Curriculum Overall Expectations: 

Building Reading Skills 

A1 demonstrate the ability to read and respond to a variety of texts; 

A2 demonstrate understanding of the organizational structure and features of a variety of informational, narrative, and graphic texts, including information paragraphs, opinion pieces, textbooks, newspaper reports and magazine stories, and short fiction; 

A3 demonstrate understanding of the content and meaning of informational, narrative, and graphic texts that they have read using a variety of reading strategies; 

A4 use a variety of strategies to understand unfamiliar and specialized words and expressions in informational, narrative, and graphic texts. 

Building Writing Skills 

B1 demonstrate the ability to use the writing process by generating and organizing ideas and producing first drafts, revised drafts, and final polished pieces to complete a variety of writing tasks; 

B2 use knowledge of writing forms, and of the connections between form, audience, and purpose, to write summaries, information paragraphs, opinion pieces (i.e., series of paragraphs expressing an opinion), news reports, and personal reflections, incorporating graphic elements where necessary and appropriate. 

Understanding and Assessing Growth in Literacy 

C1 demonstrate understanding of the importance of communication skills in their everyday lives – at school, at work, and at home; 

C2 demonstrate understanding of their own roles and responsibilities in the learning process; 

C3 demonstrate understanding of the reading and writing processes and of the role of reading and writing in learning; 

C4 demonstrate understanding of their own growth in literacy during the course. 

COURSE CONTENT

Writer's Toolkit --- 24 Hours

Understanding Different Kinds of Stories --- 25 Hours

News Reporting --- 25 Hours

Short Story - The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant --- 26 Hours

Culminating Assignments --- 10 Hours

Total --- 110 Hours

TEACHING & LEARNING STRATEGIES

Teaching Approaches

As in other courses, teachers will use their professional judgement to decide which instructional methods will be most effective in promoting the learning of core knowledge and skills described in the expectations. However, because students in this course will have significant gaps in their literacy skills, direct instruction, support, and practice are necessary for student success. These will include a focus:

• Building on Oral Language Skills

• Developing Reading Skills

• Developing Writing Skills

• Integrating Reading and Writing Skills

Strategies

1. Direct Instruction (teacher-led)

2. Direct Instruction (discussion possible)

3. Class Discussion (teacher facilitated)

4. Small Group Discussion

5. Silent individual reading

6. Independent Work (teacher facilitation)

7. Brainstorming

8. Class Activity (teacher facilitation)

9. Worksheets/Surveys

10. Individual or Group Research

11. Use of Computers / Internet

12. Use of video or audio materials

ASSESSMENT & EVALUATION

Purpose

The primary purpose of assessment is to improve student learning. Assessment relates directly to the expectations for the course.

A variety of assessments for and as learning are conducted on a regular basis to allow ample opportunities for students to improve and ultimately demonstrate their full range of learning and in order for the teacher to gather information to provide feedback. Assessment tasks relate to the success criteria set out in lesson plans. Success criteria allow students to see what quality looks like.

Evaluation is the process of judging the quality of student work in relation to the achievement chart categories and criteria, and assigning a percentage grade to represent that quality. Evaluation is based on gathering evidence of student achievement through:

• Products

• Observations

• Conversations

Overview of Assessment in the OSSLC

Assessment of student work in the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course differs from :

• Assessment for other courses in a number of key ways:

• Students who receive 50 per cent or higher in the course receive a credit for the course and also are deemed to have met the secondary school literacy requirement for graduation.

• Although this course is offered in Grade 12 and represents a credit awarded in Grade 12, the standard for a pass in the course is comparable to that established by the OSSLT, which represents achievement of Grade 9 literacy expectations.

• The course has an achievement chart that describes the levels of student achievement of literacy skills. However, as the chart on page 11 of the curriculum document shows, the levels and their associated percentage grade ranges differ from those in the achievement charts for other courses.

This course differs from other courses in outlining specific requirements for evaluation in order to ensure alignment with the requirements of the OSSLT

Assessment for Learning - we provide feedback and coaching

Assessment FOR Learning is the process of seeking and interpreting evidence for the use of learners and their teachers to decide where the learners are in their learning, where they need to go, and how best to go there.

Assessment as Learning - we help students monitor progress, set goals, reflect on their learning .

Assessment AS Learning is the process of the explicit fostering of students’ capacity over time to be their own best assessors, but teachers need to start by presenting and modeling external, structured opportunities for students to assess themselves.

Assessment of Learning – we use assessments as ways of providing evaluative statements about the level of achievement of students

Assessment OF Learning is the assessment that becomes public and results in statements of symbols (marks/grades/levels of achievement) about how well students are learning. It often contributes to pivotal decisions that will affect students’ future.

Grading

• The final grade is based on performance in 3 areas: products, observations, conversations.

• 70% of the grade is based on evaluations conducted throughout the course.

• 30% is based on a final evaluation.

Evaluations During the Term: 70 Per Cent of the Student’s Grade

Evaluations during the term will be based on a variety of teacher-assigned and student-selected reading and writing tasks and will take place towards the end of units. The evaluations that meet the minimum requirements specified below must be based on independent demonstrations of students’ knowledge and skills; however, other evaluations may be based on work completed independently or collaboratively. Evaluations of students’ performance on reading and writing tasks should include evaluation of their use of reading strategies and of the writing process, respectively. The minimum requirements for evaluations during the term are as follows:

Reading

Following extensive practice in reading a variety of texts, students will independently demonstrate for evaluation their understanding of a minimum of two narrative texts, four graphic texts, and five informational texts. These texts will be teacher-selected, and both the texts and the tasks will be identical for all students in the class.

Writing

Following extensive practice with writing in a variety of forms, students will independently produce for evaluation writing on demand, as follows: a minimum of one summary, one information paragraph, two series of paragraphs expressing an opinion, and two news reports. Topics will be assigned by the teacher and the tasks will be identical for all students in the class.

Final Evaluation: 30 Per Cent of the Student’s Grade

For the 30 per cent final evaluation, all students will independently demonstrate the reading and writing skills they have developed in this course and will reflect upon their growth in literacy skills. This culminating demonstration of literacy knowledge and skills should be in the form of performance tasks that are designed to show the range of what students know and are able to do in reading and writing. The 30 per cent final evaluation should not be designed to replicate the OSSLT. To provide the optimum conditions for success, teachers should ensure that students have the opportunity to use the reading strategies they have learned to perform the reading tasks and to use the writing process to perform the writing tasks, demonstrating their skills under normal class conditions with sufficient time to allow them to do quality work. During the time provided for the 30 per cent final evaluation, it is expected that no new teaching of concepts and skills will take place. Rather, at this time, students consolidate and synthesize what they have learned in the course in order to demonstrate the reading and writing skills they have acquired. All students will demonstrate their knowledge and skills independently, with the teacher acting as a facilitator of the process. Teachers should give careful thought to creating a meaningful context for the final 30 per cent evaluation. Topics or themes that are relevant and appropriate to the students’ interests, aspirations, and future destinations (e.g., topics related to future schooling or work, or significant issues) will help students become fully engaged in the performance tasks and encourage them to do their best work. For the 30 per cent final evaluation students will demonstrate their reading and writing skills through the following performance tasks:

Reading

• Students will read a teacher-selected text related to the selected topic or theme. In writing or through a conference with the teacher, students will respond to or answer questions about the text. These responses require students to demonstrate their achievement in terms of the three reading skills: understanding directly stated ideas and information in a text; understanding indirectly stated ideas and information in a text; and making connections between their personal knowledge or experiences and the ideas and information in the text.

Writing 

• The teacher will select an additional text of 250 to 300 words, at an appropriate level of challenge, for students to read. Students will write a summary of the selected text. 

• Students will record and organize the information they have gathered about a topic related to an assigned class activity and construct an information paragraph appropriate to a specific audience and purpose. 

  Reflection and Self-Assessment 

• Students will write an assessment of their growth in reading and writing skills throughout the course, based on a review of the contents of their portfolio. 

The Literacy Portfolio 

In this course, students will maintain and manage a literacy portfolio to demonstrate and help them assess their growth in reading and writing skills throughout the course. Students will use a variety of tools to record and track the range of texts they have read and the writing they have produced in the course. The portfolio will contain all works in progress and all works that have been evaluated, for both reading and writing tasks. The portfolio will also contain a learning journal in which students set goals for improving their reading and writing skills and monitor their learning during the course. 

Students will polish selected pieces from their portfolios. These final, polished pieces may be used for presentation and display, according to students’ own purposes, plans, and goals. Students may be guided in their selections by consultations with their teacher in this course, as well as with their subject teachers, teacher-advisers, guidance counsellors, parents, and employers. Students will use all components of the literacy portfolio to review and reflect upon their improvement in reading and writing skills, both during and at the end of the course. 

Levels of Achievement in the OSSLC 

The levels of achievement for the OSSLC are outlined in the curriculum document. It should be noted that the descriptions of achievement reflect the literacy standards set for the OSSLT. To meet the literacy standard required for graduation, students must demonstrate a moderate level of skill in reading and writing. Students who show limited skill in reading and writing will not pass the course. Note also that the percentage grade ranges in the chart are not aligned with the levels of achievement defined in other curriculum documents. 

Weighting of categories 

Knowledge & Understanding --- 25%

Thinking --- 25%

Communication --- 25%

Application --- 15%

Assessment Tools 

Marking schemes / Rubrics 

Assessment Strategies 

Assessment for Learning 

Quizzes / Journals / Projects / Independent Study Assignment / Work Sheets

Assessment as Learning

Exit and Entrance Cards / Graphic Organizer / Self/Peer Assessment

Assessment of Learning

Tests / Presentations / Essays / Projects / Projects / Demonstrations / Independent Study Assignment / Work Sheets

CONSIDERATIONS FOR PROGRAM PLANNING

Instructional Approaches

Teachers in the school are expected to:

• clarify the purpose for learning

• help students activate prior knowledge

• differentiate instruction for individual students and small groups according to need

• explicitly teach and model learning strategies

• encourage students to talk through their thinking and learning processes

• provide many opportunities for students to practise and apply their developing knowledge and skills

• apply effective teaching approaches involve students in the use of higher-level thinking skill

• encourage students to look beyond the literal meaning of texts

Teachers use a variety of instructional and learning strategies best suited to the particular type of learning. Students have opportunities to learn in a variety of ways:

• individually

• cooperatively

• independently with teacher direction

• through investigation involving hands-on experience

• through examples followed by practice

• by encouraging students to gain experience with varied and interesting applications of the new knowledge.

Program Considerations for English Language Learners

Teachers must incorporate appropriate strategies for instruction and assessment to facilitate the success of the English language learners in their classrooms. These strategies include:

• accommodation of some or all of the subject expectations depending on the level of English proficiency

• use of a variety of instructional strategies (e.g., extensive use of visual cues, graphic organizers, scaffolding; previewing of textbooks; pre-teaching of key vocabulary; peer tutoring; strategic use of students’ first languages)

• use of a variety of learning resources (e.g., visual material, simplified text, bilingual dictionaries, and materials that reflect cultural diversity)

• use of assessment accommodations (e.g., granting of extra time; use of oral interviews, demonstrations or visual representations, or tasks requiring completion of graphic organizers and cloze sentences instead of essay questions and other assessment tasks that depend heavily on proficiency in English).

Antidiscrimination Education

Learning resources reflect students’ interests, backgrounds, cultures, and experiences. Learning materials:

• involve protagonists of both sexes from a wide variety of backgrounds

• reflect the diversity of Canadian and world cultures, including those of contemporary First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples

• include, in English, use of short stories, novels, magazine and newspaper articles, television programs, and films

• provide opportunities for students to explore issues relating to their self-identity

• make students aware of the historical, cultural, and political contexts for both the traditional and non-traditional gender and social roles represented in the materials they are studying.

Literacy and Inquiry/Research Skills

The school emphasizes the importance of the following:

• using clear, concise communication in the classroom involving the use of diagrams, charts, tables, and graphs

• emphasizing students’ ability to interpret and use graphic texts.

• acquiring the skills to locate relevant information from a variety of sources, such as books, newspapers, dictionaries, encyclopaedias, interviews, videos, and the Internet.

• learning that all sources of information have a particular point of view

• learning that the recipient of the information has a responsibility to evaluate it, determine its validity and relevance, and use it in appropriate ways.

Role of Technology

Information and communications technologies (ICT) tools used in many ways: Students use multimedia resources, databases, Internet websites, digital cameras, and word-processing programs.

• They use technology to collect, organize, and sort the data they gather and to write, edit, and present reports on their findings.

• Students are 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 museums and archives in Canada and around the world.

• Students use digital cameras and projectors to design and present the results of their research to their classmates.

• The school plans to use ICT to connect students to other schools and to bring the global community into the classroom.

• Students are 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 promote hatred.

Career Education

Students are given opportunities to develop career-related skills by:

• applying their skills to work-related situations

• exploring educational and career options

• developing research skills

• practising expository writing

• learning strategies for understanding informational reading material

• making oral presentations

• Working in small groups with classmates to help students express themselves confidently and work cooperatively with others.

Academic Honesty

As per Growing Success, students who present the work of others as their own are guilty of plagiarism and will receive a mark of zero for the work and will have the details of the plagiarism noted in their school records. Students who are guilty of cheating on tests or examinations will receive a mark of zero on the test or examination and have the details of the cheating noted in their school records.

Late Assignments

As per Growing Success, students are responsible for providing evidence of their achievement of the overall expectations within the time frame specified by the teacher, and in a form approved by the teacher. There are consequences for not completing assignments for evaluation or for submitting those assignments late.

Resources:

1. Literacy Power OSSLC, Nelson Publishing (2004)

2. Dictionaries, Thesaurus etc.

3. Various Daily Newspapers, Magazines, and Periodicals

4. (Audio and Video material) CBC, The Fifth Estate, etc.

5. "The Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant

6. Various Internet Resources

• OWL English Purdue

• The University of Toronto Library

• The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care

• The Toronto Star

• The Globe and Mail