Teaching and Innovation

All measures are implemented to support the student and their motivation. At Vanguard School, students learn to know themselves, accept their differences, and equip themselves to compensate for their difficulties. In this environment, the student is supported, guided, and respected. They understand their value.

At the same time, the student becomes aware that they can achieve academic success and that they have more and more control over their learning. A new and more positive identity emerges. Gradually, they envisage even greater successes, including the eventual awarding of their high school diploma. Despite their differences, they become winners with similar future aspirations as other students in the province.

The student is at the heart of our interventions and benefits from continuous support from specialized personnel; teachers generally have expertise in special education and remedial education. They are accompanied by numerous professionals, including speech therapists, psychologists, special care counsellors, psychoeducators, social workers, and sexologists.

Our multidisciplinary team shares all the information about each student’s situation, which allows us to have a common perception of the student’s difficulties and effectively determine the nature of the interventions that are required. Interventions that are sustained and personalized throughout the student’s years at school

In this context, the differences of each of our students are taken into account and lead us to diversify the content, support, and work methods. Our technological tools are also precious support (software, various applications, interactive boards, digitalization of the material, FM systems, etc.) to help the student in a learning situation and also to promote feedback in class.

Vanguard’s model ensures that the student is invited into a process that allows them to become aware of their ways of learning. They are quickly led to question and reflect on their practices and how to use and improve on them. We seek to generate the development of strategies that will allow students to become competent and progress at school in all disciplines. To do this, we rely on explicit teaching that gradually leads the student to autonomy in their learning processes.

An IEP (Individual Education Plan) is a tool in which the student and the parent are at the center.

It is a personalized approach, with each student receiving an intervention adapted to their specific characteristics. In parallel to this process, the multidisciplinary team is always actively seeking solutions while ensuring that it builds on the strengths of the students.

The goal of the drama class is to build self-esteem in our students and have them experience success in front of a large audience. For this reason, we have developed a musical theatre program that perfectly meets this objective. Supported by state-of-the-art equipment and professional learning space, we can create a quality show where students sing, dance, perform, and excel. The kind of project you never forget.

Welcome to the wonderful world of performance!

This program was designed for students whose academic progress was difficult in elementary school, despite the support and approaches of our specialized teachers. Students who, early in their schooling, were under a significant amount of cognitive overload, leading to the need to alleviate the content of programs and expectations. In this sense, a differentiated curriculum was established. Thus, each student progresses at their own pace. The group usually comprises 6–12 students per class, depending on the year.

In this program, an emphasis is placed on specific academic content to help make the student functional:

• Communication and language development (developing vocabulary, language functions, strategies for regulating interactions, and other elements related to comprehension, such as figurative language, deductions and inferences, understanding humour, etc.);
• Increase the repertoire of strategies related to reading and writing;
• Use mathematical language in a variety of real-life experiences.

Content is supplemented by several complementary subjects: English, science, geography and history, art and physical education.

Another important part of this program is related to self-knowledge and practical training 

• Discovery and projection of oneself in the future (my strengths, my interests, etc.);
• Determine my possibilities (e.g.: researching occupations, qualities required for the job market, and consideration of current practices and responsibilities);
• Volunteering in their community;
• Discovery of the world of work (practical knowledge activities that take place in the Interval kitchen),
• Personal development (social skills development, conflict management, self-esteem, etc.)

It is important to note that this course allows access at age 15 to both the FPT (Vocational Training) if the student remains at an elementary academic level and the FMS (Semi-Skilled Trade) if the student begins the academic content of secondary school.

For students facing challenges in completing their elementary or lower secondary (Secondary 1 & 2) education, we offer a program designed to develop practical skills tailored to the job market. Our goal: to help every student thrive, gain independence, and build a rewarding future.

A Unique, Human, and Entrepreneurial Approach

Fully compliant with the requirements of the Ministère de l’Éducation, our program stands out for its warm, family-oriented approach:

• A Dedicated Team: A team of 3 special education teachers supports our students daily, assisted by a speech-language pathologist and psychosocial professionals.
• A Real-World Project: Launched in 1996 to boost student engagement, our entrepreneurial project takes the shape of a student-operated school cafeteria. Every day, around twenty students prepare and serve over 250 meals!
• An Innovative Internship Model:
  • 1st Internal Internship: Held directly within our cafeteria, this internship allows students to safely adapt to the demands of the workplace under the caring guidance of our staff.
  • 2nd External Full-Time Internship: Unlike traditional work-study programs (e.g., 2 days in class / 3 days on-site), we offer a continuous full-time immersion. This format improves skill retention and is highly valued by our employer partners.

Two Qualifications Tailored to Student Needs

Depending on the student’s profile and academic background, our pathways lead to two distinct qualifications issued by the Ministry:

1. Pre-Work Training (FPT – Formation préparatoire au travail)

• Duration: 3 years
• Objective: Reinforce core academic subjects (French, Mathematics, English) while developing personal, social, and professional autonomy.
• Target Profile: For students who need to consolidate their elementary-level learning before entering the workforce.
• Certification: Pre-Work Training Certificate (CFPT).

2. Semi-Skilled Trade Training (FMS – Formation à un métier semi-spécialisé)

• Duration: 1 year
• Objective: Learn a specific trade through hands-on experience and quickly integrate into the job market (e.g., receiving certification as an assistant cook in our cafeteria or with a local business).
• Target Profile: For students who have completed lower secondary requirements (Secondary 1).
• Certification: Semi-Skilled Trade Training Certificate (CFMS), specifying the trade learned.