About Course Options
Introduction
The types of courses offered, and their organization provide for a graduated streaming of courses in Grades 9 to 12, which will keep options open for all students in the earlier grades and prepare students in senior grades for their future destination. In Grades 9 and 10, five types of courses are offered: academic, destreamed, applied, locally developed and open. Courses in Grades 11 and 12 are designed to prepare students for a post-secondary destination ─ that is, for apprenticeship training, college, university, or the workplace.
TYPES OF COURSES IN GRADES 9 AND 10
Students with their parents and teachers choose Grades 9 and 10 courses based primarily on student interests, needs and achievements. In these years, students select an appropriate combination of open, destreamed, applied and academic courses in order to add to their knowledge and skills base, explore their interests, and determine the type of educational program they are best suited to undertake. Students are not required to make binding decisions about a particular educational and career path.
Academic Courses
Academic Courses “D” Academic courses develop students’ knowledge and skills through the study of theory and abstract problems. These courses focus on the essential concepts of a subject and explore related concepts as well. They incorporate practical applications as appropriate.
Applied Courses
Applied Courses “P” Applied courses focus on the essential concepts of a subject and develop students’ knowledge and skills through practical applications and concrete examples. Familiar situations are used to illustrate ideas, and students are given more opportunities to experience hands-on applications of the concepts and theories they study.
Destreamed Courses
Destreamed Courses "W", include a combination of applied and academic theories and skills. This type of programming allows students to further mature and know themseleves better, before they choose the pathway that is best suited for their skills and interests in grades 10-12.
Locally Developed Courses
Locally Developed LDCC courses focus on the knowledge and skills that students need to be well prepared for success in the Grade 11 Workplace Preparation courses.
(LDCC) “L” Students with widely ranging levels of competency may require these courses; some of these students may be four years behind grade level with significant gaps in knowledge, concept understanding, and skills. As well, LDCC courses will support students in developing and enhancing strategies that they need to develop literacy and numeracy skills and the confidence to use these skills in their day-to-day activities.
Open Courses
Open Courses “O” Open courses comprise a set of expectations that are appropriate for all students. They are designed to prepare students for further study in a subject, and to enrich their education generally.
