REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ONTARIO SECONDARY SCHOOL DIPLOMA (OSSD)

In order to receive an Ontario Secondary Schools Diploma (OSSD) under the Ontario Secondary Schools, Grade 9-12: Program and Diploma Requirements (OSS), students are expected to successfully complete 30 credits from a variety of subjects. There are 18 compulsory credits and 12 optional ones. Credits are granted in recognition of the successful completion of course work. The Ministry of Education defines a credit in the following manner:

"A credit is granted in recognition of the successful completion of a course for which a minimum of 110 hours has been scheduled".

PLUS 40 Hours of Community Involvement Activities
PLUS Provincial Literacy Requirement
*A maximum of 2 credits in Cooperative Education can count as compulsory credits

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT ACTIVITIES

All students must complete a minimum of 40 hours of unpaid community involvement activities before graduating from high school. This requirement is designed to encourage students to develop awareness and understanding of civic responsibility and of the role they can play in supporting and strengthening their communities.

Students, in collaboration with their parents, guardian, and the school administration will be able to choose their own community involvement activities, within guidelines that will be provided by the J. Addison administration. Students will be responsible for fulfilling this requirement on their own time, and for keeping a record of their activities on a form supplied by the school. Completion of the required hours must be documented and submitted to the school by the student. The school's administration will offer continued assistance and support.

PROVINCIAL LITERACY REQUIREMENT

All students are required to meet the literacy graduation requirement outlined in Ontario Secondary Schools, Grades 9 to 12: Program and Diploma Requirements, 1999 (OSS) in an order to earn an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD). Most students will meet the requirement by successfully completing the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) or the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course (OSSLC).

Under the Principal's and/or Adjudication Committee's approval, some students may be permitted to meet the requirement through a special adjudication process. When successfully completed or addressed, the Provincial Literacy Requirement will be recorded on the Ontario Student Transcript.

The secondary school literacy graduation requirement is based on the expectations for reading and writing throughout the Ontario curriculum up to and including Grade 9. Its purpose is to determine whether students have the skills in reading and writing that they will need to succeed at school, at work, and in daily life.

SUBSTITUTIONS FOR COMPULSORY CREDITS

In order to add flexibility in designing a student's program and to ensure that all students can qualify for the OSSD, substitutions may be made for a limited number of compulsory credits. To meet individual students' needs, the Principal may replace up to three credits (or the equivalent in half-credits) with courses selected from the remaining courses offered by the school that meet the requirements for compulsory credits. In all cases, the number of compulsory and optional credits will not be less than 30 to earn the OSSD. Substitutions will be made to promote and enhance student learning or to meet special needs and interests. Each substitution will be noted on the Ontario Student Transcript.