.gif)
Alternative High School (Calgary)
Encyclopedia
Alternative High School (AHS) is a public senior high (secondary) school
in Calgary
, Alberta
, Canada
; which teaches grades 10 through 12. AHS is currently located at the Clinton Ford Centre, which was home to the former Clinton Ford Elementary School.
AHS was launched, independent of the board, in September 1974 by a parents group. It reflected many of the "alternative education" ideas that were popular at the time. The early philosophy the school borrowed from the ideas of A. S. Neill
, who founded Summerhill School
. This involved supporting the freedom of children, and opposing the traditional structure and control of most schools. Although, AHS was never a copy of Summerhill.
In 1975 AHS came under the control of the Calgary Board of Education
(CBE), and has progressively moved away from Neill's philosophy, moving steadily to a much greater structure. But, it still provides a personalized, informal and democratic (relative to other schools) learning environment for students with problems in a regular environment. While there are no sports teams, it boasts an impressive art department. Students continue to play a role in evaluating new student and even teacher applicants for the school. They can vote on things like extracurricular activities to instructional schedules, as long as the changes do not interfere with Alberta Learning policies. Class structure and schedules are tailored to student's decisions, which leads the way for the more self-structured world of post-secondary education.
. Two teachers from the school, help students progressively get back into the regular school system if they are of school age after they reach Level Three of treatment.
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in Calgary
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
, Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
; which teaches grades 10 through 12. AHS is currently located at the Clinton Ford Centre, which was home to the former Clinton Ford Elementary School.
AHS was launched, independent of the board, in September 1974 by a parents group. It reflected many of the "alternative education" ideas that were popular at the time. The early philosophy the school borrowed from the ideas of A. S. Neill
A. S. Neill
Alexander Sutherland Neill was a Scottish progressive educator, author and founder of Summerhill school, which remains open and continues to follow his educational philosophy to this day...
, who founded Summerhill School
Summerhill School
Summerhill School is an independent British boarding school that was founded in 1921 by Alexander Sutherland Neill with the belief that the school should be made to fit the child, rather than the other way around...
. This involved supporting the freedom of children, and opposing the traditional structure and control of most schools. Although, AHS was never a copy of Summerhill.
In 1975 AHS came under the control of the Calgary Board of Education
Calgary Board of Education
The Calgary Board of Education is the public school board in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. As a public system, the CBE is required to accept any students who meet age and residency requirements, regardless of religion.-Size:...
(CBE), and has progressively moved away from Neill's philosophy, moving steadily to a much greater structure. But, it still provides a personalized, informal and democratic (relative to other schools) learning environment for students with problems in a regular environment. While there are no sports teams, it boasts an impressive art department. Students continue to play a role in evaluating new student and even teacher applicants for the school. They can vote on things like extracurricular activities to instructional schedules, as long as the changes do not interfere with Alberta Learning policies. Class structure and schedules are tailored to student's decisions, which leads the way for the more self-structured world of post-secondary education.
Special programs
The school helps operate an off-campus class at the Alberta Adolescent Recovery CentreAlberta Adolescent Recovery Centre
The Alberta Adolescent Recovery Centre, or AARC, is a long-term drug rehabilitation clinic for chemically dependent adolescents and their families located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The AARC program is based on the fundamental that addiction is a disease...
. Two teachers from the school, help students progressively get back into the regular school system if they are of school age after they reach Level Three of treatment.
External links
- Official web site of Alternative High School
- Calgary Board of Education - School profile
- Alberta Adolescent Recovery Centre - Partners with CBE and AHS to provide classroom instruction to those transitioning back into school.
- Kid Power (August 23, 2004) - Article in Maclean'sMaclean'sMaclean's is a Canadian weekly news magazine, reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events.-History:Founded in 1905 by Toronto journalist/entrepreneur Lt.-Col. John Bayne Maclean, a 43-year-old trade magazine publisher who purchased an advertising agency's in-house...
, Canada's leading weekly news magazine), discusses AHS. - Alternative High School should be a model for others (May 27, 2004) - Editorial in FFWD Weekly about AHS.