You have many choices, even within the required courses. It is your course selections that ultimately determine the options available to you after completing high school. You need to think ahead and plan backwards.
What does this mean? It means that you need to have some idea of what you plan to do after high school by the end of Grade 10, prior to choosing your Grades 11 and 12 courses.
For example, if you require Chemistry 12 for a program at university, you must also take Chemistry 11. It is a balancing act, because at this time in your life, it is also important for you to explore areas of interest and try new things in order to know what you might like to pursue in the future.
You will typically take 8 courses (32 credits) each year for Grades 10-12, so it is possible to complete the 80 required credits in two and half years. This means there is sufficient room in your timetable to take required academic courses for post-secondary, to explore new subject matter, to try courses from a variety of different areas and to take a non-credit support block/skills block for additional assistance.
All graduation paths are individual. There is no rule that says you must complete your coursework for graduation in three years. You can choose to spread your coursework out over 4 or 5 years. Perhaps you are interested in exploring more courses in high school or you want to work part-time and go to school part-time. Talk to your parents and your school counsellor about what you want your plan to look like.
In addition, YFNED can provide community workshops to clarify the high school program. Contact education@yfned.ca or call
(867) 667-6962. You can also contact your First Nation Education office for assistance.
These credits come from courses that the B.C. Ministry of Education has approved. They are taught by a B.C./Yukon teacher and have a required curriculum.
13 of the 20 courses required for a Certificate of Graduation must be Ministry approved. All the required courses for an Adult Graduation must be Ministry approved, with the exception of some External Credits.
Examples of these courses include:
Arts Education
Applied Design, Skills and Technologies
Note: These courses are not required for the Adult Graduation Program. However, both can be used as Grade 12 electives for Adult Graduation if coded MCLE-12 and MCLCB-12.
These electives can be Ministry, Yukon Locally Developed, External, Apprenticeship or Dual.
These electives can be Ministry, Yukon Locally Developed, External, Apprenticeship or Dual.
Note: In addition to the academic courses required for graduation, students hoping to pursue post-secondary schooling should take two to four Ministry approved academic electives at both Grade 11 and 12 levels.
These courses have been developed by Yukon schools and teachers, and can be used to fulfill elective course requirements. Some examples of current approved Yukon courses include Yukon First Nations Leadership 10, Climate Change 10/12, Youth for Dignity 11/12 and Ancestral Technology 10. Other courses are also available and are being added continually. For the complete list please, visit Yukon Locally Developed Courses.
Note: Yukon Locally Developed courses cannot be used for Adult Grad.
If you completed some parts of a course, but were unable to complete the whole course, you are encouraged to talk to your high school academic counsellor or teacher and ask about partial credits. In some cases, teachers can award partial credits for a course in recognition of the work that was completed, even if the entire course was not finished. For example, you completed the painting unit in Art Studio 10 and then withdrew from the class. A teacher, with approval from the principal, may award IDS credits (1 or 2) for the painting unit.
If you wish to explore a Ministry or Yukon Locally Developed course curriculum at the Grade 10, 11 or 12 level in more detail, you are able to earn additional credits under the supervision of a teacher. These are considered elective credits and do not meet the required course credits.
For example, a student may wish to do a more in-depth study of poetry (and/or songwriting) in Grade 11 LA Creative Writing. The supervising teacher and student would develop learning outcomes based on course curriculum, methods of assessment, timeline, and number of credits (1,2,3, or 4) to be earned upon successful completion. This course would then be coded as IDS 11 A (LA Creative Writing 11); and would not take the place of the Language Arts 11 required course.
IDS credits are also awarded to students who have completed some but not all of the content of a Ministry or Yukon Locally Developed course.
You are able to earn up to 16 credits (4 courses) in high school for completing hours towards an apprenticeship. In order to receive apprenticeship credits, you must be 16 years of age, attending high school, be registered as a Youth Apprentice with the Yukon Department of Education, Apprenticeship and Trades Branch, and be a paid apprentice under the direction of a journeyperson. You also must be registered at your school in Youth Work In Trades courses with a supervising teacher that will work with you and track your progress. For every 120 hours of apprenticeship work, you will receive 4 credits, up to a total of 480 hours. If you are planning to work as an apprentice or you are already working as an apprentice, see your high school academic counsellor for more details.
You can also earn graduation credits by starting an apprenticeship while still in school through the ‘Youth Train in Trades’ program. Talk to your counsellor if this interests you. Read about Dual Credits on page 15 and 31, and see page 30 for further information about Trades.
YFNED has three subsidies available to support employers offering youth apprenticeships to Yukon First Nations students aged 16+ that are currently attending high school. For more information, please contact the Education Analysts at YFNED at (867) 667-6962 or by emailing education@yfned.ca. Some First Nations have subsidies that can support employers in this way. Contact your First Nation Education office.
You are able to earn up to 8 credits (two courses) in high school for WEX. These courses may be used to meet the one required Arts Education/Applied Designs, Skills, and Technologies 10, 11 or 12 course. WEX has a Ministry curriculum, which includes in-school classroom instruction and work placements, with the majority of course time spent at work placements. Most WEX placements are unpaid; however, a school district may allow paid work placements if deemed appropriate for you. To be considered for paid WEX placements, you must have a career/education plan and the work experience must align with your career/education plans goals. For more information, see your high school academic counsellor.
Note: WEX is different from the Youth Work in Trades (WRK) courses.
Schools may offer non-credit courses in their timetables. Examples of non-credit courses include all modified courses and learning assistance blocks. These courses are valuable, and often support students’ success in their required courses for graduation.
It is possible to earn credits for a course you have not taken, if you are able to demonstrate you have prior relevant learning of that course. The application process to challenge a course may differ from school to school, but will include showing evidence of relevant learning. This might include a recommendation from your teacher and/or parent/guardian, or other forms of evidence to support your application. If you are granted the opportunity to challenge a course, you will need to complete an assessment to determine your final mark. The assessment tool to award a course through the challenge process should be based on the same standards you would have been required to have met if you had taken the course. For example, you may have to complete the final exam, complete and present a final project, and/or some other method of assessment. A minimum grade of 50% is required to receive credits for a challenged course.
