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Special Education – AEC

The Winter 2025 semester application is now open > Apply Now!

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Special Education is a two-year career program leading to the attainment of an Attestation of College Studies (ACS). The successful completion of the program allows students to acquire skills that will enable them to exercise the profession of a special care counsellor or educator. Graduates will be able to work with people who have or may have different problems causing maladjustment to social inclusion, work with people with physical and psychological disabilities, behavior problems, disorders linked to mental and health-related disorders. Interventions are adapted to all ages groups, whether they be targeted for children, teenagers, adults, or seniors.

The two-year AEC program satisfies the same skills and competencies that are targeted by the three-year DEC program in Special Care Counselling.

WHAT DO SPECIAL EDUCATION TECHNICIANS DO?

The role of specialized educators is to analyze and evaluate the problem of the person involved in the family and his or her community, to develop a suitable intervention plan and make individual or group interventions. These activities are based on the situations of everyday life to improve communication and every dimension of the life of the person in difficulty (emotional, social, cognitive, psychomotor, morale, etc.).

What is the industry like?

Special care counsellors work primarily in rehabilitation centres, reception and residential centres, short- and long-term residential care centres, psychiatric hospitals, work skills learning services, school boards, CLSCs, community organizations, group homes, day centres, intermediate resource centres, and external employment services.

The specialized educator works closely with resource persons in the health network and social services, education, and community organizations. The personal development of the student, their understanding of human problems and of their social environment, their capacity to provide quality interaction, their knowledge of the approaches, and their adequate control of the intervention process are at the heart of the training offered and are part of the program goals.

JOB WITH A PROMISING FUTURE

Qualified professionals and skilled technicians within the Education and Early Childhood Education sectors in the province of Quebec are currently in high demand leading to jobs with excellent compensation and benefits.

Learn more

Evening Courses

TAV College offers evening courses in addition to daytime courses. For more information please contact the academic advisor for this program.

ramzi@tav.ca

PROGRAM TYPE

Career – AEC

LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION

English

APPLICATION DEADLINES

January 20 (Winter)

  September 1 (Fall)

*Late applications

DURATION

2 Years

PROGRAM CAPACITY

120

APPLICATION DEADLINES FOR
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

October 30* (Winter)

April 15* (Fall)

*Late applications

PROGRAM CODE

JNC.1N

Comprehensive evaluation

Internship + Synthesis Project

ADMISSION PROCESS

Apply online

special-care-counselling-program-montreal

IS THIS FOR YOU?

If you like to help people in difficulty, you enjoy teamwork, and you want to plan interventions with the goal of helping people on a personal, academic, or social level, this program may be for you.

WHY STUDY THIS PROGRAM AT TAV COLLEGE?

The educational background provided by TAV College will allow you to be qualified for the type of work mentioned above. People with adjustment difficulties need qualified special care counsellors actively implicated in their rehabilitation and integration process, and this AEC program offered at TAV College will introduce you to the different dimensions of this profession.

Helped by dynamic teachers who are committed to the special education field, you will learn to share the experiences of people in difficulty and to intervene while developing caregiving skills for this customer base. You will have developed qualities and abilities that will make you a significant person for people who are themselves in difficulty in their personal and social environment. TAV also offers an in-depth intervention approach for people with language difficulties.

PRACTICAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS

Throughout the program, the student is in contact with different working environments by visiting and meeting professionals in practical settings. All the teachers in this program are in the special education work field. From the first semester, he participates in an observation and screening internship of 5 hours per week with a customer base with language difficulties, during the second semester, an exploration and experimentation internship of 8 hours per week and, on the fourth semester, an intervention internship of 32 hours per week. These internships, credited in institutions, provide an enriched training experience by integrating theory and practice and allowing students to value themselves to potential employers.

One program, many opportunities!

Our Special Education programs allow students to do internships and apply practical skills in various locations, including the CIUSSS, the CSSDM, and more!

COMPETENCIES DEVELOPED

Graduates from the Special Education AEC program will be well prepared to do the following:

  • Examine the job functions of a special care counselor
  • Become familiar with community resources and services
  • Communicate effectively with clients and members of a work team
  • Examine bio/psycho-social adjustment issues
  • Gather information about the client’s behavior
  • Design development activities and clinical tools
  • Evaluate the ability of the client’s living environment to provide appropriate support
  • Assist a client who is in need of help
  • Associate approaches, objectives, and techniques with specific adjustment problems
  • Abide by the code of ethics of the profession
  • Establish a helping relationship
  • Carry out adaptive and rehabilitative activities for clients with an intellectual disability
  • Carry out activities for young people with learning or language difficulties
  • Carry out adaptive and rehabilitative activities for clients with a physical impairment or neurological disorder
  • Act as a facilitator for groups of clients or work teams
  • Carry out activities for older individuals who are no longer autonomous
  • Carry out adaptive and rehabilitative activities for young people with adjustment difficulties
  • Learn techniques to protect their personal well-being
  • Analyze the relationship between social phenomena and adjustment problems
  • Carry out rehabilitative activities for clients with mental-health and drug addiction problems
  • Carry out adaptive and rehabilitative activities for clients who are socially excluded or who are perpetrators or victims of violence
  • Develop an intervention plan
  • Interact with clients from cultural and ethnic communities different from their own
  • Carry out adaptive and rehabilitative activities for clients who are reentering society or the workplace
  • Intervene in a crisis
  • Draw up and carry out an integrated intervention project

 

special-education-program-in-montreal

CAREER PROSPECTS

The main areas of employment for Special Education Technicians are throughout elementary, high school and higher education school systems, rehabilitation centres, or institute and service centres that specialize in or require special education.

A GROWING INDUSTRY

In recent years, the need and demand for qualified Special Education Technicians have grown rapidly across Québec. According to data provided by the Government of Canada, high employment opportunities for this job category are good for the next 3 years.

WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE DEC AND AEC PROGRAMS?

While both the DEC and AEC Special Education programs prepare students to immediately enter the workforce and begin their careers, there are a few noteworthy differences between the two:

The difference between an AEC and a DEC in Special Education

The main differences between obtaining an AEC and a DEC in Special Education in Quebec are the following:

AEC

  • Takes 24 months to complete.
  • Students are only required to complete program-specific courses.
  • There is no Ministerial Exit Exam.
  • Graduates do not obtain the credits needed to advance to university.

DEC

  • Takes 36 months to complete.
  • Students are required to complete a general education component of their studies in addition to program-specific courses.
  • Students must pass the Ministerial Exit Exam in order to graduate.
  • Graduates may advance to university.

 

Information for international students

PGWP

This program is eligible for a post-graduation work permit.

Intakes

Fall, Winter

For more information

International Student Admissions

Updated: November 30, 2022

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