BC Education - Communications 11 and 12 IRP

Preface: Using This Integrated Resource Package

This Integrated Resource Package (IRP) provides basic information teachers will require in order to implement the Communications 11 and 12 curriculum. This document supersedes the Communications 11 and 12 Integrated Resource Package. The information contained in this IRP is also available via the Ministry web site: http://www.bced.gov.bc.ca/irp/irp.htm . The following paragraphs provide brief descriptions about each section of the IRP.

The Introduction

The Introduction provides general information about Communications 11 and 12, including special features and requirements. It also provides a rationale for teaching Communications 11 and 12 in BC schools.

Communications 11 and 12 Curriculum

The provincially prescribed curriculum for Communications 11 and 12 is structured in terms of curriculum organizers. The main body of this IRP consists of four columns of information for each organizer. These columns describe:

provincially prescribed learning outcome statements
suggested instructional strategies for achieving the outcomes
suggested assessment strategies for determining how well students are achieving the outcomes
provincially recommended learning resources

Prescribed Learning Outcomes

Learning outcome statements are content standards for the provincial education system. Prescribed learning outcomes set out the knowledge, enduring ideas, issues, concepts, skills, and attitudes for each subject. They are statements of what students are expected to know and be able to do in each grade. Learning outcomes are clearly stated and expressed in observable terms. All learning outcomes complete the stem: "It is expected that students will . . . . ". Outcome statements have been written to enable teachers to use their experience and professional judgment when planning and evaluating. The outcomes are benchmarks that will permit the use of criterion-referenced performance standards. It is expected that actual student performance will vary. Evaluation, reporting, and student placement with respect to these outcomes depend on the professional judgment of teachers, guided by provincial policy.

Suggested Instructional Strategies

Instruction involves the use of techniques, activities, and methods that can be employed to meet diverse student needs and to deliver the prescribed curriculum. Teachers are free to adapt the suggested instructional strategies or substitute others that will enable their students to achieve the prescribed learning outcomes. These strategies have been developed by specialist and generalist teachers to assist their colleagues; they are suggestions only.

Suggested Assessment Strategies

The assessment strategies suggest a variety of ways to gather information about student performance. Some assessment strategies relate to specific activities; others are general. These strategies have been developed by specialist and generalist teachers to assist their colleagues; they are suggestions only.

Provincially Recommended Learning Resources

Provincially recommended learning resources are materials that have been reviewed and evaluated by BC educators in collaboration with the Ministry of Education according to a stringent set of criteria. These resources are organized as Grade Collections. A Grade Collection is the format used to organize the provincially recommended learning resources by grade and by curriculum organizer. It can be regarded as a "starter set" of basic resources to deliver the curriculum. These resources are typically materials suitable for student use, but they may also include information primarily intended for teachers. Teachers and school districts are encouraged to select those resources that they find most relevant and useful for their students, and to supplement these with locally approved materials and resources to meet specific
local needs.

The recommended resources listed in the main body (fourth column) of this IRP are those that either present comprehensive coverage of the learning outcomes of the particular curriculum organizer or provide unique support to specific topics. Further information about these recommended learning resources is found in Appendix B.

The Appendices

A series of appendices provides additional information about the curriculum, and further support for the teacher.

Appendix A lists the curriculum organizers and the prescribed learning outcomes for each grade for the curriculum.
Appendix B consists of general information on learning resources as well as Grade Collection organizational charts and annotations for the provincially recommended resources. New resources are evaluated and added to the Grade Collections on a regular basis.
Appendix C contains assistance for teachers regarding provincial evaluation and reporting policy. Prescribed learning outcomes have been used as the source for samples of criterion-referenced evaluations.
Appendix D acknowledges the many people and organizations that have been involved in the development of this IRP.

Explanation of Section

Curriculum Sub-Organizer as seen on the World Wide Web

Grade and
Curriculum Organizer

Grade 11 - Comprehend and Respond
(Strategies and Skills)

This sub-organizer contains the following sections:
Prescribed Learning Outcomes
Suggested Instructional Strategies
Suggested Assessment Strategies
Recommended Learning Resources

Internal links to each
section of the document

Prescribed Learning Outcomes

PRESCRIBED LEARNING OUTCOMES

It is expected that students will:

use a veriety of strategies before, during, and after reading, viewing, or listening to increase comprehension and recall
construct and confirm meaning using word-structure analysis, context clues, and prominent organizational patterns
apply appropriate strategies for locating and using information from a variety of print and non-print resources, including electronic resources
demonstrate efficient note-taking strategies

To view the prescribed learning outcomes for Energy and Power in other grades click on an icon below.

Navigational Links to similar sub-organizers

Suggested Instructional Strategies

SUGGESTED INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES

Give students the title and topic of a selection. Ask them to brainstorm what they already know about the topic or can predict from the title. In groups, have students formulate three questions about the selection. Ask each group to write its questions on the board. Have each student choose a question to answer in a written or oral presentation after reading, viewing,or listening, to the selection. As a final activity, have students write response journal entries about their new understanding of the topic.
Demonstrate to students common techniques for conveying information in informational documents, such as:
- titles, headings, and subheadings
- clear structure and visual design
- side bars
- summaries
- indices and table of content
- highlighted vocabulary
- icons
- graphs, charts, and diagrams
- photos and illustrations
Then have students look for examples of these techniques in a selection of documents, list their findings, and discuss the effectiveness of each technique.
Teach students the two-column note format, in which the main points are placed in the laft column and supporting information in the right column. Then divide the class into groups and give each group a research topic and a variety of types of information about the topic(e.g., newspaper articles, Internet materials, photographs, graphs, charts). Have each group create a two-column set of notes on poster paper. Post the notes on a classroom wall and have the groups do a Gallery Walk. Ask students to rephrase the information in each poster into a set of questions and to identify any questions not answered by the notes. As a class, have students discuss what they learned about each of the topics from the notes.

Suggested Assessment Strategies

SUGGESTED ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES

Have students keep ongoing lists of skills and strategies they are developing, along with examples of how and when they have used each one. From time to time, ask them to review their lists and comment on strategies they:
- frequently use for specific kinds of tasks
- rely on for a wide variety of tasks
- do not find useful
- have difficulty using

As students work with selections, look for evidence that they can use effective note-taking skills. Use criteria such as:
- summarizes main ideas
- turns headings into questions
- finds supporting details
- defines unfamiliar vocabulary
Develop a class rating scale that can be used for self-peer, and teacher assessment of a set of notes.

Assess students' comprehension skills and strategies in a variety of independent and group contexts. Look for evidence that they can:
- describe problems when they have difficulty
- suggest appropriate strategies or approaches
- consider their purpose and the nature of the problems in choosing approaches
- persist, trying different approaches when one is not effective
- objectively analyse what worked and how they can apply what they've learned to new situations