Page 28 - English OLC Literacy Course 12 (2003)

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THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM: ENGLISH
Understanding and Assessing Growth in Literacy
Overall Expectations
By the end of this course, students will:
• demonstrate understanding of the importance of communication skills in their everyday lives – at school, at work, and at home;
• demonstrate understanding of their own roles and responsibilities in the learning process;
• demonstrate understanding of the reading and writing processes and of the role of reading and writing in learning;
• demonstrate understanding of their own growth in literacy during the course.
Specific Expectations
Understanding the Importance of Communication Skills in Their Lives
By the end of this course, students will:
– describe the communication skills they need to function effectively in a variety of situations at school, at work and in daily life (e.g., the ability to read efficiently, to listen effectively, to speak and write cor- rectly and using an appropriate level of language);
– explain how the ability to read, write, listen, and speak effectively can help them to succeed at school, at work, and in their personal lives (e.g., communication skills can help them to conduct research effec- tively, perform well in a job interview, present a point of view clearly, work cooperatively with others).
Understanding Their Own Role
in the Learning Process
By the end of this course, students will:
– identify the behaviours and attitudes they need to promote their own learning (e.g., active participation, confidence in their ability to improve, persistence, practice, willingness to reflect on their learning process and learn from their mistakes).
Understanding the Reading and Writing Processes and the Role of Reading and Writing in Learning
By the end of this course, students will:
– demonstrate understanding that reading is an active process of thinking and con- structing meaning (e.g., by describing, in a conference with the teacher, how they use strategies before, during, and after reading to determine meaning and extract information);
– demonstrate understanding that the pur- pose for reading or the requirements of the reading task influence their approach to reading a text (e.g., by describing dif- ferent approaches and the purposes for which they can be used – for example, skimming can be used to discover the gist of a narrative; close reading can be used to understand complex instructions);
– demonstrate understanding that writing is a process that involves a range of thinking and composing skills (e.g., by describing, in a small-group discussion, how they use strategies before, during, and after writing to explore, organize, and express ideas and to polish final copy);