This content is part of official issued curriculum providing the most up-to-date information (i.e., front matter). This content is applicable to all curriculum documents, Grades 1 to 12. Educators must consider this information to guide the implementation of curriculum and in creating the environment in which it is taught.
Education and Career/Life Planning
The goals of the Kindergarten to Grade 12 education and career/life planning program are to:
- ensure that all students develop the knowledge and skills they need to make informed education and career/life choices;
- provide classroom and school-wide opportunities for this learning; and
- engage parents and the broader community in the development, implementation, and evaluation of the program, to support students in their learning.
The framework of the program is a four-step inquiry process based on four questions linked to four areas of learning: (1) Knowing Yourself – Who am I?; (2) Exploring Opportunities – What are my opportunities?; (3) Making Decisions and Setting Goals – Who do I want to become?; and (4) Achieving Goals and Making Transitions – What is my plan for achieving my goals?
The curriculum expectations in most subjects and disciplines of the Ontario curriculum provide opportunities to relate classroom learning to the education and career/life planning program as outlined in Creating Pathways to Success: An Education and Career/Life Planning Program for Ontario Schools – Policy and Program Requirements, Kindergarten to Grade 12, 2013. All classroom teachers support students in education and career/life planning by providing them with learning opportunities, filtered through the lens of the four inquiry questions, that allow them to reflect on and apply subject-specific knowledge and skills; explore subject-related education and career/life options; and become competent, self-directed planners who will be prepared for success in school, life, and work. Education and career/life planning will support students in their transition from secondary school to their initial postsecondary destination, whether it be in apprenticeship training, college, community living, university, or the workplace. For more information on postsecondary pathway choices, see the Education and Training and Skilled Trades pages on the Ontario government website.
