Page 18 - Choices into Action

to develop and monitor their annual education plan independently, set educational and career goal, and access information required to make education and career decisions with the support of guidance counsellors.
Learning and using the process involved in developing an education plan is as important to students as are the actual plans themselves. The steps of this process include the following:
– reviewing any previous educational plans and IEPs where appropriate
– assessing their interests, achievements, strengths, and needs
– evaluating the achievement of previously set goals
– identifying new short- and long-term goals
– identifying the resources (information and people) and strategies needed to reach these goals
– developing an educational or career plan
The planning process helps parents and teachers become aware of the goals students set for themselves and the education programs they are considering. Provincial Report Cards encourage communication among students, their teachers, and their parents and are important to the review and revision of the annual education plan.
Because students benefit from constructive feed- back and encouragement, they will review their annual education plan at least twice a year. Students in Grades 7 to 11 will review their plan with their parents and their teacher-adviser. In Grade 12, students should review their annual education plan with their guidance counsellors
and parents. It is important that students’ annual education plan from year to year be available to the student and the teacher-adviser for reference. Where possible, copies of plans can be retained in students’ academic and career portfolios.
The annual education plan of exceptional stu- dents must complement their Individual Education Plan (IEP). The IEP will also include transition plans for exceptional students aged fourteen years and older, unless they are identi- fied only as gifted. (See “Meeting the Needs of All Students” on page 12.)
ACADEMIC AND CAREER PORTFOLIOS
Every elementary and secondary school student should be encouraged to develop and maintain an academic and career portfolio. The purpose of the portfolio is to demonstrate the student’s personal accomplishments inside and outside of school. The encouragement of classroom teach- ers and parents is important to the development of useful academic and career portfolios.
If students continue to maintain their portfolios from year to year by adding pieces of their best work each year, they will be able to see their growth and progress over time and to become increasingly aware of their own interests, strengths, needs, and aspirations. Selecting pieces of work that demonstrate their best efforts, progress, and achievement, both inside and outside school, will help them make informed and realistic decisions about their per- sonal goals, future learning activities, immediate educational goals, and long-term educational and career goals. The evidence collected in an up-to-date portfolio provides a focus for parents,
PROGRAM DELIVERY COMPONENTS
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