ONTARIO PROGRAM IN CHINA

At Yinghua International School, we offer both the Chinese Curriculum and the Ontario Curriculum for two diplomas. Students start in our program at the SR1 – Gr.10 level. Here the students take ESL course (5 levels), Learning Strategies, and Career Studies. They study in the Ontario program for 2 hours a day.

In SR2-GR11, the students take English2D/3U, Math 3U and Physics3U. We have the students in our program for about 3 hors a day.

During Sr1 and Sr2 the students are studying to take the Chinese Provincial exams, Hui Kao. In the Ontario program we are teaching English skills in reading, writing, listening, and speaking. The students must adjust to our style of teaching, participating in class by asking and answering questions, joining in the dialogue, team work, giving presentations and doing homework. They are not used to having 70% of their mark coming from their daily work and only 30% on the exam. They are used to 100% exam mark. So their energies are spent on studying for the final exam and the Hui Kao. The teachers need to adjust to this passive style of learning and develop the skills necessary to engage the students actively in their learning. The students also appear to have a lack of general knowledge, which makes programming for them more difficult.

In Sr3 the students are taking a full complement of Ontario Courses to obtain the 10 Ontario courses they need or the OSSD. In this year the students will also write the Ontario Literacy Test, CAEL and IELTS.

We teach the curriculum provided by the Ontario Ministry of Education for secondary schools. Evaluation and assessment is done using the expectations and achievement charts of the Ministry.? We report on student progress four times throughout the year, (a Mid-term in November, end of term in January, a midterm in April and a final end of term semester 2). The students are granted a 20 equivalent credits from their Chinese studies and must obtain 10 Ontario credits in one and a half years. No credits are granted for ESL.