Page 36 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: English, 2007 (Revised)

The school library program enables students to:
develop a love of reading for learning and for pleasure;
acquire an understanding of the richness and diversity of literary and informational texts produced in Canada and around the world;
obtain access to programs, resources, and integrated technologies that support all curriculum areas;
understand and value the role of public library systems as a resource for lifelong learning.
The school library program plays a key role in the development of information literacy and research skills. In collaboration with classroom or content-area teachers, teacher- librarians develop, teach, and provide students with authentic information and research tasks that foster learning, including the ability to:
locate, select, gather, critically evaluate, create, and communicate information;
use the information obtained to solve problems, make decisions, build knowledge, create personal meaning, and enrich their lives;
communicate their findings for different audiences, using a variety of formats and technologies;
use information and research with understanding, responsibility, and imagination.
THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY IN THE ENGLISH PROGRAM
Information and communications technologies (ICT) provide a range of tools that can significantly extend and enrich teachers’ instructional strategies and support students’ language learning. ICT tools include multimedia resources, databases, Internet websites, digital cameras, and word-processing programs. Tools such as these can help students to collect, organize, and sort the data they gather and to write, edit, and present reports on their findings. Information and communications technologies can also be used to connect students to other schools, at home and abroad, and to bring the global community into the local classroom.
Whenever appropriate, therefore, students should be encouraged to use ICT to support and communicate their learning. For example, students working individually or in groups can use computer technology and/or Internet websites to gain access to museums and archives in Canada and around the world. 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 responsible use, as well as of the potential for abuse of this technology, particularly when it is used to 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.
SOME CONSIDERATIONS FOR PROGRAM PLANNING
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