Mississauga Peel private schools

For better or for worse, summer vacation is winding down and soon families will no longer be able to ignore those back-to-school ads on television. However, there are a few tips and tricks to get children excited for the upcoming school season, and St. Jude's Academy has a number of key events to attend this month in preparation for the return to school!

1. Back-to-school shopping. Children love to receive gifts, so take your kids shopping with you and allow them to pick out their own pencils, erasers, and backpacks. This will help them get excited for the upcoming school season by allowing them to pick customized supplies instead of getting regular business office supplies.

2. Organize a play-date with a fellow student. It may have been difficult for your child to spend time with their school friends during the summer, especially when everyone has different vacation schedules and activities. Arrange for a play-date before the official start of school, so the children can get excited about seeing each other every day in the classroom!

3. Sign your child up for extracurricular activities at the private school. Perhaps your family's schedule may have prevented you from signing up for sports this summer, but with the return to school comes the return of extracurricular activities! Encourage your child to participate in a sports team at your Mississauga private school, or even a lunchtime club. The key is to try to find a positive effect of having to return to school in September.

Starting this Monday August 29, St. Jude's Academy is hosting several orientation nights for various grades. This is a great way for SJA families, both new and returning, to hear important news and updates for the coming private school year.  Families will also have a chance to meet with their child's teacher, and view their child's classroom.

And if you missed out this year, don't forget for next summer that St. Jude's Academy organizes and hosts an 8-week long camp for children in the summer! Each weekday is filled with fun activities like games, crafts, sports, and baking, and special events are planned for the children to embark on, like outings to parks. To learn more, click here.

Mississauga private schools

Ontario's kindergarten classes are still overcrowded after the province instituted all-day kindergarten in 2014. In addition to the new play-based learning model that was implemented, elementary school teachers report an inability to effectively follow the new program of allowing children to move around the classroom freely and participate in low-key "playful" learning activities. This new administrative attitude to learning was expected to result in meaningful childhood development by reducing the time young children spend chained to a desk. However, due to the vastly overcrowded classrooms, kindergarten teachers are struggling to adhere to this new learning model which has great potential. With an inflated child-to-teacher ratio, public school teachers are worried that full-day kindergarten is de-evolving into an unmanageable and chaotic classroom experience. Heavy criticism is also coming from Ontario taxpayers because the shift to all-day kindergarten was a costly expenditure and continues to be a big provincial budget item.

I have said this before, but this is why one of the greatest advantages to enrolling your child in a private school is their small class sizes. The small student-to-teacher ratio prevents your child from having an overwhelming school experience. Instead they benefit from meaningful teacher interaction and a stress-free classroom with more available learning resources they do not have to compete with twenty other students for.

Source:
http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/kindergarten/


What is the "whole child" philosophy, and why do so many educators support it, including those at St. Jude's Academy? It is a fairly recent education model adapted from Lynn Stoddard's book: Educating for Human Greatness. Take a moment to consider that the average person spends approximately 15% of their entire life in school, from junior kindergarten to grade 12. The "whole child" philosophy recognizes the immense role schooling possesses during childhood, and that great responsibility requires more attention to a child's growth and development than just a fixation with their measurable qualities and skills, i.e. standardized test scores and knowledge retention. It's about understanding the value of encouraging qualities that will serve students as they grow into adulthood and become civic-minded world citizens, part of a global network that has been set in front of us due to twenty-first century globalization and the Digital Age.
 
It is not prudent to ignore the inseparable social role schools occupy in addition to their educational role as centers of learning. Through the "whole child" approach, participating schools utilize holistic teaching models to augment and support children's "multiple intelligences" by tailoring lessons and instruction to focus on:
 
- cognitive-intellectual activity
- creative-intuitive activity (the arts) 
- structured physical movement and unstructured (self-directed play) 
- community involvement
 
Parents and university admission committees often cite "well-roundedness" as an ideal character attribute for students; yet how can a child become a well-rounded individual if they do not receive a well-rounded education? This is what the "whole child" philosophy seeks to rectify. When Lynn Stoddard surveyed parents for his book, he discovered that almost all parents believe that an education should provide character development for their children, not just an education strictly by the books. In today's school climate, the deciding factor for making the switch to private school is often cited by parents as the necessity for finding a school that provides equal support to developing a child's emotional and social needs in addition to their academic requirements. 
 
Reference:http://www.educatethewholechild.org/what-is-it/
private school benefits learning

In order to prevent students from becoming passive learners and instead develop important life skills such as collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving, IB World schools encourage inquiry-based learning in the classroom. This is when classroom learning and discussions are driven by the students themselves, whose questions are utilized by the teacher and guided to ensure all the material is being covered, but in a way that allows students to exercise their agency, become confident speakers in front of their peers, and be curious about their education!

Research has demonstrated that when students participate in meaningful classroom discussions and actively participate in their own quest for knowledge, they make deeper connections to concepts which results in long-term academic and professional benefits. With inquiry-based learning, when students ask questions educators are not simply giving them the answers like a lightning round Q&A session. Teachers work with students to discover the rights answers together. Students are not simply being taught the answers, they are being provided with the process to discover solutions, which they will learn to adapt and apply to other situations. This enables students to feel proud about their progress, and motivates them to participate in class and become more interested in the material being covered.

To learn about the concept-based learning model we employ at St. Jude's Academy, please check out Ms. Chin's post!

I hope you all have a wonderful day!

References:
http://www.edutopia.org/practice/wildwood-inquiry-based-learning-developing-student-driven-questions
http://blogs.ibo.org/blog/2016/02/04/when-the-student-becomes-the-teacher/



In a traditional Ontario public school, students are told that only their course averages from grades 11 and 12 count towards their university admission profile. While this is true, it leads to the creation of the mentality among students that for grades 9 and 10, you do not have to really worry about your grades, because what Canadian university will ever see them? I would argue that this is a dangerous mindset for students to adopt in their early high school years. There is a significant jump in the level of difficulty for coursework and lesson material between grades 10 and 11, from the junior grades to the senior. This jump already exists independently, but it becomes much more difficult for students to overcome when they have no practice seriously applying themselves in the previous years of high school. Grade 11 then becomes a stumbling block for some students and sets them back from their peers who, mostly thanks to their own good habits, are prepared for the sudden demands of senior high school.

IB World private schools in Ontario do not offer the traditional grade denomination as public schools. The Diploma Program (DP) is for students aged 16 to 18 and provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into higher education, recognized by many universities worldwide. However, the Middle Years Program (MYP) is for children aged 11 to 16, thus covering and embracing a larger cohort of students than the traditional grades of  8, 9, 10 etc. do, which are single stand-alone entities. By belonging to an all-encompassing program, especially with the ultimate goal of graduating to the next IB Program, students are provided with the framework and support to achieve academically and stay on track towards pursuing their post-graduate dreams. Graduating to the IB Diploma Program is a great achievement within the private school journey, and motivates students to excel in their coursework during their time in the MYP. I strongly believe that this institutional organization of grades supports university-seeking students much more effectively than the status quo in our public schools.





Dr. Benjamin Bloom was an education researcher and psychologist who famously developed his taxonomy of learning in 1956. He classified types of learning into three major hierarchical models. For cognitive learning, he classified more passive learning like gaining knowledge, comprehension, and rote learning as low-level cognitive work, while more engaged learning such as evaluation, application, and synthesis was deemed to be high-level cognitive work. As part of his overall taxonomy, he identified three domains of learning: cognitive (thinking), affective  (emotion/feeling), and psychomotor (physical/kinesthetic).

His purpose was to engineer learning methods that would promote a higher level of learning by inducing high-level cognitive work. He therefore looked down upon rote memorization and passive learning methods, and in fact outlined and ranked the order of effective learning elements from worst to best (in his opinion that is):
- remembering - recalling basic facts
- understanding - explaining said newly learned facts or ideas
- applying - using the information in new situation
- analyzing - making connections
- evaluating - justifying a decision with reasoned argument
- create or synthesize - produce new or original work

His taxonomy has been highly influential for educators worldwide. Learning about Bloom's taxonomy is important for teachers wishing to develop an effective lesson approach. Based on his taxonomy, one can find great support for Switzerland's IB concept-based learning style, employed here at St. Jude's Academy. To learn about concept-based learning, please take a look at Ms. Chin's post: https://sjamypchin.wordpress.com/2016/07/19/private-schools-concept-based-learning/

Image Credit: K. Aainsqatsi, 5 May 2008, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Blooms_rose.svg, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported.  
Sources:
http://thesecondprinciple.com/instructional-design/threedomainsoflearning/
https://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/blooms-taxonomy/


Toronto Star education reporter extraordinaire Louise Brown provides definitive research that shows that a university education does lead to an above-average income with a substantial growth in earnings over time. The study cited was conducted by the Education Policy Research Initiative in tandem with Statistics Canada, and reached its conclusion after tracking the annual income of over 340,000 graduates from 14 colleges and universities across four provinces from 2005 to 2013. One particular fact from the report that I would like to quote is: "University grads with a BA saw their salaries grow by about $4,200 per year".

But aside from reiterating these impressive statistics (which you can read for yourself over at The Star), I would like to impress upon my readers that now that the importance of a university education has been established in achieving a higher income, it is therefore equally important to ensure admittance into said university program. How can one guarantee this outcome? Enrolling at an Ontario private school is a good start. The majority of the province's private schools report a near 100% university admission rate among their graduating students. However, selecting an International Baccalaureate (IB) World school is even more prudent to ensuring student success and thereby gaining admittance to the most coveted universities. Because the IB Diploma Program is an international standardized education system, universities worldwide recognize its legitimacy, reputation, and prestige and it carries great weight during the application process.


Reference:
https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/07/26/higher-education-does-lead-to-higher-incomes-university-of-ottawa-study.html



I have compiled a few more tips for fellow educators and parents to use to help children stay focused during a lesson! I have personal experience with some of these, while others I learned from researching online and recommend trying out! You can click [here] for my first post.

4) Confiscate Cell Phones at the Start of Class. Many schools in South Korea do this, where students are notoriously tech-savvy and even the younger children come to school weighed down with a Samsung Note 7. As students enter the classroom, they are asked by their teachers (seun seng nim 선생님) to deposit their cell phones in a communal bin at the front, and can only retrieve their electronic property during the lunch break and then again after school. I am intrigued by this idea because it serves two purposes: is prevents students from ignoring the lesson, as well as preventing other students from disrupting the class whenever they forget to put their phone on silent. Cell phones are fast becoming public enemy number one in schools. They are exceedingly hard to regulate, and are a huge player when it comes to disrupting classroom learning.

5) Ask Questions. A healthy classroom should have questions coming from both sides: from instructors and students. But sometimes no matter how encouraging you are, there will be days when students do not ask any questions during the lesson. Now, this does not necessarily mean they are not paying attention, but studies demonstrate the important role questions play in learning, especially the right types of questions. For each lesson, try to come up with some questions to punctuate your lecture that will facilitate classroom discussion and students' engagement and participation. These questions shouldn't feel like you are "quizzing" your students, as if you are putting them on the spot. I highly recommend taking a look at this amazing resource from The Teaching Center that will teach you all about asking the right questions, and how different types of questions improve the retention of information and critical thinking. 

6) Enthusiasm is Contagious. Students will feed off of your energy. Even if they find the subject boring, students will demonstrate interest if they are captivated by an enthusiastic instructor who knows how to make the lesson interesting, entertaining, engaging, etc. If you can find ways to visibly show your own interest in the lesson, you really can inspire students to pay attention and get involved in the content.

Please let me know in the comments what you think! Have a fantastic day.



With the rise of ADHD diagnoses and declining test scores, it is more imperative than ever to ensure students are actively digesting the material they learn in class. The apathetic and unmotivated student can be an educator's worst nightmare. The following post is a comprehensive guide for fellow instructors and parents to learn about how to keep students engaged  in their education, compiled from my own experience and outside research. Some of these tips may work better for younger children, but mostly they provide a great foundation for students of all ages. Let's get to it!

1) Passive Learning Can Create Passive Learners. Passive learning is a traditional instructional style in which students merely take a compendium of notes while the teacher lectures. The bell rings, the students leave, and all of the day's lessons remain stowed safely away in a notebook, only to be viewed again during exam season. Now, some students are great active listeners, but the reality is students are either too busy feverishly recording the lecture to actually digest the information being thrown at them, or the wave of new knowledge inundates them and they spend the class in a daze, unable to get a word in edgewise. In the higher grades, this teaching style is necessary to impart the necessary material required for the course, but all things in moderation I say. And especially for students below the age of 14, an alternate teaching style that facilitates classroom discussions, group activities, and in-class assignments is much more conducive for the retention of new information. One solution? Check out private schools that offer concept-based learning.

2) Get Active. Especially for younger students, it is inevitable: kids get the jitters! Why do you think Sweden gives its students free time every hour for 15 minutes? Because it works! It dramatically improves a child's concentration and demonstrably affects their engagement in the classroom in a positive manner. Now, this is not something you are going to find in North American public schools. I think in Ontario especially the educational status quo needs a reform on this matter, especially since many elementary schools have eliminated their second recess (the second 15-minute break that used to occur after lunch). But I am proud to say that at St. Jude's Academy, students are not only allowed, but encouraged, to move around the classroom to support physical health. And it does help.

3) Change Up the Classroom Environment or Seating Plan. This is a good technique because it represents a simple and manageable change that will help keep students engaged. Sitting next to a new classmate every month in a different desk or in a rearranged classroom helps prevent stagnation. A new physical perspective might actually result in a new mental perspective!

These are just three of my top tips for now. If you are interested in reading more, I can publish a second post with even more ways to help keep students engaged in the classroom. Thanks for reading!



References and Other Great Resources:

http://www.edutopia.org/classroom-student-participation-tips
http://archive.brookespublishing.com/articles/ed-article-0212.htm
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2013/10/29/five-key-strategies-to-getkeep-kids-engaged-at-school/
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/columnists/mcdonald/mcdonald007.shtml
http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/06/how-finland-keeps-kids-focused/373544/

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