Every year, high school presents you with new challenges. The first challenge is to select the courses that you need to pass in order to pursue a post-secondary education and/or secure the job that you want. The course calendar, your guidance counsellors, your parents and this year’s teachers can assist you with your choices. Based on your interests and career aspirations, you will choose the courses that you need to progress towards your diploma and your future goals. At M.M. Robinson High School, we encourage you to take responsibility for your learning, to set academic and personal goals, and to formulate the action plans necessary to help you achieve those goals.

Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD)

In order to earn an Ontario Secondary School Diploma, a student must:

  • Earn at least 30 credits (18 compulsory credits plus at least 12 additional optional credits)
  • Complete 40 hours of community involvement activities
  • Successfully meet the secondary school literacy graduation requirement

CREDIT REQUIREMENTS
Students must earn the following compulsory credits:

  • 4 English (one per grade)
  • 3 Mathematics (at least one in gr. 11 or 12)
  • 2 Science
  • 1 Canadian Geography
  • 1 Canadian History
  • 1 Arts
  • 1 Health and Physical Education
  • 1 French as a second language
  • 0.5 Civics
  • 0.5 Career Studies
    Group 1:
  • 1 additional credit in English/Francais, Classical or an International Language, Native Language, or Social Sciences and the Humanities, or Canadian & World Studies, or Guidance and Career Education, or Cooperative Education*
    Group 2:
  • 1 additional credit in Health and Physical Education, or The Arts, or Business Studies, or Cooperative Education*
    Group 3:
  • 1 additional credit in Science (grade 11 or 12), or Technological Education (grade 9-12), Computer Studies (grade 10 to 12), or Cooperative Education*
* a maximum of 2 credits in cooperative education count as compulsory credits
Students must earn at least 12 additional optional credits by successfully completing courses that they have selected from the courses listed as available in the school course calendar.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT REQUIREMENT
Students must complete a minimum of 40 hours of community involvement activities during their years in the secondary school program. This requirement is completed outside normal instructional hours in a variety of settings. Students may not fulfill this requirement through activities that are counted towards a credit, through paid work, or by assuming duties normally performed by a paid employee.

For more information, please visit the Community Involvement page of this website.

LITERACY REQUIREMENT
The purpose of the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) is to ensure that students have acquired the essential reading and writing skills that apply to all subject areas in the provincial curriculum up to the end of Grade 9. All students who are working toward an Ontario Secondary School Diploma are required to write the OSSLT in Grade 10. Students who have been eligible to write the OSSLT at least twice and have been unsuccessful at least once are eligible to fulfill the requirements through the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course (OSSLC). Successful completion of the OSSLT or the OSSLC is a graduation requirement.

For more information please visit the Literacy Requirement page of this site or visit the EQAO website.

Ontario Secondary School Certificate (OSSC)

The Ontario Secondary School Certificate will be granted on request to students who leave school before earning the Ontario Secondary School Diploma, provided that they have earned a minimum of 14 credits distributed as follows:

  • 7 compulsory credits (see below)
  • 7 additional optional credits credits selected by the student from available courses.

COMPULSORY CREDIT REQUIREMENT
  • 2 English
  • 1 Canadian Geography or Canadian History
  • 1 Mathematics
  • 1 Science
  • 1 Health and Physical Education
  • 1 Arts or Technological Education
Certificate of Accomplishment

Students who leave school before fulfilling the requirements for the Ontario Secondary School Certificate may be granted a Certificate of Accomplishment. The Certificate of Accomplishment recognizes the achievement of students who plan to take certain vocational programs or other kinds of further training, or who plan to find employment after leaving school. The Certificate of Accomplishment will be accompanied by the student’s Ontario Student Transcript. For those students who have an IEP, a copy of the IEP may be included. Students who return to school to complete additional credit and non-credit courses (including courses with modified or alternative expectations in special education programs) will have their transcript updated accordingly, but will not be issued a new Certificate of Accomplishment. The Ontario Secondary School Diploma or Ontario Secondary School Certificate will be granted when a student has fulfilled the appropriate requirements.

Granting of Diplomas and Certificates

On the recommendation of the principal, the Minister of Education and Training grants diplomas and certificates at any time during the year to students who have successfully completed the necessary requirements. Where a student has completed the requirements through private study, evening classes, or summer school, the principal of the school that possesses the student’s Ontario Student Record when the final credit is earned will issue the diploma or certificate. If the final credit is earned through the Independent Learning Centre, the student may choose to have the diploma or certificate issued by the Director of the Independent Learning Centre or the Principal of the school last attended. The person issuing the diploma or certificate will submit the necessary report to the Ministry of Education and Training.