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Jargon
Although the American and Canadian educational systems are similar in
many respects, there are notable differences that can confuse people
pretty thoroughly. Here's a list of Canadian educational terms,
followed by their American equivalents:
- Grade x ("She's in grade three")
- xth grade
- Write a test
- Take a test
- Marks
- Grades. In Canada, teachers mark students' work instead of
grading it, and take "marks off" if the students give wrong answers.
- Essay
- Paper
- Public school
- Elementary school
- Supply teacher
- Substitute teacher
- Separate school
- Catholic school, parochial school
- College
- Community college or technical school
- University
- Four-year, degree-granting college or university
- At university
- In college
- Residence ("He lives in residence")
- Dormitory ("He lives in the dorms")
- OAC, grade 13
- An extra year of high school after grade 12, intended for
students going on to university (not college). Only in Ontario,
and they're phasing it out. (Some joke that because the former Ontario
Minister of Education, John Snobelen, dropped out of high school
in grade 11, he got rid of OAC to get that much closer to having a
high school diploma.)
- CEGEP (pronounced SAY-zhep)
- In Québec, a post-high school college offering two-year
pre-university programs and three-year professional development programs.
CEGEP stands for Collège d'enseignement général et
professionel. There are a few English-language CEGEPs and many
French-language ones. (Thanks to a visitor for this one.)
- Bursary
- A tuition grant, given to students in need (in the US, at least
at the school where I went, the bursary was the office where you went
to pay your tuition bills)
- Coles Notes
- Analogous to Cliff Notes; Coles is a national chain of
bookstores. A friend tells me that Coles Notes celebrated their 50th
anniversary in 1998, and the press coverage noted that the original
Cliff Notes were licenced versions of Coles Notes.
- skipping out
- cutting class
- minor niner
- Ontario term for person in grade 9. In Ontario, high schools currently
range from grades 9 to 13. Someone in grade 9 is indeed a minor
niner.
- On course (often used among business people to explain why they're not
in the office: "You've reached Jane Doe of All-Canada Enterprises. I'm on
course this week, but will be checking for messages...")
- In class
Canadians don't use the terms "freshman," "sophomore," "junior," or "senior,"
for high school or college students. What Americans would call "juniors in
high school" are "grade elevens." University students are referred to
according to what year they're in: an American junior would be a third-year
in Canada.
Prominent universities
The university's city is listed if the university's name doesn't make
it clear where the school is. A more
complete list is available from the University of Waterloo.
Newfoundland
Nova Scotia
New Brunswick
Prince Edward Island
Québec
Ontario
Manitoba
Saskatchewan
Alberta
British Columbia
--Emily
Way (emily_@_americansguide.ca)
Last updated December
17, 2000
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