CANADA'S BEST SCHOOLS.

This article focuses on the 10 best high schools in Canada. It's perhaps no coincidence that two of the 10 schools featured in our second annual Canada's Best Schools survey are from Edmonton. Both Old Scona and Jasper Place are examples of how public high schools, under the right leadership, can tailor academic programs to meet the very particular needs -- and challenges -- of their students. In fact, all 10 high schools featured in these pages show how principals and teachers, given the freedom to innovate, can promote academic excellence. At Stelly's Secondary on Vancouver Island, Peter Mason, a math and outdoor education teacher as well as a veteran climber, raised thousands of dollars to erect elaborate outdoor and indoor climbing facilities that have become an integral part of school life. However they do it, the staff at Canada's best schools put the lie to the stereotype that high school is something to be endured, not embraced. These kids are actually clamouring to spend more time with teachers and peers. At John Rennie High School in Montreal, students seem to want to get involved. Kipling Collegiate Institute, among Toronto's most economically disadvantaged schools, has long had a rough reputation -- it was the place where kids who weren't likely to succeed bided their time. The turnaround, however, hasn't been through an emphasis on academics, but rather through fostering hope and mutual respect. Unlike most arts schools, Rosedale Heights School of the Arts doesn't admit students based on auditions.