My family and I have the opportunity of moving to the GTA from the UK this summer. We’d need to switch our kids into a high school from a good school in the UK.

While we've already done a lot of homework and local legwork, has anyone had experience of moving older teenagers into the Ontario education system from the UK? What advice would you have for their wellbeing and education pathways?

We quite like the credit-based diploma approach over the UK's obsession of teaching to the exam. But we're worried the quality of high schooling is floundering with Doug Ford’s cuts. One school we visited talked about some class sizes being 40+! Are we plain crazy to consider relocating at this stage?

Thank you for your advice. This is a great forum and I appreciate the generosity of people’s time and help.

Hi there! We moved over 10 years ago with a 12 and 16yo - they went into Grades 7 and 11. The high schooler had just completed GCSEs and went through a process which evaluated her results and awarded her credits to count towards her high school diploma. They also gave her credit for voluntary work she’d done in the UK towards her volunteer hours - need 40 by the end of high school. She did have to do the standard english test in a Grade 11 which is routinely done in Grade 9 or 10, I forget which.
My advice would be to contact the school or schools where you’re likely to end up and seek advice from the guidance department before you move. They advised us exactly what was needed for her to start at school.
We found the transition straightforward- it was interesting to go to a far wider choice of subjects than she would have done at a UK high school for A Levels and she got involved in both music and drama, both in school and extra curricular, which hadn’t been such an easy option in the UK. In our experience, high school pupils have far more opportunity to get involved in wider and less academic areas in some cases, than we were used to.

Welcome to BE! Exciting times ahead! We have a great Wiki section on schooling (as well as a miriad of other helpful sections): https://britishexpats.com/wiki/Canadian_Schooling

Your children will need to go to a Newcomer Reception Centre to be assessed... https://www.tdsb.on.ca/New-to-Canada...portsResources

As an aside, I presume you have work permits arranged or a PR application in place? If you need any help with that post to our Immigration forum and there's plenty that will be able to assist with any questions you have.

Thank you both - that's really helpful, and yes we have all the permissions in place. We actually used your schools guide as one of our preliminary pieces of research some months ago so it's invaluable now to hear personal stories and feedback on the current situation.

Just as an add, we spoke to an Ontario high school teacher who's taught both in the UK and Canada. She said: "In the UK, I was always having to teach to the test [ie. focus on exam skills] and I felt my students weren't learning as well as they could compared to here". It's just those class sizes of 40+ ...!

Theyre not all 40+ by a long stretch. My son is in grade 9 in Hamilton and I think the maximum he has is 30 depending on the subject.

We moved over with our 13 year old and 9 year old. My daughter has started High School last September and is in classes of around 30 some a few more and some a few less. One thing we really liked here is that they study 4 subjects one semester ( September-February) then 4 the next so this gives them longer in each class kind of like double periods if that makes sense. So they aren’t rushing between classes like she was in the UK. All in all we are very happy with the schooling over here and also the volunteering is good and wish this was implemented in the UK.

What volunteering do you wish was implemented in the UK? Just not sure what kind of volunteering exists in Canada that doesn't exist in the UK?

I think he means the 40 hours high school students have to do to graduate...

Ah, I see. Not compulsory for school in the UK but it's something most schools offer anyway, and it's compulsory for other things such as DofE. So not terribly different then, I thought he meant parents volunteering in schools!

I thought this was a great idea...although I’m not in ON but NB...but the same system is here. We did have an odd year when he seemed to be doing PE constantly...and then no physical activity - but that he told me, was a problem with his options...not the educational system.

Overall, and my child was in 6 th grade when we came and graduated last year, we have been very happy with the education he received and the way it was delivered. He doesn’t appear to be a serial killer, isn’t completely anxiety ridden and is fairly optimistic for his future. It’s now that in his first year at uni, and knowing that the transition to Canada wasn’t without it’s pitfalls, that I am fully appreciating what a very good move for us as a family and for him in particular this move was.

Very best of luck with your decisions.

Thanks for your various insights and good, helpful sanity checks! Baking community service into the curriculum sounds likes a great idea - something that only happens as a voluntary activity in most UK schools. We also investigated schools offering the International Baccalaureate as a possibility and found the IB also has a community service element. However, it's a tough curriculum and we weren't persuaded by the range of schooling options compared to those operating under the Ontario system.

Beyond secondary education, it looks like university education is much more affordable than the UK and a great route to take given the calibre of places like UT, McGill, UBC etc. What are people's views on this?

I am out of touch with the cost of University in the UK. Our youngest is currently at Queens Uni and his tuition fees are approx $13k a year. The first year he was in residence and that came out at another $13k all in (meals etc). He is in a shared house now which is cheaper but his employment over the summer months pays for that so I don't know exactly how much it is.
One thing I do like about University here is that they take courses not related to their major which keeps their education a little more rounded. Our eldest took accounting but took extra courses in history, psychology, even mandarin (until he realised he was the only non Chinese kid in the class and they were in it for an easy A).

UK University fees are currently around £9,250, which equate to about C$15,000 at current exchange rates plus all books, accommodation, etc. My son likes the idea of going to a Canadian University so he is very positive about a move to Canada (once I sort out the necessary paperwork). He is currently 14 and doing his GCSE exams next summer (2021), so it will be after the exams that we hope to make the move. He's a bit apprehensive about staying in school for an extra year or two, but likes the idea of having UK GCSE qualifications and a Canadian High School Diploma (or certificate) so that he gets lots more options in terms of further education.

Bear in mind that you need to have PR or citizen status for home fees, otherwise classed as international for most universities.

I'm a dual British national/Canadian citizen. Just need to sort out his paperwork and hoping its straightforward as he should qualify for Citizenship by descent. Currently getting the evidence together for my Canadian passport, after which I'll get his paperwork done 😀