Our Program
Is SelfDesign High For You?
SelfDesign High is a Class One, independent, distributed (online) learning high school fully accredited by the B.C. Ministry of Education. Click here to view all of our courses.
You want to be one of our Learners if:
- you are a self responsible learner
- you desire the freedom and responsibility of independent learning
- you value meaning in your learning activities
- you are interested in a mentorship approach
- you want to do/create/investigate what it is you are learning about
- you want to be successful and are interested in how you learn
- you value mentors who are both knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the subjects they teach
- you desire the freedom and responsibility of independent studies
Expectations of Learners who attend SelfDesign High
Learners who take courses through SelfDesign High are expected to: engage in their educational experience as fully as they can at any given time; to bring their questions or concerns to the learning centre via their mentor; to offer their ideas on how to improve and develop their learning experience with SelfDesign High; be self-responsible individuals willing to be supported, challenged and accountable for their choices.
Online learning
Learners engage in the course through our online platform, Moodle.
'Moodle' is the web based platform we have chosen to use for delivery of our courses online. Downloads of your course outlines and materials, as well as useful links, glossaries, discussion boards, journals, messaging and calendars will be available for you to access, once your account has been created and you log into your course.
A mentor is assigned to support your learning and assess your work. The learner and mentor communicate through telephone, email, skype or ichat. There is no timeline for completion (other than completing within one year), we do find that learners who complete a course within 3 to 4 months are the most satisfied with their experience.
Workshop courses
A workshop course is offered by a mentor (certified teacher) in a seminar fashion, onsite at the Nelson Learning Centre. Learners and the mentor decide when they will meet and for how long; for most courses this requires 12 to 14 weeks of 2.5 to 3 hours a week to complete a course. The learners also do independent work outside of the workshop course. We can work with you to design workshop courses that suit you and your community. We offer our workshop courses to the community at large so that it is intergenerational - elders learning with youth.
Assessment
All SelfDesign High courses receive approval from the BC Ministry of Education and meet the learning outcomes prescribed by the Ministry.
Most SelfDesign High courses use a portfolio method to assess learners' grasp of the concepts presented and their progress towards meeting the course objectives. A learning portfolio is a compendium of a learner's work that encourages introspection as well as engagement with the material throughout the course. In many instances a journal is an important part of the learner's portfolio.
SelfDesign high is always curious and interested in the ideas that the learners may have about how an assignment or activity works for them. We invite them to discuss with their mentor alternative ways that they can demonstrate not only how they're meeting the course objectives, but that they've added some of their own ideas to the understanding of the course material. Is there another assignment or activity in mind that works better for them? We want to know.
