Page 19 - THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 11 AND 12 | Canadian and World Studies

and a particular set of concepts. The concepts associated with each of the subjects in Grade 11 and 12 Canadian and world studies – as well as the subjects in the Grade 9 and 10 Canadian and world studies curriculum and the elementary social studies, history, and geography curriculum – are listed in the following chart. Given the inherently interdisci- plinary nature of social studies, the six concepts of social studies thinking listed below provide the foundation for the concepts of thinking in each subject in the Canadian and world studies program. (Note that the variations in the wording of the concepts reflect terminology specific to each subject.) For full descriptions of the concepts of disciplinary thinking in economics, geography, history, law, and politics, see the charts on pages 70, 124, 294, 444, and 508, respectively.
Concepts of Disciplinary Thinking across Subjects
Social Studies
Economics
Geography
History
Law
Politics
Significance
Economic Significance
Spatial Significance
Historical Significance
Legal Significance
Political Significance
Cause and Consequence
Cause and Effect
Cause and Consequence
Objectives and Results
Continuity and Change
Continuity and Change
Continuity and Change
Stability and Change
Patterns and Trends
Stability and Variability
Patterns and Trends
Interrelation- ships
Interrelation- ships
Interrelation- ships
Perspective
Economic Perspective
Geographic Perspective
Historical Perspective
Legal Perspective
Political Perspective
Concepts of disciplinary thinking can be used in any investigation in economics, geography, history, law, and politics, although certain concepts are more obviously related to some topics than others, and concepts are often interrelated. Students use the concepts when they are engaged in the inquiry process, whether they are conducting an investigation that involves the process as a whole or are applying specific skills related to different components of that process as they work towards achieving a given expectation. In Grade 11 and 12 Canadian and world studies, at least one concept of disciplinary thinking is identified as a focus for each overall expectation. Teachers can use the specified concepts to deepen students’ investigations (for example, encouraging students to apply the concept of geographic perspective to look at an issue from multiple points of view). It is important that teachers use their professional judgement to ensure that the degree of complexity is appropriate for both the grade level and the individual student’s learning style and that it does not lead to confusion.
“Big Ideas” and Framing Questions
A “big idea” is an enduring understanding, an idea that we want students to delve into and retain long after they have forgotten many of the details of the course content. The big ideas address basic questions such as “Why am I learning this?” or “What is the point?” Through exploration of the big ideas, students are encouraged to become creators of their understandings and not passive receivers of information. Many of the big ideas are trans- ferable to other subjects and, more broadly, to life itself. In many cases, they provide the opportunity for students to think across disciplines in an integrated way.
INTRODUCTION
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