REVIEW OF Ontario Virtual School BY student, Elise Hertwig

(4.5) Student Experience

I took the course ENG3U because my day high school did not offer it, and I greatly enjoyed the experience. My teacher was well-versed in the subject, and I really loved having all coursework available to me from the beginning. One of my largest qualms with school is that I often do not have the freedom to work at my own pace and discretion. With OVS, I was able to work quickly and not have to wait for a teacher to upload more work/ hand out more assignments. I enjoyed this course's freedom and concise lessons. My teacher was very kind and gave helpful feedback when I asked for it. The assignments were great for preparing me for the next grade as well. I would recommend this medium to those who can hold themselves accountable and work hard for their grade, as teachers will not boost your marks for you/ for your perceived effort!

The Best Part

I most enjoyed having full control over my schedule for this course and when I would get the work done; in the other e-learning courses that I have done, I would finish all of the work provided and then be forced to wait until the teacher released more work, which was a huge waste of time for me. I was able to finish my course very quickly and show my learning effectively!

Suggested Improvements

I had a wonderful experience with this course. However, this format could prove to be very difficult for those who struggle with procrastination/ who cannot motivate themselves to work without a teacher to give them strict deadlines and force them to finish on time. The student is given all of the work at once, which was incredibly convenient for me, but could prove overwhelming to some. The student is also given 365 days to complete the course, which can either feel very low pressure and like a relief to some students, but for those who need to have lots of pressure and stress to get things done, it could cause them to put off working. I do not think that this needs to be changed or improved, but I don't think that this learning style fits all students.

Hidden Details

I was surprised that all lessons, course material, and rubrics were available as soon as I entered the course. In previous courses that were described as asynchronous, I still had to follow a schedule, and the teacher had to upload the work so that I could study, which was not ideal.

(5) School Leadership

This school focuses most on academics and work rather than the social aspects and teachers. Your teacher serves as someone to help you when you need it rather than as someone to hold your hand every step of the way, which I found to be very refreshing. My teacher seemed qualified and gave me good suggestions for how to improve my work and do the best I could.

(5) Teaching

At OVS, you have one teacher per course, and you can talk to them as needed. The lessons are guided/ still taught, but (in my course at least) the student did not need to attend Zoom meetings, etc. My teacher gave clear and helpful feedback.

(5) Academics

(5) School Life

(4.5) Admissions