The world has undergone a massive shift on how we work and learn. Families have been thrust into a new normal of isolation and challenged by how we interact. This is the first in a two part series on pandemic homeschooling and learning online for Ontario students.

With the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre and Ontario College Application Service beginning to accept applications you may be wondering what route you should take for your post-secondary education and asking the question “what should I do after high school?” While this is a hard decision it’s also an important one that you need to make very early in your life: university vs college. You’ve probably already started thinking about this though. You’ve gone to your school counsellor, probably took GLC2O – Career Studies and discussed with your family, friends and teachers what you should do after graduating this fall.

Taking a high school course online is becoming more and more common and while online learning continues to grow in popularity, students are asking questions on how they can be more successful when taking a high school course online.

It’s fair to say that for students and parents, the world has changed dramatically throughout 2020. When schools closed in mid-March as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic the way we thought about learning changed. Parents faced different career challenges such as going to work, working from home or unemployment, they commonly faced the challenge of teaching their children. Meanwhile students faced isolation from friends, new ways of learning when going online and cancelled proms. Regardless of our individual challenges, things are different now and many students are wondering how to finish high school online in Ontario during this pandemic.

It’s the end of August and that means back to school is coming! In just a few weeks students will be heading back to school and although that may look a little different this year, many of the same ideas apply when preparing for the new school year.

What is critical thinking? Critical thinking is the ability to analyze information in an objective manner and come to a reasonable decision based on that information. Thinking critically involves analyzing data, facts and research findings and arriving at a conclusion based on that data. 

The future of high school is now! There, we said it. The start of 2020 saw a monumental change on how people interact socially, in business and in education. Every generation sees a pivotal moment change how things are done in our global society. The big shift we’re preparing for now, is how people will work and learn in a physically distanced and digital-first world.

Perhaps you’ve heard the term growth mindset before. It sounds pretty straightforward. If you have a growth mindset, you’re constantly looking for ways to improve and become more knowledgeable and well-rounded as a person. That’s all well and good, but it’s much harder than it sounds.

Online learning has been around for a while and has had some challenges in the past. Whether due to technological restrictions or just generally experiencing growing pains as a new and emerging way of learning, we know it’s not for everyone. We all know there are benefits of being in a classroom such as one-on-one direct instruction for students in need or the ability to learn more in a more hands-on environment, to name a few. But, there are many benefits to online learning.

April is a great time of year for many reasons. Spring is in the air. The sun comes up earlier and stays out later, while birds and wildlife begin to reappear from their hibernation states. We know with the Covid-19 precautions it’s been a strange time, but some students may have heard back from the post-secondary institutions of their choice. Did you get into the school of your choice? If you did, well done!

Now the big question… how are you going to pay for it? Tuition, books, residence, meal plan, bus pass, groceries? That’s a lot of bills to pay! From government loans like OSAP to scholarships and bursaries from local community organizations, there are a number of different options and places you can look to help you support funding your post secondary journey and we have some advice on where you can look for them.