e3 Program (grades 11-12)

The e3 program provides optimal conditions for independence and engagement.

Maria Montessori believed that education should be a preparation for life. With that in mind, our e3 program provides students with an academically rigorous curriculum and an AWOL (Authentic World of Learning) program that ensures they are prepared for their post-secondary pursuits and ready to enter society confident in their path.

For e3 students, who’s courses are primarily electives, our course selection system provides our students with:

– A program that is academically rigorous

– A broader choice in electives both STEM and Humanities courses as well as Indigenous Studies

– The opportunity to take higher-level courses, enabling students to graduate with a larger number of Grade 12 courses, further distinguishing The Element students’ post-secondary applications

– An environment that fosters teamwork, independence, collaboration, accountability, curiosity, leadership and project management, thereby giving our students an advantage in their post-secondary studies and careers

Program Overview

Lessons are short, providing frameworks and direction to students.

The majority of the work is done by students working individually or in small groups in the learning commons under the guidance of faculty. Students are able to use one another as resources and support throughout the day. Additional class time is devoted to discussion and reflection of the material studied. This makes the best use of today’s technology, encourages engagement and responsibility, and allows for flexibility and collaboration.

Connections to the real world are essential to engage high school students in their studies.

“Why is knowing this relevant?” “Why should they put in the effort to understand these concepts?” Preparation for future education and employment is a very esoteric rationale which makes sense to adults but not to all adolescents. Authentic experiences, actually being on location, participating in real work and interacting with passionate experts are much more immediate, powerful motivators for learning at this age. While not all parts of all courses can support authentic experiences, authenticity is a primary consideration in curriculum development in the e2 program. The location of our campus at Lansdowne becomes a hub of learning and the city is integrated into the delivery of the curriculum.

Our AWOL Program includes the following:

Grade 11

Winterim Trip

Grade 11 AWOL time is focussed on planning and executing an international community service trip, or Winterim Trip. With faculty guidance and support, students are responsible for planning an international community service trip. Students spend time understanding the benefits and draw backs of international community service to ensure that their trip has integrity. They are responsible for planning all aspects of the trip from the travel arrangements, safety considerations and the itinerary all while being mindful of a budget.

Students are then responsible for fundraising for the trip through various individually chosen fundraising events.

The third component of the AWOL program enables our students to undertake a local community service project that has personal meaning to them.

Grade 12

Praxis Project

Our Praxis Project is an interdisciplinary project that requires students to explore academically an issue of their choosing. It calls on students to connect various disciplines and guides them to an understanding of the subject matter beyond the recall of facts and completion of single-subject projects. Through consultations and workshops with professors from both Carleton and Ottawa Universities students are led through the process of writing an academic research paper. Students then choose a faculty advisor to support them with their subject matter. Student’s final papers are published in The Element’s Annual Praxis Journal.

Personal Financial Literacy

Students will be provided with the knowledge and skills to make effective and informed money management decisions.

Topics covered will include: budgeting, interest, credit, saving, and simple investing.

Leave Your Mark

Our senior students will be asked to leave their mark in some positive way of their choosing. The possibilities are open ended, and the mark should be personalized in some way.

The Characteristics and Needs of Senior Adolescents

The older adolescent seeks real opportunities for valorization; that is to feel capable of succeeding in life by their own merit. They are ready to be recognized for their unique and individual contribution to the world.

Characteristics and needs of senior adolescents

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