For the love of learning : report of the Royal Commission on Learning

80 Pages·1994·4.7 MB·English

by  Ontario. Royal Commission on Learning.

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Report of the Royal Commission on Learning
The Educators

FOR THE LOVE OF LEARNING
[Digitized by tine Internet Arciiive
in 2010 witii funding from
Tine Law Foundation of Ontario & the Ontario Council of University Libraries
http://www.archive.org/details/forloveoflearnin03onta
For the
Love of Learning
Report of the Royal Commission on Learning
Volume III The Educators 5^
Ontario
©Queen'sPrinterforOntario.1994
Cedocumentestaussidisponibleenfranpais
CanadianCataloguingInPublicationData
Ontario.RoyalCommissiononLearning.
Fortheloveoflearning
Co-chair;MoniqueBegin,GeraldL.Caplan.
AccompaniedbyapublicationsubtitledAshortversionandaCD-ROM.
IssuedalsoinFrenchundertitle:PourI'amourd'apprendre.
Includesbibliographicalreferences.
Contents:v.I.Mandate,context,issues-v.ll.Learning:ourvisionforschools-
V.III.Theeducators-v.IV.Makingithappen.
ISBN0-7778-3577-0
1.Education-Ontario. 2.Education-Aimsandobjectives. I.Begin,Monique. II.Caplan,GeraldL.,1938-. III.Title.
LA418.05056 1994 370'.9713 C95-964004-5
Copiesofthisreportareavailableforachargefrom:
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Telephone[phone]
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AnyonewishingtoaccessthesubmissionsandrecordsoftheRoyalCommissiononLearningshouldcontacttheRecords
ManagementUnitortheFreedomofInformationandPrivacyOfficeoftheMinistryofEducationandTraining.Therecordswillbe
retainedthereforthreeyearsandthenpermanentlystoredattheArchivesofOntario.
Printedonrecycledpaper
Royal Commission Co-Chair«/CoprpsidentB
Commission royalesur Monique lie-in - (ierald L. Caplan
CominiBsioners/MembreBdelacommiRsion
onLearning I'education Manisha Bharti - Avia E. Glaze - DennisJ. Murphy
Ontario
December 1994
The Honourable Dave Cooke
Minister ofEducation and Training
Dear Mr. Minister:
It is with a sense ofgreat hope for the future ofthe young people ofOntario that
we respectfully submit to you the Final Report ofthe Royal Commission on
Learning.
Very sincerely yours,
(^L^
Monique Begin / Gerald Caplan
Co-chair Co-chair
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Manisha Bharti Avis Glaze Dennis Murphy
Commissioner Commissioner Commissioner
d-O
RaiDi Cecco
Executive Director
101 Bloor Street West/13thFloor/Toronto/Ontario MBS 1P7
Telephone [phone]/Fax [phone]/TOLL FREE 1-800-565-0861
101,rue Bloor ouest/ 13'6tage/Toronto (Ontario) M5S 1P7
T6l6phone [phone]/T^licopieur [phone]/Sans frais 1-800-B66-0861
1 1
Volume
I
Mandate, Context, Issues
IntroductiontotheReport 1 Publicfundingtoprivateschools 24
Anti-racismandethno-cultural
A climate ofuncertainty 1 equityinitiatives 24
Some recent history ofeducational Thesignificanceofrecentpolicychanges 24
change and reform 2 Reflectingon change 24
ImprovingOntario's schools 3 Ontario: Picture ofthe province 25
News, both good and bad 4 Ontario's changingeconomy 25
Our way intothefuture 5 Unemployment 25
Earlychildhoodeducation 6 Poverty 26
Teacherdevelopment 6 Areeducationandeconomic
Informationtechnology 6 prosperityconnected? 26
Communityeducation 7 Demographic factors 27
The curriculum 7 Thefamily 27
Maliingchange happen 8 Emotionalwell-being 28
Fertilityrates 28
Immigration 28
Chapter1: Nativepeoples 28
TheRoyalCommission
Visibleminorities 28
onLearning 10 RomanCatholicandfrancophonefamilies 29
Public consultation 11 Values and l<nowledge 29
Educational statisticsfor Ontario 30
Talkingtopeople 1 Some indicators of howwe are doing 32
Mediacoverage 1
Costs ofeducation 34
Outreach 12
Experts and research 13 Educationexpenditures 35
Commissioners' meetings 13 Costcomparisons 35
Salaries 36
Pupil-educatorratio 36
Languageprograms 36
Chapter2:
EducationandSociety 14 A national and international context
foreducational reform 36
Education in Ontario: A briefhistory 15
Curriculumandteachingmethods 17
EducationrightsoftheFrench-language Chapter3:
minority 17 People'sVoices 44
Questionsofpurpose 18
More recent educational history 18 The purposes ofeducation and
curriculum issues 45
Elementaryschools 19
Teaching and teachereducation 47
Secondaryschools 20
Assessment and accountability 47
Decliningenrolments 21
Organization ofeducation
Majorlegislationinthe 1980s 21
(governance) 49
Financingeducation 23
Public concerns and the
Legislativereports 23
Commission's mandate 49
Premier'scouncil 23
For the Love of Learning
Report off the Royal Commission on Learning
Chapter4:
PurposesofEducation 52 Chapter6;
What IsTeaching? 76
The issues 53
Sharpeningthe focus: Characteristics ofgood teaching 77
A set of purposes 54 Teacherscareaboutandarecommitted
Schools in the broader community: tostudentsandtheirlearning 78
A framework 55 Teachersknowthesubjectstheyteach
Primary and shared responsibilities 56 andhowtoteachthematerialtostudents:
Linking purposes with responsibilities 57 Inotherwords,theyknowhowtomake
The hidden curriculum 58 knowledgeaccessibletostudents79
Values 60 Guidedbycleargoals,teachersorganize
Conclusion 62 andmonitorstudentlearning 80
Teachersdonotalwaysworkinisolation;they
Chapter5: learnfromandcollaboratewithothers,
WhatIsLearning? 64 includingstudents,colleagues,parents,
What do we know about how andthecommunity 81
learning happens? 65 Teacherscriticallyexaminetheirownpractice,
andcontinuetolearnthroughouttheir
Learningoccursfromcradletograve 65
careers 81
Learningoccurswithandwithout
Good teachers in their schools 82
directinstruction 66
Conclusion 82
Learningdependsonpractice 66
Learningisasocialprocess 67
Learningoccursmostreadilywhen
learnerswanttolearn 67
Learnershavetoknowhowtogo
onlearning 68
Learningisdifferentfordifferentlearners 68
Therearebarrierstolearning 69
Learningfor life: The importance
ofearly learning 70
Informal to formal learning: The
transition from home to school 71
Activeteachingandlearning 72
Exploitingthediversityofthegroup 72
Extendingtheboundariesofthe
learningenvironment 72
Creatingalearningcommunitythatworks 73
Volume
II
Learning: Our Vision
for Schools
IntroductiontoVolumeII 1 Core subjects 39
Thearts:Dance,drama,music,visualarts 40
Key issues 2
Careereducation 41
Curriculumquality 3 History 43
Curriculumfocus 3 Officiallanguagesandinternational
Fairnessandopenness 4 languages 43
Efficiency 5 Physicalandhealtheducation 46
Strategiesfor improvement: A learning Technology(broad-based)47
system thatfocuses on the learner Continuity in curriculum and learning,
and on literacies 7 Grades 1-6 48
Thesystem 7 The transition to adolescence: Special
Thelearner 8 consideration ofthe needs of learners
Acurriculumforliteracies 8 from age 12to 15 49
Theliteraciesacrossthecurriculum 10 Relationalneeds 49
Planningneeds 51
Theneedforchoice,decision-making,
Chapter7: andcontrol 52
TheLearnerfrom BirthtoAge6: The curriculum as the basis ofa
TheTransitionfromHome learningsystem through Grade 9 54
toSchool 12 TheinclusionofGrade9 55
The learnerfrom birth to age 3: Thefocusonlearneroutcomes 55
The literacies curriculum ofhome Curriculumintegration 60
and care 13 InclusivenessofTheCommonCurriculum 61
The learnerfrom age 3 to 6: The literacy
curriculum in a school setting 15
Chapter9:
TheLearnerfromAge 15to 18:
FurtherEducationand
Chapter8:
TheLearnerfromAge6to 15: SpecializationYears 66
OurCommonCurriculum 24
The current context ofsecondary
The transition to compulsory education in Ontario 68
schooling 25 Suggestionsfor reorganizingthe
Thefoundation: The essential elements secondary school 74
ofthe elementary curriculum 26 Theduration 74
Literacy/communicationsskills 27 Curriculumorganization 76
Numeracy/problem-solving 31 Flexibility 85
Grouplearningandinterpersonalskills Curriculumcontent 87
andvalues 32 Thetransitiontoworkfromschool
Scientificliteracy 36 (andbackagain) 93
Computerliteracy 37 Summary 94
Adulteducation 96