The course has an Achievement Chart that describes student achievement of literacy skills. However, as the following chart shows, the levels and their mark ranges differ from those in the Achievement Charts for other courses.

To promote student success, ongoing formative assessment and feedback will be given. As required by the Ministry of Education, students will be assessed in the four areas of the achievement chart. The chart below provides percentages for each category.

Units of study include all 4 categories including assessment for, as and of learning.

Along with some of the strategies in the assessment for, as, and of learning charts below, strategies will include (but not be limited to):

Term Work = 100%

This will be based on most consistent level of achievement on a variety of assignments. Unlike past practice (70% and 30%), final marks will be based on 100% of the coursework (assessment “of” learning/evaluation) as per direction of the Ministry of Education (Fall, 2020.

Term Work is separated into two categories:

Reading (50%)

Following extensive practice in reading a variety of texts, students will independently

demonstrate for evaluation their understanding of a minimum of:

Texts will be assigned by teacher with some opportunity for student choice.

Writing (50%)

Following extensive practice with writing in a variety of forms, students will independently produce for evaluation writing on demand, as follows: a minimum of:

Topics will be assigned by teacher, and tasks will be identical for all students in the class.

Additionally, students will practice and refine their use of language by completing daily exercises that reinforce the skills required for the reading/writing assignments in this course as well as throughout their academic careers.

Learning Skills                                                                                 

Learning skills are observed throughout the course and will be rated excellent, good, satisfactory, or needs improvement on each report card: responsibility, organization, independent work, collaboration, initiative and self-regulation.

Units of Study                                                                                            

Pre-Learning Unit:
Students will be familiarized with our digital learning platform and its use for the OLC4O course. They will also learn about the curricular and class behavioral expectations as well as preliminary expectations for written communication.

A: Informational Text

Students will learn about how to read and analyze Informational Text. They will also learn how to write informational texts.

B: Narrative Text

Students will read and analyze narrative texts to increase their understanding of both story-telling and use of dialogue.

C: Graphic Text
Students learn about the impact of graphic text on every-day life and learn how to properly read them for understanding.

D: The News Report

Students will learn about the impact and importance of the News Media to Canadian society. They will also learn how to write a News Report and produce a piece of writing based upon a provided prompt.

E: Summaries

Students will learn how to effectively summarize information through a variety of media to distill information to only what is most important.

F: The Series of Paragraphs Expressing an Opinion

Students will learn how to write a series of paragraphs that express an opinion based on provided prompts. This is the basis of essay writing.

G: The Portfolio

The portfolio is the most important element of the course because of the mandatory tasks required by the Ministry of Education. Each student must demonstrate success with the following and complete the portfolio in order to obtain a credit for the course and fulfill the literacy requirement for graduation.

CONCURRENT: Language Mechanics

Students will learn about different mechanical errors that are commonly made by students and adults alike. Lessons will be provided with the intent to produce better communicative pieces. Selection of materials will be based upon perceived need.

Note: For the end of each unit, there is a summative evaluation(s) of your work that is worth more of your overall mark. Each student is expected to prepare for these summative tasks by completing in class activities/work for practice, reading assigned texts, and completing homework.

Late and Missing Assignments                                                          

Teacher will establish clearly communicated deadlines to students. It is the student’s responsibility to submit all assignments on or before due dates.

Missing evaluations are recorded as ‘incomplete’ until such time as the teacher determines that the final due date has passed and the expectation cannot be met, at which time a zero (0) may be assigned as the grade for that assignment.  A deduction of up to, but not exceeding, 10 percent may be applied to a late assignment.

Attendance                                                                                      

Attendance at each class is mandatory, since 100% of the mark is allotted for day-to-day work.  Students are responsible for class work and assignments completed and/or assigned in their absence.  Students must contact their teacher immediately after returning from an absence. Notify teachers in advance when possible so suitable arrangements can be made. Students are still responsible for missed work during an absence.

Assessment Tools

STRATEGIES FOR ASSESSMENT & EVALUATION OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE:

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 practice and apply their developing knowledge and skills
• Apply effective teaching approaches, involve students in the use of higher-level thinking skills
• 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

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 the classroom.  These strategies include:

• Modification of some or all of the subject expectations depending on the level of English proficiency
• Use of a variety of instructional strategies (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 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)

Anti-discrimination Education

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

• Involve protagonists of both sexes from a wide variety of backgrounds
• Reflected in the diversity of Canadian and world cultures, including those of contemporary First Nations, Metis, and Inuit peoples
• Include, in English, the use of short stories, novels, magazine and newspaper articles, television programs, and film
• 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 nontraditional 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, encyclopedias, 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 an 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 the potential for abuse of this technology, particularly when it is used to promote hatred.