Environmental Science SVN3E, Workplace Preparation, is an optional, Grade 11 Science course which forms part of the revised 2008 Ministry of Education (Ontario)

Ministry of Education (Ontario)

The Ministry of Education is the agency of the Ontario government in the Canadian province of Ontario responsible for government policy, funding, curriculum planning and direction in all levels of public education, including elementary and secondary schools.This Ministry is responsible for...

 Ontario Science Curriculum .

SVN3E (along with its sister course, Environmental Science SVN3M), will be taught in Ontario high schools for the first time in September, 2009.

The course is designed to provide fundamental knowledge of and skills relating to Environmental Science

Environmental science

Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physical and biological sciences, to the study of the environment, and the solution of environmental problems...

 that will help students succeed in work and life after secondary school.

Background

Prior to 2008, Environmental Science had never been represented as a distinct topic in the Ontario science curriculum, but was amalgamated into other disciplines, for example, in the 2000 Ontario Science Curriculum .

The Curriculum

The SVN3E Environmental Science Workplace Preparation course covers a range of topics, including the impact of human activities on the environment; human health and the environment; energy conservation; resource science and management; and safety and environmental responsibility in the workplace.
SVN3E emphasizes relevant, practical applications and current topics in environmental science. It pays special attention to students’ literacy

Literacy

Literacy has traditionally been described as the ability to read for knowledge, write coherently and think critically about printed material.Literacy represents the lifelong, intellectual process of gaining meaning from print...

 and mathematical literacy skills as well as the development of their environmental and scientific literacy

Scientific literacy

Scientific literacy encompasses written, numerical, and digital literacy as they pertain to understanding science, its methodology, observations, and theories.-Definition:...

.

Prerequisites

Students must hold Science, Grade 9, Academic or Applied, or a Grade 9 or 10 locally developed
compulsory credit (LDCC) course in science.

The SVN3E Pilot Program

In 2008, the Environmental Science SVN3E Workplace Preparation course was piloted in Ontario. Pilot teachers field-tested and developed materials for the SVN3E course. They created a document summarizing their findings.

SVN3E Teacher Network

The Environmental Science Interactions community is a social networking community for SVN3E teachers, hosted by Ning

Ning

Ning is an online platform for people and organizations to create custom social networks, launched in October 2005. Ning offers customers the ability to create a community website with a customized appearance and feel, feature sets such as photos, videos, forums and blogs, and the service layers in...

. Community members share and discuss SVN3E resources, teaching strategies, and other Environmental Science topics.

External links

• The 2008 Ontario Science Curriculum
• The 2000 Ontario Science Curriculum
• Environmental Science Interactions