Avondale Secondary Alternative School
Encyclopedia
Avondale Secondary Alternative School (ASAS) is a public alternative school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It teaches grades 9 through 12. ASAS and its family schools, Avondale Elementary School and Avondale Alternative Elementary School, are part of the Toronto District School Board.
, Avondale offers classes in guitar
, drama
, ceramics, drawing
and painting
, photography
, French
, business technology, law
, philosophy
, advanced functions
, calculus
and vectors
, Canadian history
, an introduction to anthropology
, sociology
, and psychology
; biology
, chemistry
, physical education
, gay and lesbian studies
, and genocide
and crimes against humanity. All classes are in the academic stream; applied and workplace classes must be taken via e-school
or independent study.
Ceramics, photography, and painting and drawing are all taught by professionals in their respective fields contracted independently to teach at Avondale once a week. These teachers are known as 'catalysts'.
Great emphasis is placed on dialog-based learning within classes, particularly humanities. Examples of this include informal lectures open to questioning and criticism, class discussion on texts and ideas, and structured debates and discussions as formal evaluations.
History
Avondale's predecessor, Alternative Independent Study Program (known by the acronym AISP), was the first Board of Education operated alternative school in North York and one of the first such high schools in Toronto. AISP was founded in 1971 to meet the increasing demand of the students of North York for alternative education. Following the apparent success of Shared Experience Exploration and Discovery (known as SEED) in the City of Toronto, the North York Board of Education agreed to create an alternative program which began in September 1971 with admission of the first Grade 11, 12 and 13 students. Attendance of the first 160 was determined by lottery of the students who wished to attend, and whose numbers exceeded the allotted amount. The school had a full complement of teachers and a Programme Director instead of a Principal. The founding Programme Director was the Board's former history co-ordinator Jack Gillette. Catalysts were qualified volunteers engaged to assist with teaching specialized courses designed by the students and given Ontario Ministry of Education approval. A reunion of the original 160 students and teachers took place in a private home in Toronto on November 5, 2011. Many of the original students, now in their mid to late fifties, and most of the original teachers including Jack Gillette were in attendance. AISP changed with the times and became Avondale Alternative School in the 80s. An earlier reunion of the students of AISP took place at the school on May 27, 2010.Curriculum
In addition to teaching all necessary courses required to earn an Ontario Secondary School DiplomaOntario Secondary School Diploma
The Ontario Secondary School Diploma is a diploma granted to high school graduates in the province of Ontario.-Diploma requirements:The Ontario Academic Credit system applies to students from Grades 9 through 12...
, Avondale offers classes in guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, ceramics, drawing
Drawing
Drawing is a form of visual art that makes use of any number of drawing instruments to mark a two-dimensional medium. Common instruments include graphite pencils, pen and ink, inked brushes, wax color pencils, crayons, charcoal, chalk, pastels, markers, styluses, and various metals .An artist who...
and painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, business technology, law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
, philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
, advanced functions
Function (mathematics)
In mathematics, a function associates one quantity, the argument of the function, also known as the input, with another quantity, the value of the function, also known as the output. A function assigns exactly one output to each input. The argument and the value may be real numbers, but they can...
, calculus
Calculus
Calculus is a branch of mathematics focused on limits, functions, derivatives, integrals, and infinite series. This subject constitutes a major part of modern mathematics education. It has two major branches, differential calculus and integral calculus, which are related by the fundamental theorem...
and vectors
Linear algebra
Linear algebra is a branch of mathematics that studies vector spaces, also called linear spaces, along with linear functions that input one vector and output another. Such functions are called linear maps and can be represented by matrices if a basis is given. Thus matrix theory is often...
, Canadian history
History of Canada
The history of Canada covers the period from the arrival of Paleo-Indians thousands of years ago to the present day. Canada has been inhabited for millennia by distinctive groups of Aboriginal peoples, among whom evolved trade networks, spiritual beliefs, and social hierarchies...
, an introduction to anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
, and psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
; biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
, gay and lesbian studies
Queer studies
Queer studies is the critical theory based study of issues relating to sexual orientation and gender identity usually focusing on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people and cultures. Universities have also labeled this area of analysis Sexual Diversity Studies, Sexualities...
, and genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
and crimes against humanity. All classes are in the academic stream; applied and workplace classes must be taken via e-school
E-learning
E-learning comprises all forms of electronically supported learning and teaching. The information and communication systems, whether networked learning or not, serve as specific media to implement the learning process...
or independent study.
Ceramics, photography, and painting and drawing are all taught by professionals in their respective fields contracted independently to teach at Avondale once a week. These teachers are known as 'catalysts'.
Great emphasis is placed on dialog-based learning within classes, particularly humanities. Examples of this include informal lectures open to questioning and criticism, class discussion on texts and ideas, and structured debates and discussions as formal evaluations.
Notable Alumni
- MTV Movie Award-winning actor Keanu ReevesKeanu ReevesKeanu Charles Reeves is a Canadian actor. Reeves is perhaps best known for his roles in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Speed, Point Break and the science fiction-action trilogy The Matrix...
- Academy Award-winning writer and animator David Fine
- Juno AwardJuno AwardThe Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...
-winning musician and entertainer David Gershon, of Judy & DavidJudy & DavidJudy & David are children's recording artists, composers, television personalities, and live concert artists based in the Toronto, Ontario area. They launched their career in 1993 with the release of Jumpin' Up & Down and the multi-million selling My Little Yellow Bus collection. They are best... - 'Queen of Cake' Dufflet Rosenberg
- Writer, editor, and writing teacher Stuart RossStuart RossStuart Ross is a Canadian fiction writer, poet, editor, and creative-writing instructor.Ross was born in Toronto's north end in 1959 and grew up in the Borough of North York. He began writing at a very young age and was first published at age 16 by Books by Kids . This book, The Thing in Exile,...
- Criminal lawyer, writer Robert RotenbergRobert RotenbergRobert Rotenberg is a Canadian criminal lawyer and writer, based in Toronto. His extensive experience as a criminal defence lawyer informs his critically acclaimed first novel, Old City Hall. He currently practices as part of the association of Rotenberg Shidlowski Jesin...
- Economist, writer Jeff RubinJeff RubinJeff Rubin is a Canadian economist and author. He is a former chief economist at CIBC World Markets.Rubin graduated from McGill University with a Masters in Economics after completing his Economics B.A. at University of Toronto...