Certification FAQ
EcoSchools Program FAQ
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the EcoSchools certification program.
EcoSchools Certification Application (ECA) FAQ
Make the most of EcoSchools’ online application.
EcoSchools Program FAQ
EcoSchools Certification Application (ECA) FAQ
Managing your EcoSchools plan
How do I create a plan for my school?
- When you register or log in for the first time in a given school year, you will be prompted to choose from a selection of suggested plans or you can create your own.
- Suggested plans can be changed throughout the year, so don’t worry if you have selected a suggested plan and then decide you would like to add or remove actions later.
Why are some actions locked in my plan?
There are two locked actions that appear in every school’s plan and will help to form the foundation of a strong EcoSchool. Locked actions have a small orange lock icon in the top right corner.
These actions cannot be removed from your plan. While it is recommended and encouraged that you try to fully implement these actions, you may complete as much, or little, of each of these actions as you choose.
The two locked actions include:
- Getting started
- Environmental Literacy
What are Suggested Plan Pathways?
There are five suggested plans, which are designed to help you achieve your school’s certification goals. Four of the plans include a selection of actions based on a theme, or you can create your plan from scratch.
Note that your school is not locked-in to the suggested plan that you choose. You can add or remove actions from your plan to customize it throughout the year. The more actions you complete, the more points you achieve, and the more your certification level increases.
The six Suggested Plan Pathways are:
- Getting Started
- 2050 Challenge
- Outdoor Learning
- Numeracy and Literacy
- Create Your Own Plan
Please see the Suggested Plan Pathways document for more details on each plan and the actions that are included in each.
How do I add actions to my school’s plan?
- Select “Library” from the main menu on the left of your screen.
- Search by keyword, theme, or browse the complete list of actions.
- From the list of actions shown, identify the action(s) you wish to add to your plan. This is a great activity to complete with your entire EcoTeam.
- Click on the “+” button at the top right corner of the action(s) to add them to your plan.
- Adding actions to your plan will increase the number of potential certification points your school can achieve.
How do I remove actions from my school’s plan?
- Select “Our Plan” from the main menu.
- From the “Open Actions” list, hover over an action that you wish to remove.
- Click on the red “x” button that appears at the top right corner of the action to remove it from your plan.
- Removing actions from your plan will decrease the number of potential certification points your school can achieve.
Tracking progress
How can I tell how many points we’ve earned so far?
- Select “Dashboard” from the main menu on the left of your screen.
- Navigate to the “Plan Progress” section and find the number of points your school has earned so far in the blue box labeled “Points.”
How do I know what level my school’s plan is eligible for?
- Select “Dashboard” from the main menu on the left of your screen.
- Under “Eligible for” you will see the number of points and the level that your school’s plan can achieve, based on the total points available in the actions currently in your plan.
- If your school does not have enough points in its plan to be eligible for Bronze, Silver, Gold, or Platinum level certification, you will be recognized as a Participant. For about how schools are recognized, click here.
Completing an action
How do I claim points for completing an action?
- Select “Our Plan” from the main menu on the left of your screen.
- From the list of actions shown under “Open Actions,” identify the action you want to claim points for and open it.
- After reviewing the action guide, and all other tabs on the action, navigate to the “Certification Questions” section.
- Accurately answer the applicable certification questions to ensure that you claim points for all questions that apply to you. You are not required to answer every question in order to claim points and complete an action, although the Start Date and Action Description questions are required.
- If you need to come back later to finish answering the questions, click “Come back later” at the bottom of the “Certification Questions” section.
- When you are finished answering the certification questions and are ready to claim points for the action, click the “Done” button at the bottom of the “Certification Questions” section.
How do I find out how many points each action is worth?
- Open an action from either the library or your plan.
- Click on “Certification Questions” and find the point value at the bottom left corner of the action. Actions are typically worth 5, 10 or 20 points.
How do I create a .pdf or print out an action?
- Open an action from your plan.
- In the top right corner, you will see a printer icon. Click here to print, or save as a .pdf file.
- Consider using GOOS or double-sided paper if you are printing out actions!
How can I get data about my school’s current and past plans, actions, or certification questions?
- Click “Administration” on the main menu to open the administration menu, then select “Plans,” “Actions,” or “Certification Questions.”
- At the top left corner of the data table, click “Download CSV.”
- Click the “Help” button in the right-hand corner for more instructions.
How do I download a CSV that displays French characters that are correctly formatted when opened in Excel?
- At the top right corner of the data table, click “Download CSV.”
- Once it downloads, don’t click on the file to open it directly.
- Open a new sheet in Excel and under the “Data” tab, click “From Text.”
- Your file explorer will open. Locate the CSV file that you downloaded, select it, and click “Import.”
- In step 1 of the import, match the settings with what is in the screenshot below and then click “Next.”
- In step 2, match the settings with what is in the screenshot below and then click “Next.”
- In step 3, match the settings with what is in the screenshot below, and then click “Finish.”
- A final prompt will appear. Click “Ok” as seen in the screenshot below.
How can I download a past certification seal?
Certified EcoSchools can download a digital seal for each year they have been certified:
- Log-in to your school’s online application.
- Navigate to the “Achievements” page from the main menu.
- Under the “Your Past Certifications” section, you will see certification seals for all of the years your school has been certified.
- Click the “Download Seal” link located under the seal.
- You will be directed to a new webpage—follow instructions to download your seal.
Managing users on your school account
What is the difference between staff and student user accounts?
- Both staff and student users can help create their school’s plan, and contribute to and complete actions within their school’s plan.
- Student users cannot submit the final application. Applications (i.e., Plans) must be submitted by a staff user.
- Student users do not have access to the “Administration” menu.
- Student users cannot register for their school account on their own. A staff member who is already a member of the school’s account must create a username and password for the student. See below for how to add more staff or student users to a school account.
How do I add more staff members to my school account?
- Click “Administration” on the main menu to open the administration menu, then select “Users.”
- At the top right corner of the data table, click the “+” button.
- In the popup that appears, fill out the information fields. Select “Staff Member” for role.
- Click the “Save” button and send the login information to the new members.
- There is no limit to the number of staff and students you can add to your school account but we encourage EcoTeam leads to keep this number at a manageable size.
How do I add student members to my school account?
- Click “Administration” on the main menu to uncollapse the administration menu, then select “Users.”
- At the top right corner of the data table, click the “+” button.
- In the popup that appears, fill out the information fields. Select “Student” for role. For the “School” field, ensure that your school is selected.
- When selecting a username and password for students, please ensure that there is no identifying information in the username, such as the student’s email address, initials, first name, last name, etc.
- Click the “Save” button and send the login information to the new student members.
How do I manage existing staff and student users on my school account?
- Click “Administration” on the main menu to uncollapse the administration menu, then select “Users.”
- In the data table, find the user you wish to manage. Use the filter functions or page controls to navigate the table.
- Once you have found the user, click on the row that corresponds to them.
- In the “User Details” box that appears on the right, update the fields you wish to change. Click the “Apply” button.
- To update a user’s password, use the “Change Password” box that appears on the right or below the table. Click the “Apply” button.
How can I edit my school’s information?
- To edit information including your school’s phone number and enrollment number, navigate to “My School” on the main menu and click the pencil icon.
- In the popup that appears, edit the fields you wish to update.
- Click the “Save” button.
How can I edit my account information or profile picture
- While logged in to your ECA account, click your name or avatar/profile photo at the top right corner of any page.
- On the blue dropdown that appears, click “My Account.”
- To update account information such as your position at your school, edit fields on the “Account Information” tab and then click the “Save” button.
- To update your avatar/profile photo, select the “Profile Photo” tab and pick an avatar from the existing ones or upload your own by clicking the “Select a file” button.
Note that to update your role (Staff or Student) or your school details, you must contact EcoSchools at programs@ecoschools.ca.
How do I reset my password?
- Go to app.ecoschools.ca and click “Forgot your password” below the login fields.
- Enter your account email address when prompted and click “Send Me Instructions.”
- In your inbox, open the email you received from EcoSchools and follow the instructions to reset your password. If it is not in your inbox, remember to check your junk and spam folders.
- If you did not receive the password reset email, this may be due to your school board/district’s email filters. In this case:
- If there is another adult on your account, this person can reset your password for you, by going to Administration -> Users, then clicking on the user to change the password.
- If you are the only adult on your school account, contact programs@ecoschools.ca.
- To reset your password when you are logged in to your account, click your avatar/profile photo in the right-hand corner and then select “Change Password.”
How do I switch from English to French?
- At the top right section of any page, click the button that says either “en” or “fr.”
- On the blue dropdown that appears, select the language you wish to use on the platform.