REVIEW OF Rosseau Lake College BY student, Christopher Gan

(4.5) Student Experience

Rosseau Lake College is an incredible outdoor, future-forward, and inclusive school. Personally, I love this school. Outdoor Education and annual out trips (4-5 day camping trips) offer activities that you would not regularly see in other schools, exposing me to different and more interesting experiences. I also love the small teacher-to-student ratio, which makes me feel important to the teachers and staff. Having one-on-one tutoring and mentorship in subjects, especially for me, like math and history, has helped me develop strong and effective work habits such as collaboration, determination, initiative, and self-regulation. One thing I wish I had known is how supportive and kind the students are. At first, I was a bit skeptical about coming here, scared of new experiences that were outside my comfort zone, but if I had known how supportive the students and staff were, my decision to come would have been much easier. One thing I would change about this school is that we have more winter sports time. In fall and spring, we have 5 days of sports a week; however, in winter we only have three sport days, and sometimes our facilities are being used for either basketball or volleyball competitive games, so there can be as few as 2 practices a week. I personally love athletics; that's why this is the thing I would change.

(5) School Leadership

Rosseau Lake College is a successful, immersive environment where staff really help students strive to their full potential, whether that be in athletics, academics, or leadership. The staff here at Rosseau Lake College helps students achieve Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. I really don't think there is much to change when it comes to school leadership. This is really a strong point at RLC, with meeting with mentors twice a week and really, really great mentors. My mentors in RLC were definitely Mr. Len Beaulne, Mr. Trent Howell, and Mr. Nathaniel Smart. This only further backs how Rosseau Lake College immerses itself in a caring and success-oriented environment.

(5) Teaching

Teachers here don't ask too much or not enough of you. What they ask for is for you to take responsibility and initiative in your learning. Success, I feel, is definitely reflected by your grades; however, what they really define success as is that you realize and achieve your fullest potential. Also, throughout your RLC career, teachers will teach you very important work habits and qualities. Not just how to do quadratic formulas or the causes of WW1 but things like determination, leadership, initiative, collaboration, and self-regulation. Also, the small student-to-teacher ratio definitely helps with progressive future learning.

(5) Academics

Personally, for me, it really depends on the subject. For me, math has always been new. I've always needed a bit of extra help when it comes to math. Same with history; however, when it came to Outdoor Ed and Science, I never needed much help. The big thing I feel you will take away in life from RLC is "Discovery Day". Discovery Day is not just about discovering ways to link your subjects together; it's about the future planning aspect, and without the restrictions of the classroom, it gives you more opportunities to take initiative. You also have to have discipline. With more freedom comes more responsibilities. Teachers will not be breathing down your neck with Discovery Days, so you have to self-regulate your time in order to succeed. That is what I feel are the most important skills to take away and to be used later on in life.

(4) Extracurriculars

RLC participates in various extracurricular clubs and athletic teams. One thing I really think the school needs to address is the length of our sports teams' practice time. During the winter term, I feel our athletic teams do not have enough time to practice. You will see that during the spring and fall terms our athletic teams succeed more frequently than our winter term athletics. This is because our teams in fall and spring have one hour of practice time every day 4 days a week and 1h 30m of practice on Fridays. In the winter term, we have 45-minute practices on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and 1h30m on Fridays. You see the issue here... In terms of whether there is enough variety so that students are able to do the things they want to, there is definitely enough variety, in my opinion.

(5) Students

Rosseau Lake College is filled with students who are diverse and extremely inclusive, kind, and caring. With the small school size, RLC does not feel like a city or a town; it feels more like a close-knit family. Students, when first coming to RLC, might not succeed at first, in my opinion... I definitely did not. However, a lot of foreign ESL students who have learned the things we have learned, like math, from abroad do succeed. Those from the area have to adapt to actually more freedom. With more freedom, there's no teacher to hound you to do your work; you have to take the initiative to learn something that needs time to become a habit. Everyone in RLC feels included, I feel. Again, the small-size school: everyone knows everyone, really.