Knowing where to go or who to speak to when it comes to high school can sometimes be tricky. Whether you’re a parent guiding your highschooler, or a student trying to figure something out on your own, this page should help you with some common questions about managing your high school career.
How do I find the Student Portal?
One of the questions we get a lot is “Where is the Student Portal”? The Student Portal for grades 7-12 can be found at the bottom of your school website. All portals, including the Parent Portal, can also be found at the bottom of any page on the board website.
Where do I go if I need help with…
- Navigating our school system – The general rule of thumb is to start with the person closest to the issue that needs to be addressed and work from there. Most issues can be resolved at the school level by first talking with your Classroom Educator, Vice-Principal or Principal by email or phone call. Learn more about navigating our school system.
- Choosing and changing my courses – Your guidance counsellor will be the most knowledgeable on what courses you will need to take to achieve your goals. You can also use myBlueprint to manage your courses.
- Timetable and scheduling conflicts – Your guidance counsellor can help advise you on options such as e-learning that can help your timetable fit your needs.
- Figuring out what I’m good at – Your guidance counsellor has assessment tools and resources to help you explore your interests, aptitudes, skills and abilities.
- Understanding my course work – Teachers can make themselves available either before and after school or during lunch to help students with course material. All you have to do is ask! You can also check with your homeroom teacher or guidance counsellor about the peer support program for your school.
Hopefully, there is a noticeable trend that you have picked up here– Speak to your Guidance Counsellors and Teachers when you need help. They have your success in mind!
Taking care of your well-being
We know that students need a safe, inclusive and accepting school environment to succeed. Our staff and students work together to ensure we uphold our Safe, inclusive, and accepting schools policy.
If a student ever needs to talk to someone, we have several services available to support them on their journey. A great first step is a visit to the guidance counsellor’s office. In addition to having student-led clubs and organizations that promote inclusivity and belonging, we also have the OCSBConnect app which is an anonymous way students can share tips on incidents regarding bullying at school.
No more applied or academic tracks for students
Starting in September 2022, students entering grade 9 will take classes as one stream instead of having to choose between applied or academic tracks. This means all grade 9 students will take classes together. This change will impact math, science, geography, English and French as a second language courses. You can learn more about it in our blog, Ontario to End Streaming for all Grade 9 Courses Next Year.
Read more posts from this series
This is part of a series of posts focused on high school at the OCSB.
- Catholic High Schools in Ottawa – Ready For High School Issue 1
- Completing your Volunteer Hours – Ready For High School Issue 2
- What is SHSM?
- Starting an apprenticeship
- What is the Dual Credit Program?
- What is Co-Op?