schools that operate in the independent system.
Are independent schools the same as private schools?
Independent schools are often mistaken for private schools, where the key difference is that the former operates under the Ministry’s Independent Schools Act. Read more about BC’s Independent Schools Act (PDF).
If you are a BC teacher looking to work with a particular faith community, student population under a unique pedagogical lens, consider teaching in BC’s independent schools.