Page 31 - THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 to 12 | First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies

To ensure that assessment, evaluation, and reporting are valid and reliable, and that they lead to the improvement of learning for all students, teachers use practices and procedures that:
• are fair, transparent, and equitable;
• support all students;
• are carefully planned to relate to the curriculum expectations and learning goals and, as much as possible, to the interests, learning styles and preferences, needs, and experiences of all students;
• are communicated clearly to students and parents at the beginning of the school year or course and at other appropriate points throughout the school year or course;
• are ongoing, varied in nature, and administered over a period of time to provide multiple opportunities for students to demonstrate the full range of their learning;
• provide ongoing descriptive feedback that is clear, specific, meaningful, and timely to support improved learning and achievement;
• develop students’ self-assessment skills to enable them to assess their own learning, set specific goals, and plan next steps for their learning.
Learning Skills and Work Habits
The development of learning skills and work habits is an integral part of a student’s learning. To the extent possible, however, the evaluation of learning skills and work habits, apart from any that may be included as part of a curriculum expectation in a course, should not be considered in the determination of a student’s grades. Assessing, evaluating, and reporting on the achievement of curriculum expectations and on the demonstration of learning skills and work habits separately allows teachers to provide information to the parents and student that is specific to each of these two areas of achievement.
The six learning skills and work habits are responsibility, organization, independent work, collaboration, initiative, and self-regulation.
Content Standards and Performance Standards
The Ontario curriculum for Grades 1 to 12 comprises content standards and performance standards. Assessment and evaluation will be based on both the content standards and the performance standards.
The content standards are the overall and specific curriculum expectations identified in the curriculum documents for every subject and discipline.
The performance standards are outlined in the achievement chart, which is provided
in the curriculum documents for every subject or discipline (see pages 32–33). The achievement chart is a standard province-wide guide and is to be used by all teachers as a framework within which to assess and evaluate student achievement of the expec- tations in the particular subject or discipline. It enables teachers to make consistent judgements about the quality of student learning based on clear performance standards and on a body of evidence collected over time. It also provides teachers with a foundation for developing clear and specific feedback for students and parents.
ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION OF STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
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