During summer, there is a flow of U.S. Tourists through the city, and all year government officials and business representatives visit Ottawa in their respective roles. The diplomatic community is large and growing. Some 146 nations maintain relations with Canada, although only 100 have resident missions in Ottawa.

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Most are small, with two or three officers and a chief of mission. The only large missions are those of the U.S., U.K., Russia, France, Germany, and the People's Republic of China. Education Ottawa's public school system offers instruction from kindergarten through grade 13.

There are 55 elementary schools for kindergarten through grade eight, and 15 high schools with English instruction and five with French instruction, both covering grades 9 to 13. Tuition is free for Ottawa residents attending public schools. Children may enter kindergarten at age five, or four if the child will be five before December 31 of that year.

Courses meet the standards established by the Ontario Ministry of Education. The teacher-student ratio in elementary schools is about 1:16, and in secondary schools about 1:12, ratios which have remained constant for several years. Parents may place their children in one of two language programs: the immersion program consisting of instruction totally in French in the first few years, and a gradual phasing in of English instruction until the program becomes bilingual; or the core program consisting of at least 20 minutes daily of French instruction from kindergarten through eighth grade and making it optional at some level after that. The core program is not a rigid one and may vary from school to school. While some students coming from U.S.

Schools have found the Ottawa high schools somewhat less demanding than their own, most students and parents report few differences or problems. Instructional programs and course offerings vary from school to school within a particular area. Students pursuing a commercial, technical, or vocational curriculum in high school can receive a diploma after grade 12. Those planning to continue their studies beyond high school, especially if applying for admission to colleges and universities in Ontario, have, until recently, been required to complete grade 13, but this proviso is currently being phased out. The Roman Catholic Church maintains a 'separate school' system in Ottawa composed of 42 primary schools (19 with French instruction, 23 with English); six intermediate schools (five with French instruction, one with English); and two junior high schools, all with English instruction. Tuition through grade 10 is free for Ottawa residents.

The curriculum of the 'separate schools' meets all the requirements of the Ontario Ministry of Education. The schools located in the suburban areas of Ottawa come under either the Carleton Public or Carleton Roman Catholic School Boards. Tuition for schools in both systems is free for residents of the school district. The Carleton Public School Board has 60 elementary schools (including 28 offering French immersion). There are 16 high schools, grades nine through 13, including several with a French immersion program. In addition to the schools offering French immersion, many schools in the Carleton jurisdiction offer French instruction similar to the Ottawa Board's core program.

As with the Ottawa Board, parents are advised to check with the school in their neighborhood for specific details regarding the French program. The Carleton Roman Catholic School Board has 51 elementary schools (32 with English instruction, 19 with French), all of which provide kindergarten to grade eight, and five high schools, grades nine through 13.

However, after grade 10, the schools are considered private and tuition must be paid by parents. Many English-instruction elementary schools have French programs similar to those offered in the public school system. For details, parents should check with the neighborhood school their children will attend.

The Carleton Roman Catholic School Board has no high schools where the language of instruction is French. As in the Ottawa public and separate school boards, the curriculum in both boards in Carleton meets all the requirements of the Ontario Ministry of Education. While a few American families live in Quebec Province (across the Ottawa River in the greater Hull area), the U.S. Embassy strongly discourages families with school-age children from residing in Quebec. The volatile French-language issue and related educational controversies, plus frequent teachers' strikes, have created considerable turmoil in the schools. Children not already reasonably conversant in French will probably encounter problems, especially at the high school level, even if enrolled in an English-language school.

Quebec Province requires all high school students to take French throughout high school and to pass a standard provincial French-language examination before graduation. Both public and separate school systems in Ottawa and the suburban areas offer extracurricular activities similar to those found in the U.S., including athletics, drama, music, and student government. The Ottawa school year, longer than that of the U.S., runs from Labor Day to the last week in June. Students have a week-long vacation at Christmas and a spring break of 10 days (usually in March).

Grades are released quarterly. Ottawa has a number of nursery schools which accept children from age three. In addition, there are a number of 'play schools' for children 18 months to age four. These are usually two or three half days a week, and these require some type of parent participation. There are two private preparatory schools in the Ottawa area: Elm-wood School for girls (kindergarten through the fourth grade is coeducational; grades five through 13 are only for girls), and Ashbury College for boys (covering grades five through 13). Ashbury enrolls both day and boarding students. Two universities, a technical institute, a teachers' college, and a variety of business and professional schools provide ample opportunity for education on a full-or part-time basis.

Install Exfat Windows Xp. These include Carleton University (English-language and private, founded in 1942); and University of Ottawa (bilingual and government-supported, founded in 1848). These universities offer a multitude of courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels leading to degrees in liberal arts, sciences, engineering, theology, business administration, education, medicine, nursing, law, and applied sciences.

Evening courses at both universities provide many opportunities for both degree and non-degree study. Both universities have extensive evening programs for part-time students as well. Unlike most U.S. Colleges, courses are generally conducted on a yearly rather than semester basis. Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology, a community college with four campuses, offers a wide range of day and evening courses, one-year certificate programs, and two-and three-year diploma programs. In general, tuition and fees for colleges and universities in Ottawa are less than those of state colleges and universities in the U.S. Tennis and squash facilities are available at a number of private clubs, such as the Ottawa Athletic Club.

Municipal tennis courts are scattered about the area as well, offering seasonal membership at reasonable cost, or free use on a space-available basis. Instruction is also provided at the private and public tennis facilities. Bicycling and jogging are very popular during summer, and there are numerous cycling and jogging trails in Ottawa and across the Ottawa River in Quebec's Gatineau Park. Some roads are closed to auto traffic on Sundays for the exclusive use of hikers, joggers, and cyclists. Additional popular participant sports include archery, badminton, bowling, camping, cricket, flying, judo, riding, rugby, rowing, soccer, snowshoeing, and sailing.

For the spectator in winter, ice hockey, Canada's national sport, is virtually a mania. National Hockey League games are televised several times a week.

In 1992 the Ottawa Senators, a new National Hockey League franchise, began play. The Ottawa Rough Riders represent Ottawa in the Canadian professional football league. The season begins in late July and ends in early December with the Grey Cup finals between the champions of the Eastern and Western Conferences. Canadians are avid baseball fans, too, and root for the American major league teams as well as the Canadian entries in Toronto (Blue Jays) and Montreal (Expos).

Tickets for Montreal Expo games are sold in Ottawa, and there are chartered buses from downtown Ottawa to the baseball stadium in Montreal for selected games. Stock car racing is held in Stittsville, about 20 miles from Ottawa, in the summer months. In the greater Ottawa area, which includes suburban areas in and around Hull, Quebec, there are numerous parks operated by various municipal, provincial, and federal authorities. Much of the land adjacent to the Ottawa River on the Ontario side is part of the National Capital Commission and is maintained as park land, with hiking and bicycle trails which serve as cross-country skiing trails in winter. In nearby Quebec is the largest of the area parks, Gatineau Park, whose 75,000 acres are maintained by the National Capital Commission.

It offers opportunities to painters, hikers, photographers, naturalists, skiers, and picnickers. Ottawa citizens often form private fishing and hunting clubs, which acquire and stock private lakes within driving distance. Public or crown lands, other than in the protected areas of Gatineau Park, are generally open to hunters and fishermen. Ontario hunting licenses are issued for a nominal fee upon presentation of a valid hunting license from another province or from the U.S., or after passing a basic firearms handling test. In Ottawa there are several museums of interest, including the National Gallery of Art; the Museum of Science and Industry, with unique viewer-participation exhibits especially recommended for school-age children; the Museum of Man; the Bytown Museum (natural history); and Laurier House (former residence of Canadian prime ministers). Tours of the Parliament buildings are conducted daily throughout the year.

During the summer there are sight-seeing tours and moonlight cruises on the Rideau Canal and the Ottawa River. Tours of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police headquarters, the Queen's Printer, the Royal Canadian Mint, and other government agencies can be arranged upon request. Within an easy drive of Ottawa are the St. Lawrence Seaway, the Thousand Islands area, and the restored pioneer settlement of Upper Canada Village. Toronto and Montreal, Canada's two largest urban centers, are both close to Ottawa —Toronto is 275 miles to the west, and Montreal 120 miles to the east. Toronto, five hours away by road and rail and 55 minutes by air, is the business center of Canada. Here, visitors find a wide variety of reasonable hotel accommodations, extensive shopping facilities, museums, restaurants, and a lively theater district.

Montreal is only two hours from Ottawa by road and rail, or 35 minutes by air, and offers a definite French-Canadian atmosphere, which can be enjoyed in a day's visit or for a longer period. There are attractive shopping areas, numerous restaurants, nightclubs, museums, and theaters. With the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, Toronto has become an important shipping center with modern harbor facilities. It is also one of Canada's principal aviation and railway focal points. Well over 1,000 U.S.-controlled companies have plants or representation within the U.S. Consular district, and American investment in the area is enormous.

This area is said to contain the largest concentration of American-owned or American-controlled plants in any consular district outside the U.S. Toronto is the headquarters of the Canadian book and magazine publishing industry, three large daily newspapers, and English-language radio and TV broadcasting. It is the center of English-speaking culture in Canada. An estimated 200,000 U.S. Citizens live in the district; many are dual nationals. In addition, tens of thousands of Americans visit the city annually, many of them in connection with conventions, or while en route to and from recreation and vacation areas north of the city. Education English is the language of instruction in virtually all public schools and in the universities.

For those families who may be interested, French has been offered recently as the language of instruction at certain selected public schools throughout the metropolitan area. French is also taught as a required subject in elementary schools. Toronto's public school system, used by most expatriates, consists of kindergarten, eight years of elementary school, and four or five years of secondary school, depending on the course selected. The fifth year of high school (grade 13), once necessary for admission to most universities in Ontario, is currently being phased out to put Ontario in step with the rest of Canada and the United States. Standards in Toronto secondary schools are comparable to those in the U.S. Course work may be on a yearly basis or semester system, depending on the school attended. Some students entering during the later high school years may have difficulty with subjects that are not taught as a matter of course in American schools.

In Canadian schools, many subjects build on a foundation established the year or two before. It does not seem to be an impossible problem, but young people should come prepared to study hard if they wish to enter a collegiate school. It also should be remembered that, in this bilingual country, French is required of all students.

All college entrance examinations are offered in Toronto. A separate school system is maintained for Roman Catholic children. Catholic schools receive financial support from the property taxes assessed on those homes occupied by Roman Catholic families. Education is free through grade 10, but tuition must be paid from grade 11. Uniforms are required beginning in ninth grade, and only a couple of Catholic schools are coeducational. Several excellent private schools accept both boarding and day pupils. Tuition rates are about the same as in comparable schools in the northeastern U.S.

These schools are usually not coeducational, and uniforms are worn. Toronto offers extensive educational opportunities, ranging from the University of Toronto to night courses available at the local high schools. The University of Toronto (founded in 1827), an institution of high academic standing, offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses in virtually all fields of endeavor, including the arts, sciences, commerce, medicine, applied sciences, and engineering.

The Ontario College of Art and the Royal Conservatory of Music are affiliated with the university.