Pre-AP/AP Program Review – Community Survey

Posted January 7, 2020

PRE-AP COMMUNITY SURVEY

SJAM was opened in 2004, and has offered the AP program as a grade 9 to 12 pathway since 2013. In 2015 we became one of the first schools in the WRDSB to pilot the 1:1 Chromebook initiative and have most recently in 2019 we have developed our Highlander Innovation Lab program which students apply to at Grades 11 and 12. We hope to remain at the leading edge of educational opportunities in the WRDSB.

During the 2019-2020 school year we are actively engaged in a vision process as a school. Our school culture is one of high expectations for all learners, and we value inclusive and innovative education opportunities for all students.

As a part of our process we are reviewing our AP programs in Math, English and Science. We have very few students (less than a dozen a year) who complete the ultimate goal of the AP program, which is the standardized exam at the end of the grade 12 year. We also struggle to maintain full classes of AP students in our grade 11 and 12 program, depending on course, which means other sections must have more than 30 students to compensate. Some AP classes have had to be cancelled for low numbers in the last few years. Additionally, the AP curriculum focus is provided for us , thus allowing for little content creativity from its teachers and a very traditional evaluation method.

We do know that there are many positive aspects of the AP program that our staff, students, and parent community value. Any school specialized programs SJAM offers should support the type of education our community wants but also meet the needs of all learners. We are considering whether or not our school specialized program opportunity should be AP in all 3 current subject areas or in all grades.

This survey will help us understand the opinions of the school community as we consider our future school program options. The survey will stay open until January 17th, 2020 and the results will be shared with the community on our website. We are grateful for your feedback and we thank you for your participation in this important consultation process.

Sincerely,
SJAM School Improvement Planning Team

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Semester 1 Exams

Posted January 6, 2020

Semester 1 final exams are scheduled for January 24th to 30th, 2020.

TUTORIAL DAY – Thursday, Jan. 23rd
A:  8:30-9:05
B:  9:10-9:45
D:  9:50-10:25
E:  10:30-11:05
LUNCH:  11:05-12:05
TUTORIAL TIME:  12:05-2:40

Friday, Jan. 24th – Period A Exams
Monday, Jan. 27th – Period B Exams
Tuesday, Jan. 28th – Period D Exams
Wednesday, Jan. 29th – Period E Exams

All exams are scheduled to begin at 9:00am

For details and exam policies/information, click the link below.

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WRDSB schools open January 8, 2020

Posted January 3, 2020

The Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF) has announced that its members (teachers and education workers) will participate in another one-day full withdrawal of services (strike-action) at a number of school boards across the province, on January 8, 2020. This one-day strike action does not impact WRDSB schools. Our schools will be open to students […]

Sir John A Macdonald SS welcomes the Waterloo Regional Police Service

Posted December 30, 2019

On January 2, members of Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) will be taking part in a training session onsite at Sir John A. Macdonald Secondary School in Waterloo. Throughout the year, we partner with WRPS to engage in training opportunities. This means there will be no access to the school on January 2nd for any […]

U of Waterloo Grade 10 Family Night – Feb. 20, 2020

Posted December 20, 2019

Grade 10 students and their families are invited to register for the U of Waterloo Grade 10 Family Night – February 20th, 2020 at the Hagey Hub & Humanities Theatre.

Academic and student services booths – 6 to 7 p.m.
Presentations and questions – 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Watch last year’s webcast and see tips for Grade 10 students.

Learn about:

  • studying what you love at university
  • university admissions
  • financing your education
  • the student experience (by current Waterloo students)

Questions? Please contact us at 519-888-4567, ext. 47569 or liaison@uwaterloo.ca

REGISTER HERE

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Holiday greetings from the WRDSB Director of Education

Posted December 19, 2019

With the holidays upon us and 2019 drawing to a close, it’s a great time to look back at another busy year. I’m immensely proud of the work that is being done to improve the opportunities for all the students in the Waterloo Region District School Board. It is not always easy to quantify the […]

Schools reopen December 19

Posted December 18, 2019

All WRDSB elementary and secondary schools will reopen for students on December 19 following the one-day rotating OSSTF strike. Before and after school programs will reopen and student transportation will operate as normal. We want to thank everyone for their patience during this time.

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