9.1 Online learning

PPM 167: Online learning graduation requirement requires students, beginning with the cohort that entered Grade 9 in the 2020-21 school year, to earn a minimum of two online learning credits as part of the requirements for an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) unless they have opted out or been exempted in accordance with the processes described in PPM 167.

Online learning courses or online learning credits are also known as “e-learning” courses or credits. These are Grades 9 to 12 credit courses that are delivered entirely using the internet and do not require students to be physically present with one another or with their educator in the school, except where they may need to, for examinations or access to internet connectivity, learning devices or other school-based supports.

In online learning courses delivered by Ontario’s publicly funded secondary schools, coursework is teacher-led. The content is offered through a secure learning management system, allowing students and educators to communicate and share learning and coursework online.

All online learning credits earned at a school authorized to offer credits toward an Ontario Secondary School Diploma may count toward the online learning graduation requirement.

Credits that shall not count toward the online learning graduation requirement include those earned through in-person learning, blended learning, flipped classrooms and remote learning, with the exception of up to one secondary school credit earned by Grade 9 students in the 2020-21 school year during the province-wide school closures (from April 2021 to June 2021).

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9.2 Remote learning

PPM  164: Requirements for Remote Learning provides direction to school boards on remote learning requirements, including implementation and reporting. It also identifies effective practices that school boards should develop to support students during remote learning.

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9.3 Virtual Learning Environment

The ministry provides access to a secure learning management system, the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), at no cost to all publicly funded school boards. The VLE supports online, remote and face-to-face learning by including tools to:

  • facilitate communication with and among students
  • document student learning
  • provide assessment and evaluation opportunities