Merrick Preparatory School - Review #6

Small class sizes allowed better learning environment. About 10 or fewer students per class was extremely beneficial regarding the quality of education. Mandatory volunteer was employed in order to graduate and staffs supported students to find good opportunities to maximize the hours. Cafeteria is open 24/7 allowing students to spend time together building relationships. As a boarding school, students from different backgrounds interacted with one and another helping diversified classes, campus life, and etc.

Among the good experiences, the best thing happened to me is that I built many relationships. I still talk to them and we keep in touch even after couple years of graduation. It is definitely one of the greatest that I've achieved. I was scared at first to be alone in foreign environment, but staffs and friends supported me to get over it. I became more open-minded and positive person unlike before. I gained confidence in English and personality in general. I fully enjoyed my years in MPS and I miss them so much.

If anything, I would have been more opened to other students from the beginning. I could have been able to build better relationships with everyone. If you are going to this school in anytime soon or near future, I would encourage you to be more confident and outgoing. It is difficult at first but it would change and help you overcome any challenges.

I liked almost everything about the school life. I enjoyed classes, activities, and support from teachers and staffs. Also, I loved making friends and hanging out with them. Walmart trips and Starbucks trips definitely add on to the list. However, the most I liked among all must be the time I spent with staff and friends gathered at snack bar talking. It is memorable and I still miss so much.

For incoming students, I suggest you to join hockey club! It is so much fun and do not be afraid of skating or challenges. You will learn fast and be able to enjoy soon. Also, ask for any food or give receipts of your preference to cafeteria staffs. They are always welcoming to your requests! In class, participate as much as you can. It helps you to achieve academic success the most. Do not be afraid of asking questions and getting help from your peers or teachers. They are the best supporters. For dorms, decorate well for events like Halloween and Christmas. They hold contests to select the best decorated room!

Academics in terms of teachers' effort is definitely a key benefit that you can gain from. Class is well-structured and organized to fulfill the need of students. We could choose classes we would like to take and teachers advised to make the best choice. Discussions, presentations, and other approaches to better understanding and interaction between the students and teachers were held constantly. I liked business classes the most since I was interested in so much. Many other students enjoyed Math classes or English classes as well. Based on small size classes, we were free to ask any questions regarding the learning objectives which the teachers explained in details and examples. Diversity in classroom and in campus life general definitely helped me to be more open minded and positive person.

There was no "class" for athletics. However, we had basketball team that could attend competitions with other school teams quite often. Also, extra curricular mostly held sports like basketball, baseball, ice hockey, ball hockey, horse riding, and soccer. I attended hockey club and it was a great experience in learning how to skate and play hockey. Couple of teachers were highly trained for basketball and hockey thus allowed better learning. We had students vs. teachers competitions once in a while in terms of hockey and soccer. It was mandatory participation while it allowed students to cheer if they do not want to be on field. It definitely is still a memory.

The curriculum had theatre program. We learned how it works and its history and its interesting aspects like tone and behaviour. I liked this class especially its exam was performing an act. Unfortunately, the stage was not placed at the time I attended. However, I heard that the stage and better support was provided after. Music was given as extra curricular and since many students could play instruments or sing, it was entertaining. We often had students playing instruments during lunch hour or even with mayor's visit.

As mentioned earlier, extra curricular was interesting and exciting for the students. Again, we had many sports clubs (hockey, basketball, baseball, soccer, horse riding) and more calm and relaxing clubs (reading, music, student council). I was very satisfied with how those activities were held and many students loved to join different clubs per semester. We had basketball court which was also used for ball hockey during summer and had field for soccer or any outdoor activities. We had one more basketball court in 5 minutes walk distance which was great for winter. Couple of teachers were experts on basketball and hockey so they helped a lot. Music-wise, students learned from each other since many knew how to play or sing.

Room set-ups were nice since the building itself used to be a hotel. We had private bathrooms and big room to share with one roommate. Roommate was given based on the backgrounds of each students. The school preferred to place two students from different backgrounds to be roommate for learning culture purpose. I was assigned with an Omani girl once and Brazilian girl and Chinese girl as roommate. It was a great experience in learning their cultures every year. We became friends very quick and hung out all the time. Since the dorm is in the campus building, it was easy and fast to go to class in the morning. We had snack bar that allowed food access at any time except after curfew.

Cafeteria was open 24/7 and everyone had access. Seatings were assigned by headmaster for better interactions between the students from different backgrounds. Seatings were changed per semester as well. Food was very nice in terms of quality and diversity. Cafeteria staffs listened to our requests and supported us with food that we liked. They also prepped fruits and snacks after school hour. When we held movie nights by students, they happily prepared chips, pizzas, and any snacks for us as well.

My school was located in the middle of Merrickville where very calm and touristic on the weekend place. It was surrounded by beautiful nature and architectures. It had cafes, restaurants, gift shops, nail shops, art shops, and etc. On the weekend, we could see so many tourists with fancy cars in town. Also, there were many contests and events. For example, many fancy cars were placed on the field close to campus with many people. We did volunteer and we also enjoyed all the classic cars.

Because it is an international school, I thought it would be difficult to get along. However, I was able to hang out and make better relationships with many students at school. We would hung out at the cafeteria, snack bar, and even basement where most movie nights were held. I liked how interactive and exciting it was to build various relationships with them.