Page 43 - THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 AND 10 | Canadian and World Studies

planning Canadian and world studies courses need to pay particular attention to these beliefs, which are as follows:
• All students can succeed.
• Each student has their own unique patterns of learning.
• Successful instructional practices are founded on evidence-based research, tempered by experience.
• Universal design12 and differentiated instruction13 are effective and interconnected means of meeting the learning or productivity needs of any group of students.
• Classroom teachers are the key educators for a student’s literacy and numeracy development.
• Classroom teachers need the support of the larger community to create a learning environment that supports students with special education needs.
• Fairness is not sameness.
In any given classroom, students may demonstrate a wide range of strengths and needs. Teachers plan programs that recognize this diversity and give students performance tasks that respect their particular abilities so that all students can derive the greatest possible benefit from the teaching and learning process. The use of flexible groupings for instruction and the provision of ongoing assessment are important elements of programs that accommodate a diversity of learning needs.
In planning Canadian and world studies courses for students with special education needs, teachers should begin by examining both the curriculum expectations in the course appropriate for the individual student and the student’s particular strengths and learning needs to determine which of the following options is appropriate for the student:
• no accommodations14 or modified expectations; or
• accommodations only; or
• modified expectations, with the possibility of accommodations; or
• alternative expectations, which are not derived from the curriculum expectations for a course and which constitute alternative programs and/or courses.
If the student requires either accommodations or modified expectations, or both, the relevant information, as described in the following paragraphs, must be recorded in their Individual Education Plan (IEP). More detailed information about planning programs for students with special education needs, including students who require alternative programs and/or courses,15 can be found in Special Education in Ontario, Kindergarten to Grade 12: Policy and Resource Guide, 2017 (Draft) (referred to hereafter as Special Education in
12. The goal of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is to create a learning environment that is open and accessible to all students, regardless of age, skills, or situation. Instruction based on principles of universal design is flexible and supportive, can be adjusted to meet different student needs, and enables all students to access the curriculum as fully as possible.
13. Differentiated instruction, as discussed on page 39 of this document, is effective instruction that shapes each student’s learning experience in response to the student’s particular learning preferences, interests, and readiness to learn.
14. “Accommodations” refers to individualized teaching and assessment strategies, human supports, and/or indiviualized equipment (see Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting in Ontario Schools, First Edition, Covering Grades 1 to 12, 2010, p. 72).
15. Alternative programs are identified on the IEP by the term “alternative (ALT)”.
SOME CONSIDERATIONS FOR PROGRAM PLANNING IN CANADIAN AND WORLD STUDIES
41