A student from White Oaks Secondary School (WOSS) in Oakville, has earned a rare perfect score in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme.
This year, Grade 12 student Elaine Li achieved a perfect score in the IB studies - an incredibly rare feat that places her among the global elite of students.
The IB program is a world-recognized, two-year diploma, which provides a challenging curriculum for highly motivated students. It offers high academic standards in first and second languages, mathematics, humanities and sciences.
It is offered at 5,000 schools around the world including four in Halton: Burlington Central High School, Georgetown District High School, Craig Kielburger Secondary School and White Oaks Secondary School.
"When I found out, I was ecstatic and shocked," said Li, who is attending the University of Waterloo's Computing and Financial Management program this fall.
"Getting a perfect score of 45 feels so unreal, like a dream that I don't want to wake from. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and validation, reassuring me that my efforts to continuously improve have not gone to waste," she continued.
Li attributes much of her success to the support and guidance she's received from her parents, teachers and friends who have been there for her through all the program's "ups and downs."
"Without them, and a bit of luck, I could never have received a perfect score – I have no other words for them than thank you," she said.
"White Oaks Secondary School is extremely proud of Elaine's perfect IB Diploma score," says Derek Graham, Principal at WOSS. "This remarkable achievement is exceptionally rare, with less than one per cent of students worldwide attaining such distinction," he continued.
"We wholeheartedly commend her for the outstanding dedication and unwavering commitment she has demonstrated throughout her time at WOSS, culminating in this extraordinary accomplishment. We have no doubt that she will transfer this success into her studies in university in the fall."
According to a news release from IB, "Elaine Li embodies the spirit of the IBDP, which encourages students to give back to the community while attaining personal growth goals, such as taking risks and being a respectful global citizen."
"White Oaks IBDP students continue to outperform other IBDP students world-wide, and White Oaks IBDP scores in all subjects continue to be well above the world-wide average."
Li says her time at WOSS gave her the important skills she needed to succeed in the IB program and other parts of high school, and she is very grateful for the support she received.
Said Li, "All of my teachers were immensely helpful in preparing me to meet the requirements of the IB programme. They pointed out what IB examiners were looking for, how to incorporate real-world examples into essays in economics, what literary elements to focus on in literature, how to write complete proofs in math and so much more."
"Another key aspect of the educational experience at WOSS is the atmosphere of learning created by my classmates, whose excellence, dedication and drive always inspire me to aim higher."
Li also notes that the "countless number of clubs at WOSS provided me with the opportunity to develop various hobbies and take leadership positions."