New courses, new curriculum, new bus at OSS

By Vanessa Broadbent

Osoyoos Times

A new school year is underway at Osoyoos Secondary School with a few more course and extracurricular options for students to choose from.

The school saw a slight increase in students, with 210 attending this year compared to 201 last year.

“We’re not seeing the significant gains the elementary school is seeing, however we hopefully will see those significant gains later on,” principal Scott Tremblay said.

“We’ve had some people move into the area, and actually move into the area – purchased homes or gained employment in the area – which is good, it’s not transient gains, which is nice.”

The school also welcomed three new staff members: Aaron Kesler is teaching math and science, Mike Wilms is the school’s new counsellor and Maxine Bureau is teaching food studies.

A few new courses have been added to the timetable and students of all grades can now choose between French and Spanish language courses, and a new math course, Foundations 12, has been added as well.

In language arts, Grade 11 students can take Composition 11 or New Media 11.

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Drama courses are split for Grade 8, Grade 9 and Grades 10 to 12, and students are already preparing for this year’s production of The Addams Family.

All grades can also take trades classes including automotive, woodshop, metal and robotics.

As for music, due to a lack of interest classes aren’t offered this year but Tremblay hopes to restart them again.

“It’s tough. A lot of schools are really struggling to get music programs going,” he said. “It’s going to be a real loss but hopefully we can get it going again.”

The provincial Ministry of Education launched its new curriculum for Grades 11 and 12 this year, created to equip students with competencies needed in a constantly changing and technological workforce.

One example is the new Composition 11 and New Media 11 courses, Tremblay said.

“It’s not overall necessarily changing the flavour of what the course is, but it is changing focus, so the kids are still writing essays and they’re still writing paragraphs and they’re still responding, still reading in New Media, but they’re just looking at it in a different lens.”

A few course names have also changed: Biology 11 is now Life Sciences and Biology 12 is Anatomy and Physiology, similar to what the courses would be called in university, Tremblay said.

“The curriculum isn’t significantly different. There are aspects that have changed, things have been taken out and there have also been some additions.”

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Career education programs for Grades 11 and 12 have also undergone a revamp. The programs will include monthly field trips to different facilities in the South Okanagan. On the list are wineries, a fish hatchery, a sawmill and a waste water treatment plant.

“It’s a big focus of our school plan this year, experiential learning and getting kids out on the land and learning off the land, getting them out of the classroom because they’re all around us,” Tremblay said.

“It’s very exploratory, figuring out what are the potential jobs out there … We’re trying to get the kids exposed to a variety of job markets, as well as a variety of occupations.”

The new curriculum also emphasizes Indigenous learning and working with local Indigenous communities.

OSS staff are incorporating the First Peoples Principals of Learning, which focus on experiential learning, into their classes and lessons.

“It’s a holistic way of learning too,” Tremblay said. “A lot of times, those are the moments we remember, the moments where we’re hands on.”

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To help with field trips, the school has also added a second bus to its fleet, partly funded by fundraising.

“We’re very fortunate and excited to have that,” vice principal Brad Burns said. “That not only is for our athletic teams, but for all of our clubs and classes.”

As for athletics, the school has added two new sports to its academic program: swimming and curling.

Tremblay is coaching a five-student swim team in Penticton on Saturdays.

“I just want to get my feet wet and get the kids’ feet wet and get the ball rolling,” he said.

The swimmers train with the team from Similkameen Elementary Secondary School in Keremeos, and will be competing in regionals in October and provincials in November.

Along with curling, a few students are also looking into competing in downhill skiing or snowboarding with BC School Sports, Burns said.

Boys and girls basketball, soccer and volleyball teams are returning as well.

“For a small school, we offer a lot,” Burns said. “We’re just looking forward to a great year. There are so many awesome things that are going on at the school.”