SKILLS OF SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION (INQUIRY AND  RESEARCH)

The goal of science education is more than just providing students with a knowledge of facts. Mastery of the subject can no longer be evaluated solely in terms of students’ ability to recall specialized terminology, memorize isolated facts, or repeat a theory. Rather, students must be given opportunities to learn through investigation. In doing so, they can practise and become proficient in various scientific investigation skills. These skills not only develop critical thinking and allow students to extend their understanding of science; they are also useful in students’ everyday lives and will help them in pursuing their postsecondary goals, whether in science or some other area of endeavour.

As students advance from grade to grade, they practise these skills more fully and independently and in increasingly demanding contexts. Initially, students become aware of and familiar with each new skill. With emerging understanding, students reflect on and practise aspects of these skills when conducting investigations. As their knowledge and confidence grow, students begin to implement the skills more fully. Through repeated use, they are able to increase and refine their understanding of and proficiency in each skill. Finally, once they become proficient, they can extend skills, incorporating them into other areas of study as well as everyday activities.

In high school Science there are Four Broad Areas of Scientific Investigation:

Students will learn to apply scientific investigation skills in four broad areas: initiating and planning; performing and recording; analysing and interpreting; and communicating.

• Initiating and planning skills include formulating questions or hypotheses or making predictions about ideas, issues, problems, or the relationships between observable variables, and planning investigations to answer those questions or test those hypotheses.

• Performing and recording skills include conducting research by gathering, organizing, and recording information, and safely conducting inquiries to make observations and to collect, organize, and record data.

• Analysing and interpreting skills include evaluating the adequacy of the data from inquiries or the information from research sources, and analysing the data or information in order to draw and justify conclusions.

• Communication skills include using appropriate linguistic, numeric, symbolic, and graphic modes of representation, and a variety of forms, to communicate ideas, procedures, and results.

For a full profile of ALL THE COURSES THAT ARE OFFERED BY THE ONTARIO MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING please visit the following link: http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/secondary/science910_2008.pdf​

Click on this link to view the Science Prerequisite Chart: http://www.yrdsb.edu.on.ca/page.cfm?id=SCAL00005&y=2012&s=18&c=1​

SNC1W1; SNC1WZ; SNC1PL

SNC2D; SNC2DZ; SNC2P

SBI3U1; SBI3UZ; SBI3C1; SBI4U1; SBI4UZ ; SNC4M2 (Biology HL part 2)        

SCH3U; SCH3UZ ; SCH4U1; SCH4UZ; SNC4MZ; SCH4U7

SPH3U1; SPH3U7 SPH3UZ;SPH4U1; SPH4UZ; SPH4U7

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