Page 24 - Social Sciences Humanities - The Ontario Curriculum Grades 9 to 12 - 2013

THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9–12 | Social Sciences and Humanities
STRANDS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES CURRICULUM
The expectations for the Grade 9 to 12 social sciences and humanities courses are organized into distinct but related strands. The first strand (strand A) focuses on research and inquiry skills, which are similar for all courses; the remaining strands, which vary in number from course to course, represent the major content areas for each course. The structure of Grade 12 philosophy differs somewhat from this pattern. In this course, strand B, Philosophical Foundations, includes philosophical reasoning and critical-thinking skills that are to be taught and assessed in conjunction with the content strands (strands C–H).
Strand A: Research and Inquiry Skills
A well-rounded education in social sciences and humanities is about much more than just providing students with knowledge of facts. A deep understanding of and fluency
in the subject cannot be evaluated solely in terms of students’ ability to use specialized terminology, memorize isolated facts, or repeat a theory. Rather, students must be given opportunities to develop the skills and habits of mind needed to analyse, synthesize, and evaluate information. Not only do these skills underpin critical thinking and allow students to extend their understanding of social sciences and humanities, but they are also useful in students’ everyday lives and will help them in pursuing their postsecondary goals, whether in social sciences and humanities or some other area of endeavour.
The first strand in all courses in social sciences and humanities outlines required learning related to research and inquiry skills. The expectations in this strand describe the skills that are considered to be essential for all types of research and inquiry in the discipline. These skills apply to, and should be developed in conjunction with, the content of all the other strands of the course.
The research and inquiry skills are organized under subheadings related to the four stages of inquiry – exploring, investigating, processing information, and communicating and reflecting.
• Exploring skills include the ability to identify and refine topics, identify key concepts, and formulate effective questions to guide inquiry.
• Investigating skills include the ability to create research plans; develop research tools; locate relevant sources; and formulate hypotheses, research questions, or thesis statements.
• Processing information skills include the ability to assess sources, organize and synthesize findings, document sources, and formulate conclusions.
• Communicating and reflecting skills include the ability to use appropriate modes
of communication for a specific purpose and audience. This set of skills also includes the ability to reflect on the research process in order to identify steps for improvement.
Skills in these four areas are not necessarily performed sequentially. As the figure on page 23 illustrates, inquiry may begin in any one of the areas, and students will tend to move back and forth among the areas as they practise and refine their skills. In addition, each inquiry is unique and will require a particular mix and sequence of skills.
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