Selection+of+Curriculum+Area+and+Rationale

Selection of Curriculum Area, Grade Level, and Rationale  The curriculum I have chosen to work with is British Columbia's Social Studies 10 B.C.'s Social Studies 10 curriculum is divided into 5 major strands: A: Skills and Processes of Social Studies  collaboratively
 * A1 Apply critical thinking skills, including
 * A2 Demonstrate effective research skills, including
 * A3 Demonstrate effective written, oral, and graphic communication skills, individually and

B: Identity, Society, and Culture: Canada from 1815 to 1914  in Canada from 1815 to 1914
 * B1 Analyse Canadian society from 1815 to 1914 in terms of gender roles, ethnicity, daily life, and the arts
 * B2 Evaluate the impact of interactions between Aboriginal peoples and European explorers and settlers
 * B3 Evaluate the influence of immigration on Canadian society from 1815 to 1914
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px;">B4 Describe the factors that contributed to a changing national identity from 1815 to 1914

<span style="color: #0000ff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; text-align: left;">C: Governance: Canada from 1815 to 1914 <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;"> key contributing events <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;"> development of Canada’s provinces and territories
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%;">C1 Describe the evolution of responsible government in Canada in terms of government structure and
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px;">C2 analyse political, economic, social, and geographical factors that led to Confederation and to the
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">C3 describe the events of the Red River and Northwest Rebellions
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px;">C4 describe the structure and function of Canada’s federal, provincial, and local governments

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%;">D: Economy and Technology: Canada from 1815 to 1914 <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;"> − resource development and decline − technological innovations
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">D1 assess the impact of Macdonald’s National Policy on Canada
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">D2 analyse the influence of the following on Canada’s economy from 1815 to 1914:
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 23px;">D3 describe the development of British Columbia’s economy from 1815 to 1914

<span style="color: #0000ff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; text-align: left;">E: Environment: Canada from 1815 to 1914 <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;"> Canada from 1815 to 1914 <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;"> and their impact on contemporary resource management
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">E1 describe the physiographic regions of Canada and the geological processes that formed these regions
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">E2 analyse how geography influenced the economic development and settlement patterns in regions of
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">E3 evaluate attitudes and practices in resource development in British Columbia from 1815 to 1914

<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%;">The complete Social Studies 10 Curriculum is available at: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/pdfs/social_studies/2006ss_10.pdf media type="youtube" key="Pq_xddkO064?version=3" height="315" width="420" **<span style="color: #0000ff; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 180%;">My Rationale: ** <span style="color: #000000; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 110%;"> **<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%; text-align: left;">Secondary school can be very different from elementary school. Subjects are segregated and often taught in isolation. "Ding" the bell rings and students study just science for an hour. "Ding" the bell rings and the learners put science away and switch their locations and mindsets to English. Subjects can sometimes be taught in a vacuum, and the students often don't see the whole picture, the holistic learning and how their skills and capacities in one class transfer to another, let alone to the broader world beyond their school community's walls. I believe that as a teacher and a Teacher-Librarian we can break down those walls and illuminate and guide students to broader horizons. ** **<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%; text-align: left;">Social Studies as a whole can be a content heavy curriculum, and there is the potential pitfall of it being taught as simply that: name, date, fact, rote memory. Moreover, the curriculum of Socials 9 focuses on such epic events as the French Revolution and the Enlightenment. Socials 11 is a "significant" course with the weight of a provincial exam attached to it. Socials 10 explores Canadian history before our modern age, and then into our modern time's infancy. This content usually elicits a groan from students. I feel very passionately about using curriculum selection and collaborative creation as an opportunity to teach students from a skills-based, inquiry-based foundation. This means the learners are at the centre, as they should be at the centre of their learning. Moreover, this propels a curriculum beyond "Canadian History between 1815-1914" and into the realm of communication, investigation, construction and reflection, the four pillars of inquiry-based learning. The B.C Ministry of Education has recently revamped the desired learning outcomes of Social Studies 10. As such, it is an opportunity to develop life-long learning, primary source analysis, examining complexities of cause(s) and effect(s), and critical thinking skills. As __Achieving Information Literacy__ reminds us ". . . schools are responsible for teaching children how to adapt to change and how to make decisions and solve problems based on accurate and authentic information. Critical thinking skills are essential to evaluate information and to apply information creatively and responsibly to solve problems" (2006, p.4). The Socials 10 curriculum and collection is a ripe opportunity to examine and then ensure that these responsibilities are met. Furthermore, the Socials 10 curriculum is also an opportunity to eradicate the "groan" some students initially associate with the subject Canadian History. It is an opportunity to show them the relevance of our past, so they can see how it shapes our present and future, and empower them to know themselves as history shapers, future creators and global citizens. ** **<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%; text-align: left;">For the past four years I have been teaching English, Communications, Work Experience Co-op and Philosophy. I am making my way back into the Social Studies department next semester, beginning with Social Studies 10. Therefore, it was an easy choice for me to select for my curriculum and collections exploration. I am hoping to begin with the revamped Socials 10 IRP, which thankfully is more skills based, and with our school's available library collections. These will be my starting points in examining the possibilities of the course not just from a Socials content point of view, but a Humanities, farther-reaching skills perspective. The curriculum has great potential to incorporate skills and learning from science courses, geography, english, mathematics (population statistics, etc.), art, media studies and more. I see the course and collections as a vehicle to scaffold student life-long learning and broader holistic horizons, not simply content in a vacuum. Moreover, our school library is moving forward in its collection support and I would like to explore literature circles, bringing in great Canadian fiction about our rich past, picture books and visual literacy, new technology tools and inquiry-based learning. My curriculum choice allows me to further discover what our school's library offers, as well as examine the library collection with a critical lens and plan for the near future. ** **<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%; text-align: left;">My school community is multicultural, with a predominantly South Asian population, and a high immigrant and refugee population. Our school also has a wide interest in global issues and social justice. I feel that the Socials 10 curriculum is an opportunity to incorporate such topics of exploration and skill development, beyond a lunch-time club or committee and into core development and curriculum. I would like to see how our library can support such topics and learning. Moreover, the Socials 10 curriculum investigates immigration and the formation of identity. This is a key issue for our school, and the library collection could assist in this relevant and purposeful issue within the curriculum and school. There are dynamic resources to explore in support of this learning, such as picture books, fiction pieces, audiovisual supports and Canadian Viewpoints databases. This course and this task is an opportunity to examine what my library collection can provide in this particularly relevant area and what has been recently published to add to the library. Furthermore, Elizabeth Prevost states that "if we are to keep students engaged as learners and researchers using the school library, we must give them access to information from websites" (2009, p.8). The resources available for more "Socials 11" content area are prevalent and modern. I would like to explore, or seek out the same level of resources for a dynamic Socials 10 course. This includes finding websites with sustainability and technological tools that engage, enrich, and instruct. ** **<span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 140%; text-align: left;">Savard highlights an important issue in collections development, and that is, "librarians and libraries are constantly faced with the challenge of building collections of resources that are of value to students and teachers" (2007, p.87, as quoted in Burkett, 2009). This means that students and teachers must have a voice in the collection, in the learning. Over the course of my teaching career I have been exploring, learning and experimenting with differentiated instruction and Assessment For Learning. These are two critical educational philosophies and practices that I have employed as a teacher. I would like to see how library collections can support these practices, and thus enable students to have a voice, an investment, an ownership in their assessment and their learning. Further, collaboration is a critical foundation of our school community's practice. I intend to endeavor with my Teacher-Librarian, as well as colleagues in Social Studies and other departments (Information Technology, Art, Science) to examine what resources are available to fully support a holistic, varied Socials 10 curriculum. Through collaboration I hope to discover resources available, in print, online or audiovisual, etc that may not be readily known to a History and English teacher. Also, this will provide an opportunity to examine if our current library collection supports such holistic teaching and learning, and to examine what new resources may be lacking in the curriculum. Overall, this collection evaluation is a rich opportunity to provide for learners and teachers, and Socials 10 is merely the first lens through which to see. ** <span style="color: #0000ff; display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 150%; text-align: left;">**References:**  <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; text-align: left;">**Asselin, M., Branch, J., & Oberg, D., (Eds). Achieving information literacy: Standards for school library programs (2003). Ottawa, ON: Canadian Association for** <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; text-align: left;">**School Libraries.**  <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; text-align: left;">**Burkett, K. (2009). The development of a selection policy for the school library. Literacies, Learning, and Libraries 2(1), 5-6.** <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 130%; text-align: left;">**Prevost, E. (2009). Online collections are essential: Collaborative collections in elementary school libraries. Literacies, Learning, and Libraries 2(1), 7-11.**