Fleetwood Park Secondary 25-26
OUR CONTEXT
Welcome to Fleetwood Park Secondary School, where every learner is at the center! We are located on the traditional, unceded territory of the Katzie, Kwantlen, and Semiahmoo First Nations. Our vibrant community members have diverse backgrounds, talents, and passions, making every day, every lesson, and every interaction a learning experience. At FPSS, we don't just embrace diversity, we celebrate it! Our students are the heart and soul of our "Dragon spirit," embodying a fierce commitment to excellence in everything they do. From the classroom to the playing field, from the stage to the studio, our students shine bright with their passion and dedication. But what truly sets us apart is our unwavering dedication to creating a warm and inclusive environment where every individual is respected and valued.
We are currently an extended day school, due to our large population, and we are in the final planning stages of an 800-seat addition that is set to open in January 2029. The new space will include a new dance room, art studio, Inclusion classroom, small gymnasium, Foods, Science, and ADST/Robotics labs, and classroom space. There will be an Indigenous Youth Space that will have an outdoor component that is very exciting to plan for.
The diversity of our student body is celebrated. The creation of student unions, such as the Black Student Union, the Muslim Student Union, and the Sikh Student Association demonstrates the commitment to inclusivity and representation within the school community. These groups play a vital role in ensuring that all students’ voices are heard and that the school environment is supportive and caring for everyone.
In 2023, we completed our Indigenous Welcome Post project with our theme of "unity". The project provides a focal point for our school community and is a physical and symbolic reminder of the importance of community. Our school partnered with Master Carver Mr. Brandon Gabriel from the Kwantlen First Nation. Brandon has interacted across our school community as he has carved the post and discussed its meaning and symbolism. Through his teachings of Indigenous art and culture, through the act of shared artistic creation and through dialogue focused on the First People's Principles of Learning, we are teaching our students that learning is holistic, reflexive, reflective, experiential, and relational (focused on connectedness, on reciprocal relationships, and a sense of place.)
Student Voices:
"I appreciate the respectfulness among staff and students. I love the courses that are available and great atmosphere." Anonymous Grade 11 student
“The best things about Fleetwood Park Secondary are the clubs and the relationships between the teachers and students. Gardening Club lets me participate in gardening and learn how to plant different crops. Retro Game Club lets me be in a kind community that shares similar interests to me. At Fleetwood Park, I have learned to speak my mind in the most civil and respectful way, while still efficiently getting my message across. I have many good relations with several teachers here and I do look up to them." Anonymous Graduate of 2025
"The best things, in my opinion, are the teachers, counselors, and other staff in the school. This is because they're very helpful, supportive, and friendly. I appreciate their helpfulness and for the opportunities and resources this school provides me. You do well in making this school a positive and caring place, where it's the perfect environment to learn and grow. I have been given a lot of support from my teachers and counselors and I feel that I have gotten very prepared for my future and that I have learned a lot." Anonymous Grade 11 student
"The best thing about Fleetwood Park is the large amounts of courses you can take (automotive, cooking, etc.). I am involved in the Biology Club. Biology is a subject that I am interested in and I get new information about current topics! I have learned to manage my time more and leave my comfort zone more as I am with new people." Anonymous Grade 9 Student
"The best part of Fleetwood Park Secondary I think are the teachers and staff because they are kind and always available " Anonymous Grade 12 student
"The best thing about Fleetwood Park Secondary is the science department, the workshops, and the clubs. I am a lab tech at school. This gives me the opportunity to prove that I am capable of doing more advanced lab work, practice those skills, as well as gain experience in a lab setting. At FPSS I have learned a lot of social skills, time management, and leadership skills. Last year I competed in the Ethics Bowl, which was a lot of fun!" Anonymous Graduate of 2025
"The best thing about Fleetwood is the friendly people and teachers. I am involved in rugby at the school. It is important to me as I gain skills and excel in my knowledge of the sport, as well as making new friends." Anonymous Grade 11 Student
"As an indigenous youth, I was very inspired hearing about the impact these carvers have had in our communities sharing their art and teaching their culture. From getting to work hands on with the tools, learning about carving, and hearing their stories about their practice, it has been really cool watching the development process and getting to be a part of it." Student - 2023 Indigenous Leadership Council
"This is a great experience and I have enjoyed learning about the symbols on the welcome post. I have been quite honored for being given this chance and being taught how to use the tools. It is nice to be able to get along with the other kids and relate with their backgrounds." Student - 2023 Indigenous Leadership Council
"I have really enjoyed talking with Brandon and the other carvers. Learning about my culture and spending time with elders has been an amazing experience. I can't wait to see the project finished." Student - 2023 Indigenous Leadership Council
Parent Voices:
"One of the best things about Fleetwood Park Secondary is the strong sense of community and support the school creates for students. The staff genuinely care about the students’ success, both academically and personally, and it shows in the way they encourage involvement, confidence, and growth. I appreciate the variety of opportunities available for students, whether through academics, athletics, clubs, leadership, or the arts. The school does a great job of helping students feel included and giving them chances to discover their strengths and interests. I have seen my student grow in confidence, independence, and maturity during their time at Fleetwood Park Secondary. They have developed stronger social skills, learned responsibility, and built positive relationships with both peers and teachers. The school environment has encouraged them to challenge themselves, stay motivated, and feel proud of their accomplishments. Overall, Fleetwood Park Secondary creates a welcoming and positive atmosphere where students are supported, encouraged, and prepared for the future." Anonymous Grade 12 Parent 2026
"Fleetwood Park Secondary School has great sports programs, many clubs for students to join, and caring teachers who truly support student learning and success. I’ve seen my student grow in confidence, become more involved, and benefit both socially and academically from the positive school environment." Anonymous Grade 9, 11 Parent 2026
"The teachers who make time to connect and get to know their students" Anonymous Grade 10 Parent 2026
"We are so appreciative of the supportive, approachable and caring staff, the amazing number of electives, sports teams and extracurricular clubs and the communication between the school and families. My son has flourished in the supportive environment where he is guided with clear boundaries and guidelines in a caring and nurturing manner. He has been encouraged to learn and build on his strengths but also persevere through his challenges with supports. I appreciate that all of the teachers have been willing to adapt and diversify their instruction to ensure my child has meaningful opportunities to demonstrate his understanding." Anonymous Grade 8 Parent 2026
"I appreciate the support both of my children have received. My older daughter struggled a lot in high school and the counsellors were extremely helpful in helping her through. My younger daughter doesn't face the same challenges with her grades, but has been supported in other ways, such as guiding her through the process for the SurreySchools/KPU Nursing application process" Anonymous Grade 11 Parent 2026
"Vibrant community with lots of events, lots of ways for my children to engage and practice leadership, really great Drama program. Was really surprised by the summer programming too! Very nice. " Anonymous Grade 8, 11 Parent 2026
"My son enjoys the school environment. He is thriving in his studies with the support of his teachers." Anonymous Grade 10 parent 2026
"I was really anxious before the school year started wondering how my child would do in a high school environment. My anxiety has completely disappeared. He is learning, making new friends, becoming more responsible and having a pretty great time in general." Anonymous Grade 8 Parent/Guardian 2025
"My son has been assessed to have a general anxiety disorder and his condition started during the pandemic (2020). He was very good at pulling himself together when he was at school but would have big and long meltdowns at home. Moving to High school and with the help of counseling and the support of his teachers and Child Youth Worker has had the greatest positive impact on him and our family. No more long meltdowns and anger. We are now in the process of healing." Anonymous Parent/Guardian 2025
"My daughter enjoyed band and leadership at Fleetwood, she managed to balance class work and extra school activities. She was accepted in all the universities she applied to, and she chose University of Toronto. We’re grateful for the experience and preparations she got from Fleetwood." Anonymous Grade 11 Parent/Guardian 2025
"One memorable story that stands out for our family at Fleetwood Park Secondary involves my son's Grade 8 humanities teacher. She did something seemingly simple, yet incredibly impactful. She opened her classroom doors during lunchtime, providing my son and his friends a space where they could eat and hang out. But it wasn't just the physical space she provided that made a difference. She also interacted with the students during this time, fostering a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. This not only made my son feel more comfortable and accepted, but also encouraged him to engage more in her class. This experience left a lasting impression on my son. It demonstrated to him the value of community and the importance of fostering positive relationships with teachers. It also made him feel more connected to the school community. This seemingly small act made a significant difference in my son's educational experience. It reinforced the idea that school is not just a place for academic learning, but also for personal growth and relationship building. It's one of the many ways Fleetwood Park Secondary has positively impacted our family." Anonymous Grade 8, 9 Parent/Guardian 2025
"Fleetwood Park Athletics department continues to give students the opportunity to learn a new sport, teach them how to play the sport and learn new techniques on how to thrive in that sport. Physically, mentally and socially sports ads so much to our lives. " Anonymous Grade 10 Parent/Guardian 2025
"3 of our kids have or are attending Fleetwood Park. The teaching and support staff have been amazing. Our child with autism was treated especially well and was able to participate in an inclusive, supportive educational experience." Anonymous Grade 10 Parent/Guardian 2025
"My son participating and enjoying playing trombone in band. Seeing my oldest son peer tutor last term and participate in philosophy club last year. It’s neat to see them thriving in their interests" Anonymous Grade 9, 12 Parent/Guardian 2025
"Both of my boys are actively involved in theatre company. The Theatre teacher has played a wonderful role in their growth and progression into adults. He strikes the right balance of firm and fun. I’m very thankful for all his efforts." Anonymous Grade 9, 11 Parent/Guardian 2025
"My daughter learned how to bake, and that is something special to us." Anonymous Grade 9. 11 Parent/Guardian 2025
"My daughter's Spanish teacher has influenced and motivated her so much to learn Spanish that she speaks Spanish better than Mandarin now!" Anonymous Grade 11 Parent/Guardian 2025
"My daughter really enjoyed the grade 8 retreat when she first came to Fleetwood Park. At first she did not want to go. After she went, she talked highly about it and wanted to join the club that are counsellors for the new grade eight students at the retreat." Anonymous Grade 9 Parent/Guardian 2025
OUR LEARNERS
In British Columbia schools, a curricular competency means more than just learning facts. It's about gaining important skills and attitudes that help you understand and use what you learn in real life. Teachers use curricular competencies to guide what they teach and how they teach it. They want students to not only know things but also be able to apply their knowledge in different situations. So, when you hear about curricular competencies, think about them as the skills and abilities you are learning to be successful in school and beyond.
This year, students and staff at Fleetwood Park have focused on two Curricular Competencies:
1) Use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create engaging and meaningful literary and informational texts for a variety of purposes and audiences
2) Assess and refine texts to improve their clarity, effectiveness, and impact according to purpose, audience and message
We are also intentionally exploring the use of AI in classes, as a learning tool.
The following are some examples from a variety of classes where these curricular competencies have appeared:
Career Education - Enhancing Communication Through Writing Processes and AI
In Career Education, the CLE 10 Dragons’ Den project illustrates these competencies in action. Students identify a real‑world problem or frustration in their lives or community, then design a product or innovation that addresses that need. They must articulate the “why” behind their idea and craft a persuasive pitch tailored to an audience of peers acting as potential "investors". This process requires thoughtful planning, iterative design, and purposeful communication—aligning with the school’s literacy goals.
The Career's Department at Fleetwood Park is also intentionally integrating AI as a learning tool to support writing and communication. In CLC 12, students use AI prompts within their Professional Communication unit to strengthen their cover letter writing. AI helps them generate ideas, refine tone and structure, and tailor their writing for job applications, scholarships, and post‑secondary programs. This approach models responsible, transparent AI use while reinforcing the competencies of planning, drafting, revising, and improving written communication.
Through these efforts, students build stronger communication skills and greater readiness for real‑world academic, professional, and personal contexts.
English Department – Understanding the Role of AI in Writing
The English 12 Department has intentionally incorporated AI-generated essays and poems into classroom instruction as a way to help students critically evaluate the strengths and limitations of Artificial Intelligence in the writing process. Rather than presenting AI as something to fear or avoid, the department is teaching students how to use it responsibly while recognizing its shortcomings.
Students are asked to analyze, edit, revise, and improve AI-generated writing. Through this process, they learn that AI-produced work is often formulaic, lacks depth, misses nuance, and may not fully capture authentic voice, creativity, or original insight. By identifying weaknesses and making meaningful revisions, students develop a stronger understanding of what quality writing requires and why human judgment remains essential.
The department emphasizes that AI can be a useful tool for generating ideas, creating outlines, providing examples, and offering scaffolding during the drafting process. It can help students overcome writer's block, organize their thoughts, and explore different approaches to a topic. However, AI should not be viewed as a substitute for the thinking, analysis, and creativity that are central to effective writing.
Students are encouraged to understand that the most valuable learning occurs through the process of planning, drafting, revising, and editing their own work. Original thought, personal experience, critical thinking, and authentic voice cannot be replicated by an AI-generated final product. While AI can support learning, it cannot replace the intellectual growth that comes from wrestling with ideas, making choices as a writer, and refining one's own work.
By engaging with AI-generated texts, students gain a balanced understanding of both the positive and negative realities surrounding artificial intelligence. They learn that AI is a powerful tool when used thoughtfully, but that strong writing ultimately depends on human creativity, originality, and the development of authentic ideas.
Band Program
In our music room, “writing and design processes” means practicing and goal-setting. “Texts” are the musical scores and performances.
Outcome 1 (Plan & Create): Found in our self-paced Level Up Musician (LUM) program, where students design their own practice roadmaps to hit technique benchmarks by our quarterly deadlines (Oct 15, Jan 15, April 15, June 15). It is also driven by student choice, where students use their personal voice to select and plan repertoire for Pops and chamber performances (e.g., Laufey, Detective Conan, film scores) to engage specific audiences.
Outcome 2 (Assess & Refine): Found in student LUM levels and daily feedback loops. Students use student-led sectionals for peer evaluation, learning to receive and accept criticism from both peers and the teacher for immediate improvement. This refinement continues on a larger scale when ensembles rehearse in class and apply feedback for improvement, and when ensembles perform at festivals for professional adjudication, where they receive and apply expert feedback for continued progression.
The teacher has evidence of this in their LUM journals, adjudication sheets, audio recordings of performance with adjudication feedback in real time.
Social Dynamics in Tabletop Role Playing Games
1) Use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create engaging and meaningful literary and informational texts for a variety of purposes and audiences
- Students engage in collaborative storytelling and scenario design through Dungeons & Dragons–style role-playing, which requires planning narratives, developing characters, and structuring interactive plots.
- Senior students act as mentors, designing and adapting role-playing experiences for a younger audience (Humanities 8 students), ensuring the content is engaging and accessible.
- By reimagining elements of The Hobbit, students create new literary interpretations while drawing from an established text, blending creative and informational purposes.
- The integration with the Senior Streaming course adds a multimodal design component, as students create and present content using recording tools, overlays, and structured session formats.
2) Assess and refine texts to improve their clarity, effectiveness, and impact according to purpose, audience, and message
- Recorded gameplay sessions allow students to review and reflect on their storytelling, communication, and facilitation techniques, supporting iterative improvement.
- Mentorship requires ongoing adjustment of communication strategies to suit younger students’ understanding, engagement level, and needs.
- Students evaluate how effectively their narratives, instructions, and role-play interactions convey meaning and sustain engagement, refining their approach in future sessions.
- Reflective practice (watching recordings, discussing outcomes) encourages students to analyze audience response and refine their storytelling and interpersonal delivery for greater clarity and impact.
OUR FOCUS
This year at Fleetwood Park we focused on two curricular competencies from the Humanities 9 curriculum.
Students are expected to be able to do the following:
1) Use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create engaging and meaningful literary and informational texts for a variety of purposes and audiences
2) Assess and refine texts to improve their clarity, effectiveness, and impact according to purpose, audience and message
Expanding on this:
This is a focus that allows students to demonstrate the circular nature of learning and the importance of returning to our work and re-visiting and revising. Indigenous Worldviews inform this focus in two ways:
- Learning is Holistic & Relational: Learning is a continuous circle that supports the well-being of the self, community, ancestors, and the land. You are always learning in relation to the people and the place around you.
- The Experiential Cycle: Rather than a linear progression from "start to finish," the Indigenous learning cycle is iterative. Learners observe, listen, try, and reflect—looping back to the same concepts at higher levels of maturity and understanding.
For the purpose of this Learning Plan, we are focusing on two Humanities 9 classes, which includes 55 students.
Artificial Intelligence as Intelligent Assistant
One strategy that made a difference for the Humanities students at Fleetwood Park is exploring the ethical use of AI tools in the writing process - in particular as a coach and editor. Our school is engaging in a variety of ways with AI, its ethical uses, and ethical/moral concerns. In this class, students used "School AI" as an intelligent assistant/personal editor/coach to give them suggestions to improve their writing and grammar.
The teacher of this class created a chatbot specifically for editing student writing in four areas:
- spelling
- punctuation
- sentence structure
- grammar
The chatbot gave no re-writing opportunities - it gave suggestions for improvement and students had to use the chatbot side-by-side with their writing document. The chatbot would give options of ways to improve their writing, and student would choose and implement that change in their document on their own.
Three @@@ symbols with the chatbot would allow students to engage in challenge mode - for deeper analysis, suggesting arguments and counter arguments, suggesting stylistic changes (eg. sentence length, more sophisticated transitions, etc.), and other more sophisticated edits for those who were ready to move into extending levels of understanding of their writing. This activity was very accessible for all the students - students with three sentences or a multi-paragraph piece would all be able to engage and benefit.
The chatbot coach would provide nudging, suggesting edits and giving options. It would give positive observations, identify an area to strengthen, provide options of how to improve, and then wait for students to make revisions before continuing.
The chatbot prompt was written to have the students submit one paragraph at a time and choose which of the four areas to look over... it would go a sentence or two at a time and give the students suggestions for improvements in a slow and methodical way, keeping students engaged in their own writing and editing the whole time.
The teacher of these Humanities 9 classes was curious about the following:
Through a variety of writing tasks, the grade 9's were asked to complete
- weekly writing - free-writing, journal style
- four samples to show growth - include different styles (personal, descriptive, expository, argumentative/persuasive)
- September 2025 - start of Humanities 9
- October 2025 - used peer editing on rough draft
- February 2026 - peer editing on rough draft
- April 2026 - School AI as IA
- June 2026 - no editing interventions
- select pieces to go through the writing process to be published
- end result - take revised document to submit to publication to the teacher.
"Not AI - IA ... Intelligent Assistant. We don't want it to think for us, we want it to do the work we don't want to do so we can focus on our creativity, expression, and critical thinking. I am teaching the students HOW to use it, why, and for what reason."
OUR NEXT STEPS
Evidence of Learning
Four pieces of student writing were used to formally assess their progress over time, in relation to the two learning outcomes we were monitoring:
Students are expected to be able to do the following:
1) Use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create engaging and meaningful literary and informational texts for a variety of purposes and audiences
2) Assess and refine texts to improve their clarity, effectiveness, and impact according to purpose, audience and message
The writing samples were collected, as follows, with the revision techniques listed:
- October 2025 - used peer editing on rough draft
- February 2026 - peer editing on rough draft
- April 2026 - School AI as IA
- June 2026 - no editing interventions
The following is the data demonstrating evidence of learning through the year.
1) Students should be able to use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create engaging and meaningful literary and informational texts for a variety of purposes and audiences
| Emerging | Developing | Proficient | Extending | ||
| October | 4 | 16 | 15 | 6 | n=41 |
| 9% | 39% | 37% | 14% | ||
| February | 2 | 16 | 19 | 4 | n=42 |
| 5% | 38% | 45% | 9% | ||
| April | 0 | 6 | 20 | 15 | n=41 |
| 0% | 14% | 48% | 37% | ||
| June | 2 | 12 | 19 | 8 | n=41 |
| 5% | 29% | 46% | 19% |
Summary:
- There was a clear overall improvement in students' ability to use writing and design processes to plan, develop, and create engaging and meaningful literary and informational texts for a variety of purposes and audiences.
- In October, 51% of students were proficient or extending and in June that increased to 65% in this area.
- The percentage of students who were emerging or developing decreased from 48% in September to 34% in June.
Teacher notes:
- Improvement in proficiency after using th AI chatbot (April composition) even though it was designed to edit and coach students in grammar and mechanics
- Improvements were temporary, as the June composition shows only a modest improvement in style and voice after AI coach was removed
2) Students should be able to assess and refine texts to improve their clarity, effectiveness, and impact according to purpose, audience and message
| Emerging | Developing | Proficient | Extending | ||
| October | 2 | 14 | 22 | 2 | n=40 |
| 5% | 35% | 55% | 5% | ||
| February | 2 | 20 | 17 | 1 | n=40 |
| 5% | 50% | 43% | 2.50% | ||
| April | 0 | 9 | 16 | 11 | n=36 |
| 0% | 25% | 44% | 31% | ||
| June | 1 | 15 | 18 | 3 | n=37 |
| 3% | 41% | 49% | 8% |
Summary:
- There was a modest overall improvement in students' ability to assess and refine texts to improve their clarity, effectiveness, and impact according to purpose, audience and message.
- In October, 60% of students were proficient or extending and in June that decreased to 57% in this area. However, the percentage of students exceeding expectations increased from 5% to 8%. This data is affected by the fact that in October, peer editing was used, and in June there was no external peer editing or AI coached editing. When we compare the edited work in April, the proficient to extending percentage increased to 75%.
- The percentage of students who were emerging or developing increased from 40% in September to 44% in June. Again, if we look at the last edited work, the emerging to developing percentage decreased to 25% with 0% at emerging.
Teacher notes:
- Significant improvement in proficiency while using the AI chatbot for editing and coaching grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure (April composition).
- The use of an AI chatbot allows for temporary increase in students' ability to refine their text to improve clarity, effectiveness and impact.
- The AI chatbot showed modest improvement in student skills over time. Using the chatbot as a writing coach to show and teach students about their errors led to improvement in proficiency in the June composition; in particular, with students achieving an 'extending' score. It seems the chatbot helps skilled students refine their writing, but less so with developing writers or those who are behind grade level.
Next Steps...
The use of the AI chatbot as an Intelligent Assistant/Coach has much potential that needs further exploration.
●AI chatbot coaching produced the best outcomes — significant error reduction and higher proficiency scores
●Peer editing helped, but less effectively
●No intervention caused a clear backward slide — gains disappeared without structured editing support
●Important caveat: One-time AI use didn't create lasting skill transfer; students regressed when the support was removed
This will require further inquiry as to how to promote the transfer of skills in the coming years.
Surrey Schools
Formed in 1906, the Surrey School District currently has the largest student enrolment in British Columbia and is one of the few growing districts in the province. It is governed by a publicly elected board of seven trustees.
The district serves the cities of Surrey and White Rock and the rural area of Barnston Island.
