Old Scona Academic

❤It is a wholesale school

Historical building with unique design which shows the building age.

The community of the school is amazing but if you're going there specifically for it's academic aspect you probably shouldn't. Although most of the teachers are top notch the stress put on someone pre-university is just unnecessary, it will hurt your grades as a rule and may cause you to lose scholarships you would have gotten otherwise. The admin at times are overly-zealous in their goal to have students who have no social life outside of school.

The best high school in Alberta.

Osa create strong monkey, strong monkey create good time.

bad. dont go unless you want severe anxiety. i wish i could give 0 stars but i cant so i am giving it one. artificial prestige.

OSA's a small school, where students are generally more responsible than in other high schools. It's also the highest achieving school in Alberta in terms of marks. Of course, that's because it is basically a magnet school for students with high academic achievement (both because of its reputation and because it offers the IB program).It is true that there is a lot of work, particularly for full IB, though non IB courses aren't bad. There are very high and somewhat unhealthy standards among students, both self imposed and caused by parents' expectations (there's often also peer pressure). A significant portion of students at OSA would complain about getting 93% on a test or assignment, depending on the subject.Keep in mind that an IB diploma actually isn't useful for applying to Canadian universities.You'll do fine if you have good time management, though it will still be stressful at times.

Really cool old building, good teaching and staff, you will graduate with an Alberta high school diploma.Yes, everything you've heard really is true. School attracts far too many authoritarian parents - social milieu is relentlessly buttoned-down and status-focused. Students will do anything to pad their CVs. Look forward to crying in the hallways around exam time, especially if anybody gets a 79%. The famous IB program doesn't do anything to help applications to Canadian universities, and why would you want to go to school in the States? If you're a really high achiever, you'll succeed anywhere.The teachers are good and believe in what they're doing. But, like every magnet school, you're segregating kids based on academic achievement. Speaking personally, it didn't feel like a healthy place to graduate from.A specific warning: many OSA students are peer-pressured into choosing STEM after they graduate, even though their passions and interests obviously lie elsewhere. You will never come to love something you are merely lukewarm about, especially if you think you're making your choice for money. Beware!

Most honest review here:Pros:- Lots of spares (8 across 2 semesters)Cons:- Most teachers teach very poorly and students have to learn everything at home- Horrible building/facilities, no space, basically no common area- No gym- Probably worse teaching quality than any other Edmonton school- Artificial prestigeConclusion:Do not send your kid here.