Engineering/Robotics – S.H.S.M.

Our Engineering/Robotics Specialist High Skills Major program provides students with a potent foundation for a wide variety of post secondary avenues. The program builds on a strong design component and problem-solving approach and is delivered in an atmosphere where ingenuity, collaboration and creativity are encouraged and recognized as valuable components of learning. Registered students are offered valuable experiential learning opportunities that help prepare them for real world challenges and advancement.

In our first year offering this unique program to incoming grade 9 students, we have accepted 60 applicants and look forward to an exciting upcoming year. Who said it wasn’t cool to be smart?

TBBT Sheldon: A neutron walks into a bar and asks how much for a drink. The bartender replies "for you, no charge". Have a great summer!

Gracious Professionalism Award – for the second consecutive year!

Congratulations to the Western Robotics team – Warp7. This year’s team competed in two regional competitions, the Greater Toronto Regional (the world’s largest with over 60 teams competing for top prize) and the Waterloo Regional (widely regarded as one of the toughest in the circuit).

The Waterloo competition was held on campus at the University of Waterloo. There were numerous sites to see and many students took advantage of time between matches to explore the campus and campus life. Of particular interest were the many fascinating thesis displays from the nano engineering and software engineering students that were being showcased in their building across campus. Our students rubbed elbows and exchanged ideas with some of the world’s brightest minds.

Not only was it a very inspirational trip for these future engineers and programmers because of the intellectual energy that abounds at UofW, but once again, Western Tech Robotics was honoured with one of the most coveted prizes – the Gracious Professionalism Award. To quote from the FIRST Robotics website:
Dr. Woodie Flowers, FIRST National Advisor and Pappalardo Professor Emeritus of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, coined the term "Gracious ProfessionalismTM."

Gracious Professionalism is part of the ethos of FIRST. It's a way of doing things that encourages high-quality work, emphasizes the value of others, and respects individuals and the community. With Gracious Professionalism, fierce competition and mutual gain are not separate notions. Gracious professionals learn and compete like crazy, but treat one another with respect and kindness in the process. They avoid treating anyone like losers. No chest thumping tough talk, but no sticky-sweet platitudes either. Knowledge, competition, and empathy are comfortably blended.

In the long run, Gracious Professionalism is part of pursuing a meaningful life. One can add to society and enjoy the satisfaction of knowing one has acted with integrity and sensitivity.

Western's 8th Annual Battle of the Bands

Hey all you rockers and singers out there, Western's 8th Annual Battle of the Bands is next Wednesday June 1, 7-11, at Lula Lounge. Come on out for a night of homegrown music and good times. And bring friends and family!

CyberARTS

It’s been almost 5 years now that our CyberARTS program has been offering an amazing combination of fine and digital arts.

Students have been busy sculpting green-screen claymation animations and jumping into the story as actors, designing posters and wine bottle labels, shooting videos, and painting up a storm.

And for the first time we have TWO incoming grade 9 classes for the fall 2011 CyberARTS season.

Drop by 274B anytime to catch a glimpse of the action. Western’s CyberARTS program is growing into a monster!! And it’s a very welcoming monster.

Co-op Celebrates Experiential Learning

The Co-op teachers and students invite parents and employers to attend our THANK-YOU OPEN HOUSE to showcase Co-op and to acknowledge community contribution to our program. Check out where our students get valuable real world experience. This past year our students were placed at over 200 locations including Hospitals, apprenticeships, accounting firms, marketing think tanks, hotels, restaurants and many, many more dynamic locations. Drop in between 8am and 2pm and find out how Western students excel.

When:
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
between 8:00 am – 2:00 pm
Refreshments will be served

Where:
Co-op Office and Classroom
Room 278
Western Technical–Commercial School
125 Evelyn Crescent
Toronto, Ontario M6P 3E3
Street parking on:
Evelyn Avenue (behind the tennis courts) and Fairview Avenue

FIRST Robotics - CNN TV Special

Greetings Friends of FIRST!

Western Technical-Comme​rcial School has an Engineering Robotics program. Within that program there are a large percentage of students enrolled in what is officially called our Manufacturing Specialist High Skills Major. The course work for that S.H.S.M., as we call it, involves participation in FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology)Robotics.

The value of FIRST Robotics and how it could tie into the future of education in North America is the focus of a TV special scheduled for this coming weekend on CNN entitled “Education in America: Don’t Fail Me” which prominently features three FIRST Robotics Competition teams as they navigate the 2011 FIRST Season. What you are likely to see is not exactly what we do at Western, but it should give you an idea of what FIRST Robotics is all about.

At Western we integrate FIRST Robotics and use it as a means to encourage and inspire future innovators, scientists, engineers, problem solvers and leaders.

If you have the time and the interest, mark your calendar and tune into CNN, Sunday May 15 at 8pm ET. If you missed it, you can find the special on youtube with the links provided below:

Part 1 of the CNN special "Education in America: Don't Fail Me
Part 2 of the CNN special "Education in America: Don't Fail Me
Part 3 of the CNN special "Education in America: Don't Fail Me
Part 4 of the CNN special "Education in America: Don't Fail Me
Part 5 of the CNN special "Education in America: Don't Fail Me
Part 6 of the CNN special "Education in America: Don't Fail Me

Western Networking Students Best in Ontario, 23rd Best in the World

Congratulations to David A. and Henry T. for their excellent standing at the World Championships of Computer Networking. By being ranked #1 in Ontario, David and Henry qualified for the World Class event, broadcast live over the Internet and hosted by CISCO, where they were up against hundreds of elite networking students from all over the world. Our team’s final ranking was 3rd in Canada and 23rd in the world. Congratulations David and Henry.
Honourable mention also goes to Yao Wen Yu and Morgane Davis for finishing 5th in the Ontario regional competition and Brandon Wood and Simon Zhong for finishing 9th in the Ontario regional competition. Well done Western Tech Computer Networking students.

Welcome

Here we are, the beginning of May, just weeks away from the end of another great school year. This Blog is a “work in progress” and may in fact be revised a few times before your next virtual visit. The entire website is a student creation run by two volunteer students and Mr. Halling. Your comments/questions are most welcome – use the Q&A Blogspot button to message us directly. We'll post a response as soon as we can.

Our intention is to use this Blog as a gateway between school and parents. Our focus is to provide current information which we believe will be of interest and give parents insight into the day-to-day life of our school and their son/daughter's place within it. This portal in conjunction with the new Western Events calendar link off the main web page wtcs.ca is just another way we are working at improving communications with our greater school community.