They leave Jamaica with high hopes, advanced degrees, years of classroom experience, and a passion for shaping young minds. But when Jamaica-trained teachers arrive in Alberta, Canada, with credentials in hand, they are met with silence, scepticism, and systemic sidelining.

Despite holding Alberta’s official teaching certification, many are excluded from employment opportunities, subjected to indignities, and treated as if their hard-earned qualifications are somehow insufficient. This is not hearsay; it is a growing concern among Jamaica’s educated Diaspora and is an issue that deserves national attention.

Qualified but undermined

In Alberta, every teacher, no matter his/her experience, must complete the teacher certification process. Jamaican educators adhere to providing the general requirements: statement of professional standing, academic records, police record, etcetera. They meet every bureaucratic requirement, frequently surpassing the standards of their local counterparts. The situation takes a disturbing turn when Jamaica-trained graduate educators who already possess years of teaching experience are forced to provide high school diplomas and high school external exam results, as if their formal teacher training somehow does not suffice. These extra demands are not about quality, but rather subtle yet deliberate tactics for undermining credibility. This is not red tape, but a calculated affront to professional dignity.

These demands, in my opinion, carry the scent of colonial remnants disguised as professional norms, yet the meaning is obvious: Your credentials are in doubt. This premise is deeply baseless since Jamaica’s educational system is based on the British system, which also laid the groundwork for Canada’s.

Questioning the credibility of trained graduates from Jamaica exposes a double standard rooted in systemic bias. The time has come to denounce this bias wrapped in bureaucracy.

Double-Edged Reality

They hold the certification, yet lack the recognition. They are competent, but constantly undervalued. But what is not a mystery is the yearly shortage of teachers in Alberta, the proof that employing certified, qualified teachers is urgent rather than optional. Nonetheless, educators trained in Jamaica are subjected to unjust and excessive academic demands that exceed what is reasonably required.

What is even more disheartening is that Jamaica-trained, Alberta-certified educators are advised to apply to remote or smaller school districts just to gain Canadian experience under supervision, as if they must earn the right to be considered. Note, one breakthrough is a miracle. In contrast, Ontario has established more defined routes for internationally trained professionals through the Ontario College of Teachers. Educators from Jamaica are recognised for their expertise and experience for a chance to successfully integrate, yet Alberta seems trapped in a cycle of hidden bureaucracy and apparent resistance.

One Jamaica-trained social studies teacher with 12 years’ experience was certified through the Ontario College of Teachers in just a few months. He teaches full-time in Toronto and mentors other international educators, a stark contrast to the barriers many face in Alberta.

It goes beyond mere documents, it pertains to individuality.

Economic and Emotional Stain

A teacher with more than 15 years’ experience and Alberta-certified described the frustration and embarrassment when she was told she needed to work in a smaller school district to gain Canadian teaching experience. “I have guided student teachers, developed curricula, and managed departments. However, I’m regarded as nothing here,” she states. “It’s not only disrespectful, it’s devastating.”

Another teacher, with over two decades of experience and the holder of a degree in English language from Jamaica shared the embarrassment of needing to clarify her high school accomplishments at 46 years old. “It’s like asking a surgeon to demonstrate he completed biology in high school,” she said, trying to suppress her tears.

Many qualified educators leave the profession. Some take low-wage positions to survive, while others reapply and recertify just to prove their worth. This is wasted talent and, meanwhile, Alberta’s students lose out on diverse global teaching perspectives.

Echoes of Colonialism in Modern Systems

Is this the modern form of colonial exclusion that embraces foreign labour while dismissing foreign expertise? Canada boasts of performative multiculturalism, yet Jamaican educators are being subtly excluded. That is not inclusivity, it is blatant hypocrisy. Where are the actors of justice? Alberta preaches equity, inclusion, and decolonisation, but when qualified Jamaican educators are sidelined due to biased interpretations of Canadian experience, who takes action? Change doesn’t come from words. It comes from guts to act. The time has come to stop hiding behind polished policies; if the system is biased, fix it. Decolonisation isn’t a concept, it is a commitment, it starts with action, not words.

Act now! The time for polite talk is over, it is time for action. Alberta’s educational system must update its certification and hiring procedures to guarantee fairness, equity, and transparency for internationally trained teachers, especially those from Jamaica. Alberta Education’s Teacher and Leadership Certification Branch must review and remove culturally biased standards for individuals holding degrees and mandate equity from those engaged in hiring foreign educators.

The Government must monitor hiring statistics based on country of origin to detect patterns of exclusion and react responsibly. It should also create a provincial mentorship bridge programme to connect internationally trained teachers with experienced Alberta mentors, not as a mere formality, but as a partnership of equals. Jamaican educators are not looking for handouts, they are striving for equity. In a country rich in diversity, it is time for their excellence to be recognised and given its own mandate.

The issue is not Jamaican, it is the powers that be. Jamaican educators are not coming to receive, they are coming to teach. Alberta benefits from their knowledge, passion, and perspective rather than being weighed down by it. If nation-building involves fostering excellence, then excluding Jamaican teachers constitutes a failure of those in power.

The future of classrooms in Alberta cannot be founded on old biases or partial validation. To the guardians of education, unlock the gates. To those in authority, take charge. Invite their excellence into your classrooms, and allow your students to gain from the brilliance that has lingered on the sidelines for far too long.

Ordean Smith is a Jamaica-trained and Alberta-certified educator living in Canada.

Ordean Smith