Page 18 - Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation and Reporting in Ontario Schools. First Edition, Covering Grades 1 to 12. 2010

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GROWING SUCCESS | assessment, evaluation, and reporting in Ontario schools
LEARNING SKILLS AND WORK HABITS IN GRADES 1 TO 12
CONTEXT
The development of learning skills and work habits needed to succeed in school and in life begins early in a child’s schooling. As students move through the grades, they develop and then consolidate their learning skills and work habits in preparation for postsecondary education and the world of work.
In many subjects and disciplines in Grades 1 to 12, the development of the learning skills and work habits is further strengthened through the achievement of the curriculum expectations. As noted in the preceding policy description, the Living Skills expectations in the health and physical education curriculum serve as a good example. These expectations are designed to help students develop a positive sense of self, use coping and management skills, monitor their own progress, develop and maintain healthy relationships, and use critical and creative thinking processes as they set goals, make decisions, and solve problems. These skills clearly overlap with and reinforce the learning skills and work habits listed on the preceding page, and will help students succeed in school and throughout their lives.
Other jurisdictions may use different names for these skills; however, there is broad agreement, both nationally and internationally, that skills of this type, by whatever name, are critically important to student success.
The Ontario Ministry of Education has drawn on its own research, as well as on findings from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) and the Conference Board of Canada, to develop the Ontario Skills Passport (OSP), which is available at http://skills.edu.gov.on.ca/ OSPWeb/jsp/en/login.jsp. The OSP identifies and describes the following important work habits: working safely, teamwork, reliability, organization, working independently, initiative, self-advocacy, customer service, and entrepreneurship.
The Conference Board of Canada’s list of employability skills focuses on (1) personal management skills that facilitate growth (sample behaviours include modelling positive attitudes and actions, being responsible, being adaptable, learning continuously, and working safely) and (2) teamwork skills that enhance productivity (sample behaviours include working with others and participating in projects and tasks).
Similar lists have been developed in other countries and by international organizations. The Definition and Selection of Competencies (DeSeCo) Project, sponsored by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), has underlined the importance of identifying and developing key competencies as follows:
Globalisation and modernisation are creating an increasingly diverse and interconnected world. To make sense of and function well in this world, individuals need, for example, to master changing technologies and to make sense of large amounts of available