Student Survey: Thank you for helping us grow

Anthony Costa, VP, Student Well-being
At Greenwood, school improvement is a continual endeavor and community voice plays a vital role in informing this growth. 

This past December, Greenwood students participated in an engagement survey (OurSCHOOL Secondary School Survey) that measures a variety of aspects of the school experience. The data collected allows for nationwide benchmarking with other schools. Thank you to the 410 students who completed the Greenwood survey, generating a participation rate of 81%, an increase over last year’s 73% participation rate.

The December 2025 student engagement survey results show Greenwood is a place of exceptional connection and community. Greenwood students are far more connected than the national average on every measure. For example:
  • 84% of students report a high sense of belonging, compared to the Canadian norm of 62%;
  • 87% of students feel they have positive relationships at school, well above the Canadian norm of 75%.
Greenwood students report thriving through their co-curricular engagement. While the national average for participation in school clubs is 28%, Greenwood sits at an impressive 83%. Similarly, 67% of respondents at Greenwood participate in athletics, compared to the national norm of 46%. Greenwood students are not just attending school; they are actively living the school life, finding purpose and connection both inside and outside of the classroom.

Our December 2024 student engagement survey identified the following as areas for growth:
  • Though below the national norm, results indicated a need for:
    • further support for female-identifying students who experience moderate to high levels of anxiety.
  • Though above the national norm, results indicated a need for further emphasis on:
    • students to be guided to further develop self-regulation skills and strategies;
    • rigour and relevance of learning in classroom tasks.

In response to last year’s results, the Wellbeing Team, Teachers and Advisers have supported students who experience worry by working together to normalize the emotion. They have worked with students to develop emotional regulation and use a problem solving approach when they experience discomfort. By working with students to develop sturdiness and skills for managing stress, the rates of reported anxiety on this year’s survey have decreased and self-regulation has increased. 

The school’s continued emphasis on experiential learning has led to significant increases in both the rigour and relevance scores on the December 2025 student survey. Greenwood students report enjoyment in engaging with their learning, and experiential learning will continue to be a focus in the coming years. 

Teachers and Advisers have reviewed the feedback provided in the December 2025 student engagement survey and identified focuses to guide ongoing school growth in the coming year, such as:

  • Experiential Learning: Continue to look for ways to integrate "authentic learning tasks" into classes and emphasize the why behind the lesson’s learning. This includes:
    • a purposeful redesign of some assessments to increase the connection to the real world;
    • exposing students to experts in relevant fields.
  • Personalized Learning: Provide both high challenge and high support through high academic expectations and the community-focused learning environment that supports students to work to these expectations.
  • Student Wellbeing: Emphasize the importance of practicing wellbeing habits in a consistent way to increase daily performance, such as education around the importance of sleep, exercise, eating well and reducing social media consumption.

Thank you to all the students who made their voices heard. This data helps to inform the ways that the Greenwood community thrives. GREENWOOD IS ... moving forward together.
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Greenwood College School

443 Mount Pleasant Road
Toronto, ON M4S 2L8
Tel: 416 482 9811
We acknowledge with gratitude the Ancestral lands upon which our main campus is situated. These lands are the Ancestral territories of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, Anishinabek and the Wendake. The shared responsibility of this land is honoured in the Dish with One Spoon Treaty and we strive to care for the land, the waters, and all creatures in the spirit of peace. We are responsible for respecting and supporting the enduring presence of all First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples. When away from this campus we vow to be respectful to the land by protecting and honouring it. We will create relationships with the people and the land we may visit by understanding the territories we enter and the nations who inhabit them.
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