|
|
|
|
| TODAY'S NEWS | SEARCH THE NEWSROOM | NEWS BY MINISTRY |
Grade 12 revisions will take place in 2007-08
TORONTO, Feb. 16 /CNW/ - Proposed revisions in Grade 12 math, including
calculus, will not be implemented next school year, but will instead be
subjected to a special extended review, said Education Minister Gerard
Kennedy.
Schools will deliver the revised Grade 11 math courses this September.
Grade 12 math curriculum will remain unchanged for the 2006-07 school year
while an extended review is conducted. The decision will ensure continuity for
students who are currently in Grade 11 as they will continue in the curriculum
they began in Grade 9.
"It is a good sign that so many members of the public care deeply about
what students are learning in our schools," said Kennedy at the Ontario
Association for Mathematics Education conference, referring to the many
e-mails and letters received on the subject. "What is taught, whether it is
calculus or trigonometry, does have real implications for students, business
and the community at large, and we will now have a process to take that into
account."
The first Curriculum Council task force will address senior high school
mathematics. The task force will include a wide cross-section of experts from
the Ontario community, including a parent, classroom math teacher, high-tech
employer, student and leading math specialists.
This group has held an initial meeting and will be consulting with other
employers, parents and students in the coming weeks about proposed changes to
the senior high school math curriculum. This new approach expands on the
ministry's existing curriculum review process that includes academic research,
comparisons to other jurisdictions and consultation with education partners.
The Ministry's task force will make recommendations to the Minister of
Education in late March to help resolve any issues, including the most
appropriate placement and amount of calculus in Grade 12.
"I welcome the ministry's approach to changing Grade 11 math for next
year while maintaining Grade 12 math until the completion of our review," said
task force chairperson Thomas Salisbury, a Professor in York University's
department of mathematics and statistics, and Deputy Director of the Fields
Institute. "Our Task Force will provide recommendations to the Minister that
will help all students succeed in math. Ontario deserves the best and most
relevant mathematics curriculum possible, one that will ensure more positive
outcomes for all students and will also meet the needs of future leaders in
such fields as engineering, science and business."
"Our goal is to have more students learn more mathematics at higher
levels of accomplishment and the task force will help us to deliver that."
Disponible en français.
www.edu.gov.on.ca
Backgrounder
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL MATH UNDER SPECIAL EXTENDED REVIEW
The McGuinty government is committed to establishing an independent
Curriculum Council to plan and prepare for curriculum changes. The Curriculum
Council will be composed of parents, teachers, board representatives, business
leaders and education experts. The Council's real decision-making authority
will enable it to plan and implement curriculum changes.
The Ministry of Education's first Curriculum Council task force will
evaluate proposed changes to the senior high school mathematics curriculum.
MINISTRY'S TASK FORCE
Thomas Salisbury (Chairperson) - a Professor of Mathematics and
Statistics at York University. Thomas also serves as Deputy Director of the
Fields Institute and co-chairs its mathematics education forum. He is the
incoming President of the Canadian Mathematical Society.
Wendy Hayes - the Managing Director for Apple Canada.
André Ladouceur - the Retired Head of Mathematics at Collège Catholique
Samuel-Genest, Ottawa. André is also a Past President of Association française
pour l'enseignement des mathématiques en Ontario (AFEMO) and winner of the
Prime Minister's Award for Excellence in Teaching in Science, Mathematics and
Technology (1995).
Husein Panju - a grade 12 student at Richmond Hill High School and
Student Trustee for the York Region District School Board.
Beverly Farahani - a Director with the Ontario Association for
Mathematics Education and Head of Mathematics at Kingston Collegiate and
Vocational Institute.
Manon Lemonde - Past President of Parents partenaires en éducation and
the secretary of the school council at l'Ecole St-Charles Garnier in Whitby.
Manon was previously the Chairperson at l'Ecole St-Denis in Sudbury.
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL MATH
High schools are currently facing an overcrowded senior math curriculum
resulting from the compression of five years of math into four when Grade 13
was eliminated by the previous government. Concerns have been raised by math
and community experts that a comprehensive review must carefully consider the
most relevant course content required by colleges and universities, the needs
of employers including those in the high-tech, science and business fields,
and gaps created by placing trigonometry in Grade 11 in 2000.
Revisions to Grades 1-10 math courses were introduced in Ontario schools
in 2005 with positive reviews. Grade 9 and 10 math curriculum changes made a
clearer distinction between Applied and Academic curriculum by making the
respective content more relevant to student learning styles.
Disponible en français
www.edu.gov.on.ca
-30-
For further information: Contacts: Amanda Alvaro, Minister's Office, (416) 325-2632, (416) 509-5696 (cell); Wilma Davis, Communications Branch, (416) 325-6730; Public Inquiries: (416) 325-2929 or 1-800-387-5514, TTY: 1-800-263-2892
Other news releases disseminated by this ministry
