Grades 9-12 at Westmount Charter School

Why Westmount?

• a place for ALL gifted learners: whether you're an expert on nature, or a musician, or a voracious reader, or a math-science whiz, there is room for you at Westmount
• an emphasis on understanding concepts, and the opportunity to "show what you know" in dozens of different ways
• small class sizes, great friends and dedicated teachers who get to know you!
• an emphasis on learning how to learn, and Individualized Program Plans to help you work on meaningful educational goals
• a caring learning environment that honours differences: it's cool to be who you are!
• clubs, school teams, lunchtime intramurals
• humanitarian trips and High School "Human Condition" courses
• easy access via Calgary Transit, School bus, or in your own vehicle
• opportunities to proceed at your own rate once you have understood the concepts of the entire curriculum at the present level
• full range of High School courses including Advanced Placement (AP) Courses
• Summerstock Theatre program
• no switching schools - stay at Westmount from K to 12
• readiness for post-secondary: check our grad/alumni information, at right

Westmount Charter High School is not just your typical high school, and we draw gifted students who desire more than just a high school diploma. Click on the following links for information about Alberta's graduation requirements and Westmount's Gifted Education Diplomas: Alberta --- Westmount.

The concept of our high school is closely aligned to current research on learning and creating strong learning cultures, the needs of the gifted teenager preparing to enter post-secondary school, and the characteristics we hope to see in our graduating students. Our ultimate aim for our graduating students is that they will leave us with a strong sense of who they are, the skills and the independence to apply their learning in any given situation, and finally the desire to be a contributing member of the society in which they live. As a program for gifted learners, students have Individualized Program Plans (IPPs) that guide students toward achieving meaningful educational goals.

Due to the number of grade 9 students working at an advanced level and, therefore, needing access to grade 10 courses, grade 9 is considered part of High School at Westmount, and runs on the High School schedule.

Our intention is to continue to strengthen the quality and standards of our student performance with a definite emphasis on our students becoming strong independent learners and critical thinkers. We are working to have our students become creators of knowledge, not merely collectors of existing knowledge.

We offer a full-featured high school program, including the full range core subjects and the following: (click for links, where available)
-Optional Advanced Placement (AP) courses, recognized by hundreds of Universities.
-Locally-developed "Human Condition" courses, humanitarian travel opportunities, involvement with local volunteer initiatives
-Summerstock Theatre program
-Art, Comm Tech, Drama and Dance classes
-Band and Choir
-Phys Ed, Westmount Wild Rugby, Track and Field, Badminton, Basketball, Volleyball
-Language options: French, Spanish
-Extracurricular activities, including Debate, Model United Nations, Yearbook, Westmount Wire Student Newspaper, Math Contests, Outdoor Club, Jazz Band, Computer Club, HiP (Health in Perspective) mentoring
-Special events, including the annual Evening for Ahmad and Fawzia talent show,grade 12 Grad, grade 9 celebration, and Student Council 's student awards ceremony. (The Student Awards program was initiated by Student Council in 2007 - application forms are available in the spring on the Student Council's bulletin board).

Laptop Initiative
Westmount has established an ambitious one-to-one laptop initiative at mid/high school: click here for details.

Travel/Learning Opportunities
As part of Westmount's understanding of the world around us, a number of travel/learning opportunities are available to our students on a fee-for-service basis. In general, the trips are aimed at a particular grade, but in certain circumstances students in another grade (typically one grade higher than the rest of the group) may be included. The trips include:
-Westcoast Trip in Spring Break (grade 8);
-Holocaust Museum trip to Washington, DC in May (all grade 9; grade 10 students enrolled in "Human Condition" locally-developed courses are also invited);
-Ecuador Humanitarian trip in the Spring (grades 11-12) in odd-numbered years;
-International (European) trip in the Spring (grades 10-12; grade 9 may be eligible depending on numbers) in even-numbered years;
-in addition, a number of Westmount students have attended PeaceJam international conferences.

8 July 2010

High School Links

Westmount's Diploma exam results.

As a publicly-funded program for gifted learners, we do not charge tuition. For a schedule of our school fees, click here.

Click here for more information about how to choose a program for gifted education, and Westmount's program philosophy; click here for a message from one of our grade 12 valedictorians!

Westmount's Graduates
Our first grade 12 class - a small class of 21 students - graduated in 2006. In 2007, some 40 students graduated from grade 12, nearly double the size of that first class, and the 2008 grade 12 class had nearly 60 students. By 2010 our graduating class exceeded 80 students. The relationships forged between students and teachers contribute to the personalized instruction received by our High School students.

The creative learning environment and collegial exchange of ideas at Westmount provides excellent preparation for post-secondary education. For an indication of the high approval rating given to Westmount by its graduates, click here for the results of the most recent Alumni survey.

Our records (2008) show 79% of our grade 12 students proceeding directly to post-secondary studies: 56% to Alberta institutions, 23% to out-of-province institutions. By comparison, the most recent province-wide statistics indicate 41% of high school students making the transition to post-secondary studies within 4 years of starting grade 10.

Graduates of Westmount Charter School may now be found at nearly every degree-granting institution in Western Canada, plus University of Western Ontario, University of Waterloo, Brock University, Ryerson University, University of Toronto, Queen's University, Carleton University, University of Ottawa, McGill University, Mount Allison University, Dalhousie University, University of King's College, Acadia University, St. Francis Xavier University, plus overseas at University of Canterbury. For a press release sent to us by Mount Allison about one of our grads, click here!

The High School Day

Gr 6-12 classes begin at 8:30 AM and end at 3:17 PM. There are four instructional blocks, as follows:
1. 8:30 - 9:57
2. 10:00 - 11:27
3. 12:20 - 1:47
4. 1:50 - 3:17
To respect the needs of students with life-threatening food allergies, Westmount students are to refrain from bringing foods containing nuts or nut products to school. Gr 6-12 lunch (in the cafeteria) is from 11:27 AM -12:20 PM. Grade 7 and over are able to leave the campus at lunchtime if they wish. Students arriving late to classes will need to pick up a late slip from the Office.

Chinook Cafeteria offers food service most weeks from Mon-Wed; for other lunch options, check the Health and Wellness page.

In order to promote student security, all visitors to the school, including Westmount parents, are required to obtain a Westmount photo ID badge, or sign in at the entrance to receive a visitor's badge. All students from grade 6-12 also have photo ID badges and lanyards, as part of Westmount's commitment to student safety and security. Staff are available to supervise students from 8:15 AM-4:00 PM only.