Page 31 - The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10: Technological Education, 2009 (revised)

THE ONTARIO CURRICULUM, GRADES 9 AND 10 | Technological Education
that they are used in virtually all occupations. The OSP also includes descriptions of important work habits, such as working safely, being reliable, and providing excellent customer service. The OSP is designed to help employers assess and record students’ demonstration of these skills and work habits during their cooperative education place- ments. Students can use the OSP to assess, practise, and build their Essential Skills and work habits and transfer them to a job or further education or training.
The skills described in the OSP are the Essential Skills that the Government of Canada and other national and international agencies have identified and validated, through extensive research, as the skills needed for work, learning, and life. These Essential Skills provide the foundation for learning all other skills and enable people to evolve with their jobs and adapt to workplace change. For further information on the OSP and the Essential Skills, visit http://skills.edu.gov.on.ca.
THE ROLE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY IN
TECHNOLOGICAL EDUCATION
Information and communications technologies (ICT) provide a range of tools that can significantly extend and enrich teachers’ instructional strategies and support student learning. ICT tools include multimedia resources, databases, Internet websites, digital cameras, and word-processing programs. Tools such as these can help students to col- lect, organize, and sort the data they gather and to write, edit, and present reports on their findings. Information and communications technologies can also be used to con- nect students to other schools, at home and abroad, and to bring the global community into the local classroom.
Whenever appropriate, therefore, students should be encouraged to use ICT to support and communicate their learning. For example, students working individually or in groups can use computer technology and/or Internet websites to gain access to technical information in Canada and around the world. Students can also use digital cameras and projectors to design and present the results of their research to their classmates.
Although the Internet is a powerful learning tool, there are potential risks attached to its use. All students must be made aware of issues of Internet privacy, safety, and responsible use, as well as of the potential for abuse of this technology, particularly when it is used to bully or promote hatred.
Teachers will find the various ICT tools useful in their teaching practice, both for whole- class instruction and for the design of curriculum units that contain varied approaches to learning to meet diverse student needs.
PLANNING TECHNOLOGICAL EDUCATION 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.
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