Grade 9 Civics (Winter Term)

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Revision as of 09:48, 6 February 2008

Course Information

Assessment & Evaluation

Students will be assessed and evaluated according to the four desired outcomes in the Ontario curriculum:

• Knowledge & Understanding
• Inquiry & Thinking
• Communication
• Application

Each form of evaluation will attempt to incorporate aspects of these four outcomes.

The types of evaluation will include:

• Written work (short essays, formal responses to items of discussion, short answers to different scenarios discussed in class): 35% of final mark
• Oral work (formal debating, presentations, role playing): 35% of final mark
• Summative (series of written pieces near the end of the course meant to demonstrate achievement of overall learning outcomes: 30% of final mark

Students should expect regular feedback on their learning in order to assist them in achieving the desired learning outcomes.

Introduction to the Course

Class #1: January 17, 2008

1. Distribution of course outline and explanation of grading practices
2. Class web page, SSD
3. Exercise:
   1. Take some time to think about five issues that are important to you.
   2. Try to come up with at least one local, national, and international issue.
   3. Explain, in a few sentences, why the issue is important to you.
   4. Be prepared to share them with the class.
4. Video: Prelude to War

Curriculum expectations met in this class include:

• Explain the causes of civic conflict and how decision-making processes and structures can avert or respond to such conflicts (rise of Nazism and Soviet communism);
• Compare the benefits and drawbacks of democratic and authoritarian forms of decision-making, drawing on examples from everyday contexts (dictatorship vs. democracy)

Class #2: January 21, 2008

1. YPI Student Questionnaire 1: Complete in class
2. Exercise: Correct the spelling and grammatical mistakes in the passage
3. Video: Prelude to War, followed by discussion and note
4. Note: Forms and expressions of power: influence, authority, coercion

Curriculum expectations met in this class include:

• Identify similarities and differences in the way power is distributed in groups, institutions, and communities

Units 1-2: Youth & Philanthropy Initiative, Canadian Government and Politics

The Youth and Philanthropy Initiative, and Unit 2, Canadian Government & Politics, will be covered concurrently.

Class #3: January 23, 2008 : Introductory workshop on YPI with Megan Tasker from the Toskan-Casale Foundation

• This full period workshop will introduce students to several important concepts: philanthropy, volunteerism, major Canadian social issues, the non-profit social service sector, and help them focus their own priorities and interests for the YPI project.

Class #4: January 25, 2008: YPI Lesson 1

Writing Exercise: Correct the passage

By the end of this lesson students will have:

• an understanding of language related to philanthropy and charity
• be able to describe the different charitable sectors and distinguish between them
• have identified the benefits of philanthropy for society and the donors/volunteers

Handouts include:

• Appendix A: Charitable Donors
• Appendix B: Description of Charitable Sectors
• Worksheet #1: What is Charity
• Worksheet #2: Charity, Volunteerism & Philanthropy

Create MS Word document named YPI#1 and answer questions 1-3 on page 47 of handout.

Class #5: January 29, 2008: YPI Lesson #1 continued and Text Reading Period: Canadian Civics, chapter 1 (pp. 2 - 19)

Read chapter 1: Why Civics? Why Democracy? and complete the following:

Define the Key Terms listed in box on page 2 in full sentences in an MS Word file named "Chapter 1 Key Terms.doc" and save to the Civics folder on your computer. Be prepared to share your answers in a future class.

Class #6: January 31, 2008: YPI Lesson #2 Charitable Deeds and Events, Research Skills

Curriculum expectations met in this class include:

• formulate appropriate questions for inquiry and research; locate relevant information in a variety of sources (e.g., texts, reference materials, news media, maps, community resources, the Internet); and identify main ideas, supporting evidence, points of view, and biases in these materials;

Complete Activity Sheet for Chapter 1.

Class #7: February 6, 2007: Power Note, Discussion of YPI Lesson #2, and Take Up Activity Sheet for Chapter 1.

• Distribute Activity Sheet for Chapter 2.
• 10 question multiple choice test on chapter 1 next class

Unit 3: Rights, Freedoms, and the Justice System

Unit 4: Canada and the World