Page 37 - Social Sciences Humanities - The Ontario Curriculum Grades 9 to 12 - 2013

Teachers must model safe practices at all times and communicate safety requirements to students in accordance with school board and Ministry of Education policies and Ministry of Labour regulations.
In planning learning activities to help students achieve the social sciences and humanities curriculum expectations, teachers need to ensure that students have opportunities to consider health and safety issues. In food and fashion courses, for example, use of hot equipment and sharp or hot tools must be carefully monitored, and such items must be securely stored when not in use. Food safety protocols must be in place in all food class­ rooms to avoid food spoilage, cross-contamination, and allergic reactions. Appropriate routines need to be in place in both food and fashion classrooms to help students avoid physical injury. Social sciences and humanities teachers must work together with all other teachers using dedicated facilities and with their school administration to ensure that the physical layout of food and fashion classrooms contributes to students’ safety.
Health and safety issues not usually associated with social sciences and humanities education may be important when the learning involves field trips. Out-of-school field trips can provide an exciting and authentic dimension to students’ learning experiences, but they also take the teacher and students out of the predictable classroom environment and into unfamiliar settings. Teachers must preview and plan these activities carefully to protect students’ health and safety.
PLANNING SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES PROGRAMS FOR STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL EDUCATION NEEDS
Classroom teachers are the key educators of students who have special education needs. They have a responsibility to help all students learn, and they work collaboratively with special education resource teachers, where appropriate, to achieve this goal. Classroom teachers commit to assisting every student to prepare for living with the highest degree of independence possible.
Learning for All: A Guide to Effective Assessment and Instruction for All Students, Kindergarten to Grade 12 (Draft 2011) describes a set of beliefs, based in research, that should guide program planning for students with special education needs in all disciplines. Teachers planning social sciences and humanities courses need to pay particular attention to these beliefs, which are as follows:
• All students can succeed.
• Each student has his or her own unique patterns of learning.
• Successful instructional practices are founded on evidence-based research, tempered by experience.
• Universal design5 and differentiated instruction6 are effective and interconnected means of meeting the learning or productivity needs of any group of students.
5. The goal of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is to create a learning environment that is open and accessible to all students, regardless of age, skills, or situation. Instruction based on principles of universal design is flexible and supportive, can be adjusted to meet different student needs, and enables all students to access the curriculum as fully as possible.
6. Differentiated instruction, as discussed on page 34 of this document, is effective instruction that shapes each student’s learning experience in response to his or her particular learning preferences, interests, and readiness to learn.
SOME CONSIDERATIONS FOR PROGRAM PLANNING
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