Page 23 - The Ontario Curriculum Grades 10 to 12 Computer Studies - Revised (2008)

Whenever appropriate, therefore, students should be encouraged to use ICT to sup- port and communicate their learning. For example, students working individually or in groups can use computer technology and/or Internet websites to gain access to a wide range of programming resources and aids. Students can also use digital cameras and projectors to design and present the results of their research to their classmates.
Although the Internet is a powerful learning tool, there are potential risks attached to its use. All students must be made aware of issues of Internet privacy, safety, and respon- sible use, as well as of the potential for abuse of this technology, particularly when it is used to bully or promote hatred.
Teachers will find the various ICT tools useful in their teaching practice, both for whole- class instruction and for the design of curriculum units that contain varied approaches to learning to meet diverse student needs.
PLANNING COMPUTER STUDIES PROGRAMS FOR STUDENTS
WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS
Classroom teachers are the key educators of students who have special education needs. They have a responsibility to help all students learn, and they work collaboratively with special education resource teachers, where appropriate, to achieve this goal. Special Education Transformation: The Report of the Co-Chairs With the Recommendations of the Working Table on Special Education, 2006 endorses a set of beliefs that should guide program planning for students with special education needs in all disciplines. Those beliefs are as follows:
• All students can succeed.
• Universal design3 and differentiated instruction4 are effective and interconnected means of meeting the learning or productivity needs of any group of students.
• Successful instructional practices are founded on evidence-based research, tempered by experience.
• Classroom teachers are key educators for a student’s literacy and numeracy development.
• Each student has his or her own unique patterns of learning.
• 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 instruc- tion and the provision of ongoing assessment are important elements of programs that accommodate a diversity of learning needs.
3. 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.
4. Differentiated instruction is effective instruction that shapes each student’s learning experience in response to his or her particular learning preferences, interests, and readiness to learn.
SomE conSidErationS For ProGram PlanninG
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