REVIEW OF Ontario Virtual School BY student, Kara Freeman

(3.5) Student Experience

Overall, Ontario Virtual School is an online platform that allows students to work through a course of their choosing, at their own pace. It is a simple opportunity for students to quickly work through a course over the summer or even redo a course to achieve a higher grade if necessary. Ontario Virtual School includes all the resources a student enrolled in day school would have. Lessons are formatted in a video format where there is a slide presentation alongside a teacher talking, allowing visual and auditory learners to thrive. You are also assigned a teacher who is there to support you along the journey through your course by quickly responding to emails and offering helpful feedback on assignments. If there is one thing I could change, it would be a different or quicker way to communicate with teachers instead of primarily communicating through email. There is also live tutoring every day of the week for those taking math or science courses, with no additional charge for students in need of extra support.

The Best Part

The best part about Ontario Virtual School is that you get to work through the material and lessons at your own pace. There are no due dates or deadlines, making it less stressful, and you can review lessons multiple times over if needed.

Suggested Improvements

I wish there was a simpler way to communicate with teachers. Our primary source of communication is through email, and Ontario Virtual School clearly states that we are expected to send emails in a very professional manner. I wish there was a more casual chat feature so it could be more like having a regular conversation with a teacher. It would also likely cut down on email response times, as it was sometimes difficult to wait a few days for a response when you had a question you needed answered as soon as possible for an assignment.

Hidden Details

A new student may be surprised by how interactive Ontario Virtual School is! There are practice questions within each lesson to solidify new learning and gamification features that allow you to test your course knowledge by challenging other students in real time.

(3.5) School Leadership

(3) Teaching

In PSK4U, it varied with the assignment. Some assignments were very clear about what was expected of you, with clear rubrics, instructions and examples, whereas other assignments were very open-ended, making it extremely difficult to understand what was expected of me.

(4) Academics

(1) Extracurriculars

Due to the fact that this is an online school, there are no extracurricular activities. Perhaps additional activities outside of courses could be added for students to get involved with.

(4.5) Students

(4) School Life

(2.5) Community

Due to the fact that this school is an online school, sometimes it can feel very isolated or lonely if you are the only student you know attending.

(2.5) School Location

(5) Admissions

Admissions were extremely simple. You create an account, choose the course you want to complete, pay, and finally submit your prerequisites, if necessary, for your teacher to review. Once approved, you are able to start learning.