My journey to studying in Canada - Part 7
My first semester with Canaway Private School (CPS) started recently and I am super excited. I am taking four courses and though it may not sound like much, it’s actually a lot of work. In my school in Peru I had about 12 courses, but the amount of homework was not as much as the courses at CPS that follow the Canadian curriculum. My current courses require much more effort and dedication since I have many more readings, assignments, and exams to take. Also, I have more hours per week of each course and a lot of content to learn for my exams. It is quite a challenge for me, but I am motivated to push myself in all my classes.
The courses I am taking are:
- Advanced Functions (Math) (MHF4U)
- English Grade 11 (ENG3U)
- Business (BBB4M) and
- Spanish (LWSDU)
You may be wondering why I’m taking a course about Spanish given that I’m a native Spanish speaker. Well, that is exactly the point! Canaway devises the best strategy for you not only to learn but to obtain the best possible GPA because this is very important to get admitted at universities and to apply for scholarships. By taking a Spanish course (which actually is more about Spanish literature than learning Spanish), we are almost guaranteed a good mark with minimal effort. The time and effort saved can be spent on other harder courses.
In my Advanced Functions course, I’m seeing all kinds of functions, which is new to me because at my previous school we didn’t explore that topic much. I remember that before starting the course they told me that this was one of the hardest courses for Canadian students, but honestly, I am doing great because Teacher Colleen explains the topics very well and she is always willing to answer my questions. This is the first time that I’m learning Math in English and I have to admit that at the beginning I had a hard time understanding the mathematical terms in English, but over time I have been able to adapt.
Teacher Camille is teaching me English Grade 11 (ENG3U) and Spanish (LWSDU). She has taught me before and I am very happy that she teaches me again. Her classes are always very entertaining and interesting. I really like to read and I am very happy that in both classes I am going to read various texts such as poems and novels. In English class, we are reading Animal Farm by George Orwell and in Spanish I am reading “La Casa De Los Espíritus” by Isabel Allende.
On the other hand, in Business, we are beginning to explore various topics related to the business world in Canada and around the world. We are conducting various investigations and class discussions. Teacher Naomi always motivates us to participate in class and give our opinion, which is usually very varied because in my class there are students from different countries. In the future, I want to study Business Administration and this course is helping me to realize that I am really passionate about this career.
In addition, aside from the CPS courses, Canaway is offering us preparation courses for the IELTS exam. My teacher Derek has a lot of experience with this exam; he is also an official examiner.
My journey as a student at Canaway is just beginning and I am very excited about what I am learning, about the wonderful people I have met (teachers and peers), and about the new experiences that are coming. I know there are many new challenges coming this semester, but I am willing to continue doing my best to be very successful and meet all of my academic goals.
Disclaimer:
This blog post was actually written in April 2021, but I put an approximate date of the day this happened to be more realistic.
