Science

The overall aim of the secondary science program is to ensure scientific literacy for every secondary school graduate. To better achieve this aim, all courses in the program are designed to focus on science not only as an intellectual pursuit but also as an activity-based enterprise within a social context.

The senior science courses build on the Grade 9 and 10 science program, incorporating the same goals of science and fundamental concepts on which that program was based. Both programs are founded on the premise that students learn science most effectively when they are active participants in their own learning. Such participation is achieved when science concepts and procedures are introduced through an investigative approach and are connected to students’ prior knowledge in meaningful ways. The Grade 11 and 12 science curriculum is designed to help students prepare for university, college, or the workplace by building a solid conceptual and procedural foundation in science that enables them to apply their knowledge and skills in a variety of ways and successfully further their learning.

An important component of every course in the science program is the development of students’ ability to relate science to technology, society, and the environment. Students are encouraged to apply their understanding of science to real-world situations in these areas and to develop knowledge, skills, and attitudes that they will take with them beyond the science classroom.

The Grade 11 and 12 science program is designed to help students become scientifically literate. One aspect of scientific literacy is the ability to recognize, interpret, and produce representations of scientific information in forms ranging from written and oral reports, drawings and diagrams, and graphs and tables of values to equations, physical models, and computer simulations. As students’ scientific knowledge and skills develop through the grades, they will become conversant with increasingly sophisticated forms and representations of scientific information.

The senior science curriculum also builds on students’ experience with a variety of the sophisticated yet easy-to-use computer applications and simulations that are so prevalent in today’s world. The curriculum integrates these technologies into the learning and doing of science in ways that help students develop investigation skills, extend their understanding of scientific concepts, enable them to solve meaningful problems, and familiarize them with technologies that can be applied in various other areas of endeavour. In this curriculum, technology does not replace skills acquisition; rather, it is treated as a learning tool that helps students explore concepts and hone skills.