Page 56 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 11 and 12: Science, 2008 (revised)

Grade 11, University Preparation
d1. evaluate the importance of some recent contributions to our knowledge of genetic processes, and analyse social and ethical implications of genetic and genomic research;
d2. investigate genetic processes, including those that occur during meiosis, and analyse data to solve basic genetics problems involving monohybrid and dihybrid crosses;
d3. demonstrate an understanding of concepts, processes, and technologies related to the transmission of hereditary characteristics.
D1. Relating Science to Technology, Society, and the Environment
D2. Developing Skills of Investigation and Communication
d. genetic proceSSeS OVERALL EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 11 AND 12 | science
SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS
By the end of this course, students will:
d1.1 analyse, on the basis of research, some of the social and ethical implications of research in genetics and genomics (e.g., genetic screening, gene therapy, in vitro fertilization) [IP, PR, AI, C]
Sample issue: Gene therapy is a promising treatment for some inherited disorders such as cystic fibrosis. However, the technique remains risky and unproven, and there are ethical ques- tions associated with its use and related research.
Sample questions: What are the possible social benefits of applications of stem-cell research? What ethical issues does such research raise? Why is the prospect of using genetically engineered material in human subjects contro- versial? What are some of the ethical issues related to gene therapy?
d1.2 evaluate, on the basis of research, the im- portance of some recent contributions to knowledge, techniques, and technologies related to genetic processes (e.g., research into the cystic fibrosis gene; the use of safflowers to produce insulin for human use) [IP, PR, AI, C]
Sample issue: Cancer researchers use bioin- formatics and computational biology to study different types of cancer in an attempt to lower the risk of people who have a genetic predis- position to the disease. A risk is that this information could also be used to deny insur- ance coverage or payment of claims.
Sample questions: How has the human genome project allowed genetic research to move from
a wet science to a dry science? How has the study of the copy number alteration of genes, conducted at the Hospital for Sick Children, helped researchers to understand genetic susceptibility to autism spectrum disorders? How has genomic research increased our understanding of human health and diseases?
By the end of this course, students will:
d2.1 use appropriate terminology related to gen- etic processes, including, but not limited to: haploid, diploid, spindle, synapsis, gamete, zygote, heterozygous, homozygous, allele, plasmid, trisomy, non-disjunction, and somatic cell [C]
d2.2 investigate the process of meiosis, using a microscope or similar instrument, or a computer simulation, and draw biological diagrams to help explain the main phases in the process [PR, AI, C]
d2.3 use the Punnett square method to solve basic genetics problems involving monohybrid crosses, incomplete dominance, codominance, dihybrid crosses, and sex-linked genes [PR, AI, C]
d2.4 investigate, through laboratory inquiry or computer simulation, monohybrid and dihy- brid crosses, and use the Punnett square method and probability rules to analyse the qualitative and quantitative data and determine the parent genotype [PR, AI, C]