Course Description

This course explores rights and responsibilities associated with being an active citizen in a democratic society. Students will explore issues of civic importance such as healthy schools, community planning, environmental responsibility, and the influence of social media, while developing their understanding of the role of civic engagement and of political processes in the local, national, and/or global community. Students will apply the concepts of political thinking and the political inquiry process to investigate, and express informed opinions about, a range of political issues and developments that are both of significance in today’s world and of personal interest to them.

Course Code: CHV2O

Course Name: Civics and Citizenship, Grade 10

Department: Canadian & World Studies

Hours: 110

Credit Value: 1.0

Pre-requisites: None

Curriculum Policy Documents:

Canadian & World Studies, The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 9 and 10, 2013 (Revised)

http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/secondary/canworld910curr2013.pdf

Development Date: August 28, 2021

Developed By:

Teacher:

Revised By: N/A

Overall Curriculum Expectations

By the end of this course, students will:
  1. Political Inquiry: use the political inquiry process and the concepts of political thinking when investigating issues, events, and developments of civic importance;
  2. Developing Transferable Skills: apply in everyday contexts skills developed through investigations related to civics and citizenship education, and identify some careers in which civics and citizenship education might be an asset.
By the end of this course, students will:
  1. Civic Issues, Democratic Values: describe beliefs and values associated with democratic citizenship in Canada, and explain how they are related to civic action and to one’s position on civic issues.
  2. Governance in Canada: explain, with reference to a range of issues of civic importance, the roles and responsibilities of various institutions, structures, and figures in Canadian governance.
  3. Rights and Responsibilities: analyse key rights and responsibilities associated with citizenship, in both the Canadian and global context, and some ways in which these rights are protected.
By the end of this course, students will:
  1. Civic Contributions: analyse a variety of civic contributions, and ways in which people can contribute to the common good.
  2. Inclusion and Participation: assess ways in which people express their perspectives on issues of civic importance and how various perspectives, beliefs, and values are recognized and represented in communities in Canada.
  3. Personal Action on Civic Issues: analyse a civic issue of personal interest and develop a plan of action to address it.

Course Content

Unit Unit Description Time Frame
1. 1914 – 1929   In this unit, students will complete readings on various topics to do with World War 1 including, the weapons, trench warfare, the Halifax Explosion, Canadian fighter pilots and conscription. Students will learn about the Treaty of Versailles and the different types of propaganda from this war. Students will discover more about the Spanish Flu, as well as different Canadian inventors from the ’20s. Students will also learn about the Winnipeg General Strike, the Group of Seven and the Dionne Quintuplets. 27 hrs
2. 1929 – 1945                In this unit, students will examine the Great Depression and why it happened. The unit will cover the rise of Nazism and World War 2. Students will learn about when the Nazi troops arrived in France as well as about the children of the Holocaust and the role Irene Sendler played. 27 hrs
3. 1945 – 1982   In this unit, students will discuss the Cold War. Students will learn about different military alliances including NATO and NORAD. Students will examine the Great Flag Debate and how Canada adopted the flag it waves today. Students will learn about Quebec and Canada in this time period as well as the October Crisis. Students will also learn about Pierre Trudeau and Multiculturism in Canada. 27 hrs
5. 1982 – Present   In this unit, students will investigate social change in Canada and National Unity, specifically the Meech Lake Accord, the Charlottetown Accord and the 1995 Referendum. Students will learn about Romeo Dallaire and the Rwandan Genocide. Students will also learn about Terry Fox and why he is significant to Canadians. Students will examine international political issues, the War on Terror and Canada’s role in Afghanistan. Students will learn about aboriginal affairs and the issues still occurring within our country, as well as about Quebec’s Sovereignty and Canada’s identity.   26 hrs
6. Exam + Culminating 107 hrs.
Total 110 hrs.

TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES:

A variety of teaching and learning strategies are used to allow students many opportunities to attain the necessary skills for success in this course and in future studies. In all activities, consideration will be taken to ensure that individual student’s multiple intelligences and learning strengths are addressed through the use of varied and multiple activities in each lesson.

Individual Small Group Whole Class
Chapter Questions Brainstorming Class Discussions
Note-taking Discussions Lectures
Self-Reflection Role-Playing Brainstorming
Researching Think-Pair-Share Co-Generative Planning
Organizational Strategies Peer-Editing Q and A’s

Assessment Overview

STRATEGIES FOR ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE

The primary purpose of assessment and evaluation is to improve student learning. Assessment and evaluation is based on the Ministry of Education’s Growing Success policy document, which articulates the Ministry’s vision for how assessment and evaluation is practiced in Ontario schools.

Growing Success describes the three assessment types as follows:

  • Assessment as Learning: focuses on the explicit fostering of students’ capacity over time to be their own best assessors, but teachers need to start by presenting and modelling external, structured opportunities for students to assess themselves.
  • Assessment for Learning: the process of seeking and interpreting evidence for use by learners and their teachers to decide where the learners are in their learning, where they need to go, and how best to get there.
  • Assessment of Learning: the assessment that becomes public and results in statements or symbols about how well students are learning.
ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION
Assessment as Learning Assessment for Learning Assessment of Learning
Student Product   KWL Charts Entrance/Exit Slips Peer/Self Assessments Student Product   Group Inquiry Activities Mind Maps Chapter Questions Study Guides Textual Notes Writing Exercises Student Product   Assignments (With rubrics)
Observation   Learning Logs Peer/Self Reflections Think/Pair/Share Anecdotal Notes of Observation Observation Group Inquiry Activities Directed Reading Creative Media Research Process Graphic Organizers Observation Oral Presentation (Rubric) Visual Assignments (Rubric)
Conversation   Peer Activities Teacher Student Conferences Descriptive Feedback Think/Pair/Share Conversation Class Debates & Discussions Oral Questioning Teacher/Student Conferences Group Inquiry Activities Listening Activities Conversation   Oral Presentations (Rubric)

EVALUATION SCHEME

A final grade (percentage mark) is calculated at the end of the course and reflects the quality of the student’s achievement of the overall expectations of the course, in accordance with the provincial curriculum.

The final grade will be determined as follows:

  • Seventy per cent (70%) of the grade will be based on evaluation conducted throughout the course. This portion of the grade should reflect the student’s most consistent level of achievement throughout the course, although special consideration should be given to more recent evidence of achievement.
  • Thirty per cent (30%) of the grade will be based on a final evaluation administered at or towards the end of the course. This evaluation will be based on evidence from one or a combination of the following: an examination, a performance, an essay, and/or another method of evaluation suitable to the course content. The final evaluation allows the student an opportunity to demonstrate comprehensive achievement of the overall expectations for the course.
Percentage of Final Mark Weight Evaluation Categories Assessment will be ongoing to inform the students of their performance and the opportunity for success. Four categories of the achievement chart are used to construct assessment/evaluation tasks and are balanced as follows:. K/U: Knowledge and Understanding     25% T/I: Thinking and Inquiry                       25% C: Communication                                   25% A: Application                                           25%
70% 70% Assignments
30% 10% Culminating Performance Task
20% Final Exam

Program Planning Considerations

PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING THE ENGLISH CURRICULUM

This course (which is based on the Ontario English curriculum) is based on the belief that language learning is critical to responsible and productive citizenship, and that all students can become successful language learners. The curriculum and this course are designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills that they need to achieve these goals. It aims to help students become successful language learners.

Successful language learners:

  • understand that language learning is a necessary, life-enhancing, reflective process;
  • communicate – that is, read, listen, view, speak, write, and represent – effectively and with confidence;
  • make meaningful connections between themselves, what they encounter in texts, and the world around them;
  • think critically;
  • understand that all texts advance a particular point of view that must be recognized, questioned, assessed, and evaluated;
  • appreciate the cultural impact and aesthetic power of texts;
  • use language to interact and connect with individuals and communities, for personal growth, and for active participation as world citizens.

Teaching Strategies

This course includes a variety of teaching strategies to help students become independent, self-aware and compassionate learners. The key to student success is providing structured and supportive opportunities for students to explore and evaluate their understanding and overall approach to learning. Students need to be empowered to become lifelong global learners in a digitial age who are willing and able to adapt to and evaluate the messages and thinking presented to them. Because of the nature of an online class, students will be challenged to develop their independent learning skills while also learning how to interact with their educational community through online platforms. Because the online format of the course influences the educational approach and capabilities of the instruction, students will be given multiple opportunities to develop the related skills. It is also expected that as students in a Grade 12 University Preparation class that they will begin the course with a good understanding of themselves as learners including their strengths, areas for improvement, and passions and interests. The courses in the Ontario curriculum are cumulative in nature, and therefore require students to build on their knowledge and skills over the entire course of their high school studies.

Students with English as a Second Language

In planning this course for students with English as a Second Language, the teacher will aim to create a supportive environment that nurtures the students’ self-confidence while also maintaining the integrity and standards of the ENG4U course requirements. Because listening and reading are typically the first of the four language skills gained by the ESL student, it will be important for students to have regular opportunity to practice their writing and speaking in an encouraging setting. The Assessment AS and FOR learning tasks will act as repeated opportunities for students to practice and strengthen their language skills in preparation for the Assessment OF learning tasks that are completed at the end of each Unit or Learning Cycle. Students are also encouraged to seek out supports and ask for extra help and guidance as they progress through the course. For students who begin the course with a strong grasp of the English language, it is an opportunity for them to encourage and support their classmates as opportunities arise through interactions online.

Healthy Relationships and Antidiscrimination in the Online Classroom

Every student is entitled to learn in a safe, respectful and caring environment, free from violence, discrimination and harassment. Because we live in a globalized and diverse world, a crucial life skill is the ability to work and live alongside individuals and communities which are different from our own. For this reason, antidiscrimination education is central to the Ontario curriculum and is intended to prepare students to be responsible citizens in their chosen post-secondary education and work life beyond.

Because there is a greater degree of anonymity to the online classroom, it is vital that all students understand and agree to abide by the healthy relationships and antidiscrimination policy in all interactions. This policy requires that all students:

  • think critically and compassionately as they engage with classmates, instructors and community members in order to help develop a positive community of learners in which all members can learn and grow.
  • communicate with respect and kindness when engaging in debate and discussion with the ideal of always seeking first to understand before being understood, and being willing to hold judgments and conclusions until all parties have had the opportunity to express and clarify their positions.
  • demonstrates patience as classmates seek to express their ideas and understanding of the course content and a willingness to ask clarifying questions as necessary.
  • work to the best of their abilities and make the most of the various opportunities given them in the class.

Any repeated negative behaviour will be subject to appropriate discipline and consequences.

The Role of the School Library

Although Sophio Academy does not have an official school library, students are encouraged to use e-books, local libraries, and archives to develop important research and inquiry skills. Students are also encouraged to explore, whenever possible, academic archives available online.

Academic Honesty and Plagiarism

Students enrolled in Sophio Academy must follow a high standard of academic honesty in all of their coursework. It is understood that we all 'stand on the shoulder of giants' but in order to prepare students for post-secondary studies, it is expected that they properly reference and cite the work of others in their course work and assignments using the proper recognized MLA formatting.

Sophio Academy desires to instill the values of honesty and hard work within our students while also teaching them how to engage in academic discussions and interactions with their intellectual community and honoring the work and ideas of others. Sophio Academy maintains and expects a high standard of academic honesty from all of its students as a vital and essential part of their character growth, academic practice and preparation for post-secondary studies.