REVIEW OF Ontario Virtual School BY student, Doruk Demir

(4.5) Student Experience

I took MHF4U with OVS over the summer as an extra Ontario credit alongside my full IB program at my day school. It worked out better than I expected. The lessons are video-based, and you go at your own pace (1-year time limit), which meant I could do a lot of lessons when I was free and dial back when I was packed. Ms. Panacci was my teacher, and marking came back fast, usually within 1-2 days, with good feedback and corrections if there were any mistakes. The unit tests and final are proctored, which took some coordinating on my end, so I encourage you to plan that ahead of time instead of leaving it to the last moment. Thankfully, my teacher was very responsive and fast with her replies to my emails. The tests can take some time to finish, but the 4-hour time limit is nice, as it removes some pressure. I finished with a high average, and it took me around 2 months during the summer to complete the course. I do recommend this course to anyone looking for credits outside school time. The staff and admin are very quick; they approved my prerequisites within 48 hours, and I had no technical issues.

The Best Part

The flexibility. You're not trapped in a timetable, so I could do a full unit on a slow weekend and barely touch it during a busy week. Being able to finish a whole Grade 12 course over the summer without it eating into my school year was amazing. Another thing is that each lesson has little mini quizzes and games, which are quite enjoyable to complete.

Suggested Improvements

The lack of deadlines can be seen as a double-edged sword. They have a student planner, but I haven't found much use in it. The flexibility is the best part of OVS, but it also means nothing stops you from falling behind or procrastinating. I almost went an entire 2 weeks without opening a single lesson because I figured the course had 1 year left to complete. An optional weekly pacing guide showing roughly where you should be would motivate students and increase their discipline.

Hidden Details

You actually get a real teacher, not just a video of lessons. I emailed Ms. Panacci a few times and got proper answers back rapidly. Also, as mentioned previously, the freedom OVS offers is that students can be fully self-paced. Students can also be shocked at the amount of practice quizzes and homework that OVS offers. Such as, in the MHF4U course, there were practice quizzes with multiple questions after every lesson. New students may be overwhelmed by the number of lessons in some topics, but they are relatively easy to follow and understand. Also, new students can book 1:1 live tutoring, available 7 days a week for the math and science courses.

(4) School Leadership

My main contact was my teacher, Ms. Panacci, and she was good, quick with marking and clear when I had questions. The admin side was also responsive, and all needed requirements were approved swiftly and with ease. I can't comment on guidance or leadership beyond that, since I did not interact with them the way you would at a day school. But regarding everything else, I found no problems. My teacher was super respectful, responsive, and well-mannered. I would definitely recommend this team of people.

(5) Teaching

Expectations were always clear. Each unit lays out what you need to know before the test, and the practice questions line up with what actually shows up, so I never felt like I was guessing. Which is not always true in a regular classroom. Ms. Panacci was amazing regarding turnaround. Tests came back within days with actual comments and feedback, so I could fix a mistake before it carried into the next unit. When I would email her regarding a finished test, she would respond very quickly, in a comprehensive manner, and it was professional. She would let me know if she received the test and would tell me that she would soon begin grading it. The workload felt right for a Grade 12 course. It's not watered down because it's online; you still have to show full work and understand the material. Your knowledge and communication are some of the most important factors, especially on a test.

(4) Academics

The difficulty felt about right. MHF4U is a demanding course regardless, and OVS did not cut any corners. In this course, we covered polynomial and rational functions, trig identities, logarithms, and combined functions, etc., which all got proper coverage with questions that actually made you reflect and think, and each concept in that unit was tested. The course was split into 4 units, each with respective parts. Sometimes the pacing can be considered the harder part rather than the content. Because you set your own schedule, a unit can go by fast, and you have to be honest with yourself about whether you actually understood it before moving on. Concerning the usefulness, Advanced Functions is essential as a foundation for university calculus or for anyone entering engineering or science.

(3) School Life

This question doesn't translate well to an online school, since there's no campus to walk anyone through. But if I were showing someone around the platform, I'd start with the lesson interface, because that's where you spend almost all your time, and it's what determines whether the whole thing works for you.

(5) Admissions

There isn't really an admissions process, which is the point. You pick your course, register online, pay, send the prerequisites, and you're in within a day or two. Depending on whether you have the prerequisites, you can just purchase the course needed for the prerequisites. The only advice I'd give is to sort out the logistics early rather than the enrolment itself. Make sure the credit will actually count the way you expect at your day school, and look into how the proctored exam works before you're near the end. Those are the parts that take some planning.