English as a Second Language Course Outline

ESL EO
1.0 Credit
2023-2024
Alexander Mackenzie High School, YRDSB
Prerequisite: ESL DO

CLASS INFORMATION CONTACT

Classroom: 241 Office: Room 154 T (ESL/English Workroom)
Teacher: Ms. Pulickeel Email:
parents/guardians: jessica.pulickeel@yrdsb.ca
students: jessica.pulickeel@gapps.yrdsb.ca
Note: My preferred method of communication with parents/guardians will be via email. Please ensure that your email
is up to date at the end of this outline and/or with the school.

Course Description

This course provides students with the skills and strategies they need to make the transition to
college and university preparation courses in English and other secondary school disciplines.
Students will be encouraged to develop independence in a range of academic tasks. They will
participate in debates and lead classroom workshops; read and interpret literary works and
academic texts; write essays, narratives, and reports; and apply a range of learning strategies and
research skills effectively. Students will further develop their ability to respond critically to print and
media texts.

Overall Curriculum Expectations

Listening and Speaking

1. demonstrate the ability to understand, interpret, and evaluate spoken English for a variety of
purposes;
2. use speaking skills and strategies to communicate in English for a variety of classroom and social
purposes;
3. use correctly the language structures appropriate for this level to communicate orally in English.

Reading
1. read and demonstrate understanding of a variety of texts for different purposes;
2. use a variety of reading strategies throughout the reading process to extract meaning from texts;
3. use a variety of strategies to build vocabulary;
4. locate and extract relevant information from written and graphic texts for a variety of purposes.

Writing
1. write in a variety of forms for different purposes and audiences;
2. organize ideas coherently in writing;

Revised: 09/2023
3. use correctly the conventions of written English appropriate for this level, including grammar,
usage, spelling, and punctuation;
4. use the stages of the writing process

Socio-Cultural Competence and Media Literacy

1. use English and non-verbal communication strategies appropriately in a variety of social contexts;
2. demonstrate an understanding of the rights and responsibilities of Canadian citizenship, and of
the contributions of diverse groups to Canadian society;
3. demonstrate knowledge of and adaptation to the Ontario education system;
4. demonstrate an understanding of, interpret, and create a variety of media texts.

Units of Study

Unit Evaluations & Assessments

School and Community ● Professional learning communities reflection & in-class

observations/ conversations
● Informative leaflet
● Media presentation

Nonfiction ● Article comprehension

● Analytical paragraph

Fiction ● Short story test

● Literature circles discussions
● Literary essay

Media ● Creative media product

Grammar & Vocabulary ● Quizzes throughout the course

*Note: evaluations and assessments are subject to change.

Course Evaluation and Assessment

Evaluations and assessments will take many forms and will be adapted to meet both the academic
and language needs of each student at this level and to prepare students for their English course.
Assessments will also consider other subject considerations in the areas of reading, writing,
speaking and sociocultural skills.

Evaluation of student work will be conducted on an ongoing basis, usually towards the middle or
end of a unit of study.
● Evaluations of student work will count towards reported grades.
● All assignment expectations will be provided to students in advance on a rubric. The rubric
serves as the primary mode of descriptive feedback.
 ● According to board and ministry policies, students are responsible for consulting with the
rubric before, during, and after completing assignments in order to understand the
expectations for the assignment and why they have received the grade they have received.

Assessment of student work will be conducted on an ongoing basis, and is designed to help
students learn the material and prepare for evaluation. The teacher will provide pertinent feedback to
students in a variety of ways during and after assessment tasks, and the student will also be
expected to assess their own work. The student will learn how to:
● Monitor their own learning and progress on an ongoing basis in order to improve their work

● Set meaningful personal learning goals according to their current level of achievement

● Determine how to reach those goals through hard work and dedication to learning

Assessment tasks will take many forms, will be tailored to reflect student needs, and will be
designed to prepare students for evaluation tasks. Students who do not complete assessment tasks
may not do well on evaluations. It is the student’s responsibility to complete all assessment tasks on
time.

Student work will be evaluated using the Ministry’s four achievement chart categories: knowledge &
understanding, thinking, communication and application.

Throughout the course teachers will gather evidence of student learning of the Critical Elements
through observations, conversations, and student-produced work. Successful completion of the
critical elements is required to earn the course credit.

Grading will be calculated according to the Achievement Chart categories. The weighting of the
categories are as follows:

Term Work
Knowledge/Understanding 15%
Thinking 20% 70%
Communication 20%
Application 15%

Culminating Evaluations
Culminating Assignment 15% 30%
Exam 15%

Total 100%
* Based on the Achievement Chart in The Ontario Curriculum: English as a Second Language(2007)

Achievement Levels: How is student work graded?

Students can access their marks through ta.yrdsb.ca.

 In accordance with the Ontario Ministry of Education, the achievement chart below (from the Ministry
of Education) describes the levels at which various skills may be demonstrated by the student,
based on the standard curriculum expectations:

Level 4 (80 – 100%) Very high to outstanding level of achievement. Achievement is above the provincial
standard. A mark above 80% is
Level 3 (70 – 79%) High level of achievement. Achievement is at the provincial standard.
Level 2 (60 – 69%) Moderate level of achievement. Achievement is below but approaching the provincial
standard.
Level 1 (50 – 59%) A passable level of achievement. Achievement is below the provincial standard.
Level 0 (0 – 49%) A non-passable level of achievement.
** Note: Level 3 (70 – 79%) is the provincial standard, indicating HIGH achievement and success in the
Academic/University stream**

ACHIEVEMENT CHART
Note: The student will demonstrate the following criteria. A student whose achievement is below
50% at the end of a course will not obtain a credit for the course.

Categories Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4

(50-59%) (60-69%) (70-79%) (80-100%)
Knowledge and Understanding – Subject-specific content acquired in each course (knowledge), and the comprehension of its meaning and
significance (understanding)
Knowledge of content (e.g., vocabulary, demonstrates limited demonstrates some demonstrates demonstrates thorough
grammatical structures, punctuation, knowledge of content knowledge of content considerable knowledge of content
terminology, forms of text and media) knowledge of content
Understanding of content (e.g., information demonstrates limited demonstrates some demonstrates demonstrates thorough
and ideas, themes in novels and short stories, understanding of understanding of considerable understanding of
literary devices, language variety) content content understanding of content
content
Thinking – The use of critical and creative thinking skills and/or processes
Use of planning skills (e.g., focusing an uses planning skills uses planning skills uses planning skills uses planning skills
inquiry, gathering information, organizing a with limited with some with considerable with a high degree of
project) effectiveness effectiveness effectiveness effectiveness
Use of processing skills (e.g., selecting, uses processing skills uses processing skills uses processing skills uses processing skills
analysing, generating, integrating, synthesizing, with limited with some with considerable with a high degree of
evaluating, forming conclusions) effectiveness effectiveness effectiveness effectiveness
Use of critical/creative thinking processes uses critical/ creative uses critical/ creative uses critical/ creative uses critical/ creative
(e.g., reading process, writing process, oral thinking processes with thinking processes with thinking processes with thinking processes with
discourse, research) limited effectiveness some effectiveness considerable a high degree of
effectiveness effectiveness
Communication – The conveying of meaning through various forms
Expression and organization of ideas and expresses and expresses and expresses and expresses and
information in oral and visual forms (e.g., organizes ideas and organizes ideas and organizes ideas and organizes ideas and
presentations, dialogues, discussions, role information with limited information with some information with information with a high
playing, debates, graphic texts, media works) effectiveness effectiveness considerable degree of effectiveness
and written forms (e.g., journals, notes, effectiveness
narratives, reports, résumés, stories, poems)
Communication for different audiences and communicates for communicates for communicates for communicates for
purposes in oral, visual, and written forms different audiences and different audiences and
different audiences and different audiences and
(e.g., use of English in socially and culturally purposes with limited purposes with some purposes with purposes with a high
appropriate ways) effectiveness effectiveness considerable degree of effectiveness
effectiveness
Use of conventions (e.g., grammatical uses conventions, uses conventions, uses conventions, uses conventions,
structures, spelling, punctuation, style, usage), vocabulary, and vocabulary, and vocabulary, and vocabulary, and
vocabulary, and terminology of the discipline in terminology of the terminology of the terminology of the terminology of the
oral, visual, and written forms discipline with limited discipline with some discipline with discipline with a high
effectiveness effectiveness considerable degree of effectiveness
effectiveness
Application – The use of knowledge and skills to make connections within and between various contexts
Application of knowledge and skills (e.g., applies knowledge and applies knowledge and applies knowledge and applies knowledge and
language knowledge, language learning skills in familiar skills in familiar skills in familiar skills in familiar
strategies, reading strategies, vocabulary contexts with limited contexts with some contexts with contexts with a high
building strategies) in familiar contexts effectiveness effectiveness considerable degree of effectiveness
effectiveness
Transfer of knowledge and skills (e.g., transfers knowledge transfers knowledge transfers knowledge transfers knowledge
language knowledge, language learning and skills to new and skills to new and skills to new and skills to new
strategies, reading strategies, vocabulary contexts with limited contexts with some contexts with contexts with a high
building strategies) to new contexts effectiveness effectiveness considerable degree of effectiveness
effectiveness
Making connections within and between makes connections makes connections makes connections makes connections
various contexts (e.g., between the language within and between within and between within and between within and between
and the social and cultural environment, various contexts with various contexts with various contexts with various contexts with a
including the school; between learning English limited effectiveness some effectiveness considerable high degree of
and becoming aware of citizen responsibilities, effectiveness effectiveness
developing personal and career goals, and
understanding cultural references in literature)

Learning Skills and Work Habits

The following learning skills and work habits will be assessed on an ongoing basis and will appear
on students’ report cards. These may be demonstrated through in-class behaviour, homework
completion, use of work periods provided during class time, and assignment completion:

Responsibility Organization Independent Work

▪ I complete class work,
homework, & assignments
with care.
▪ I submit all assignments
on time.
▪ I take responsibility for and
manage my own behaviour
and I follow our classroom
rules
▪ I ensure that I prepare
effectively for tests and
quizzes
▪ I come to class with
necessary materials and
books.
▪ I keep my notes tidy,
complete and in order.
▪ I routinely plan ahead and
manage my time to meet
deadlines.
▪ I consistently use the
agenda or an organizer to
help achieve my goals.
▪ I stay focused, on task,
and use my time
effectively during class.
▪ I follow instructions with
minimal supervision.
▪ I make use of my notes or
prior knowledge as needed
to complete tasks.
▪ I seek assistance if
necessary only after I have
made a serious effort.

Collaboration Initiative Self -Regulation

▪ I take responsibility for my
share of the work to be
done. I contribute
information and ideas to
solve problems and make
decisions.
▪ I willingly cooperate with
others and encourage
them to participate.
▪ I listen attentively and
respectfully to others
▪ I make up missed work
and/or obtain work prior to
a planned absence.
▪ I rarely need prompting to
complete a task.
▪ I demonstrate interest in
learning and participate in
class discussions.
▪ I seek assistance when
needed.
▪ I attend class and arrive on
time.
▪ I set my own goals and put
forth a consistent effort to
complete my work.
▪ I routinely correct my
homework when it is taken
up in class.
▪ I don’t give up easily and
will persist to complete
 without interrupting. assigned tasks.

Absences

The teacher may not always be able to provide work in advance of an absence. Students who know
that they will be absent must plan their time wisely when they return so that they may catch up on
whatever cannot be completed in advance.

*Note: Vacations are NOT legitimate reasons for absences or accommodations. A vacation
form, available in the main office, needs to be completed by the student and signed by the
principal. Students who are absent due to a vacation must submit assignments in advance
and/or take time to catch up when they return. This is the sole responsibility of the student
and their parent(s)/ guardian(s).

Homework Expectations

Completing homework, assessments, evaluations and taking part in daily classroom activities is an
important way to acquire language and gain success in other subject areas. Students are required to
complete some assignments or independent research at home, to practice English daily, review
daily lessons, keep a personal dictionary and keep their binders organized. Most importantly,
students are reminded to meet all deadlines and timelines for any assignment. Extra help will be
provided through the department to provide additional opportunities for support for ESL students in
ESL and their other subjects.

ESL Department Policies

Late Assignments and Missed Tests

According to board and ministry policies, students are responsible for completing and submitting
work on time according to the timelines set by the teacher. This work includes assignments,
homework, process work, readings etc. so that you are prepared for class. Students are also
responsible for monitoring their progress on an assignment by beginning all assignments as soon as
they are given and working towards completion by the set due date. Students are responsible for
informing the teacher up to two days in advance of the due date when they realize that they may
be absent for a test/presentation or that they may have difficulty submitting an assignment on time.

If you miss a due date, your teacher will immediately contact home and speak to your
parent/guardian. At this point in time, the parent/guardian will be notified that a second due date may
be arranged. Students are expected to send an email and/ or discuss alternative arrangements if
assignments and tests are not submitted due to unforeseen circumstances. If you are legitimately
absent for a test, and have provided a note from your parent/guardian, you will have one opportunity
to re-write it at a pre-assigned time. Notes from parents and/or professionals may be requested.
The teacher will then determine appropriate next-steps. Emergency situations will be handled on an
individual basis.
Not submitting assigned work on time is a serious decision which may jeopardize your success in
the course. If you do not submit a major assignment on the due date any combination of the
following may occur:

● Your teacher will meet with you to discuss the reason why the deadline was not met. As
a result of this meeting: an extension or an alternative assessment (SECOND CHANCE
PROTOCOL) may be given and your parent/guardian may be contacted to discuss next
steps.
● The information will be recorded in writing so there is no misunderstanding about the
date, time, and place you are expected to have the task completed. If your summative
task is not submitted/ completed as scheduled, a mark of zero will be assigned.
● You may be referred to Student Success to complete the assignment. Your teacher and/
or Vice Principal will determine when work completion will take place. Class time will
not be an option.
● Students who do not submit work in a timely manner shall have this reflected in the
Learning Skills and Work Habits section on the Provincial Report Card.

Consequences for late and missed assignments will be determined using the teacher’s professional
judgment in consultation with board and ministry policies, with consideration of any extenuating
circumstances. Consequences may include (but are not limited to):
● Deduction of marks for late assignments.

● A mark of zero if a student does not submit an assignment after reasonable opportunities
have been provided.
● Referrals to the administration for additional consequences

In-class exam dates cannot be extended/ changed without official documentation and
consultation with the administration. These are culminating activities that are strictly regulated.

Should you have a concern with your mark on a test or assignment after it is handed back, please
feel free to schedule an appointment to discuss the matter.

Academic Honesty and Plagiarism

As outlined in the student handbook, all students are expected to comply with the school’s code of
academic honesty. Please ensure that you read this policy. Plagiarism occurs when students use
others’ ideas, research or words without giving proper credit to the original source. Examples of
plagiarism include (but are not limited to): Submitting a piece of work written (in whole or in part) by
another person including someone else’s thoughts or ideas in your written work without
documenting the source using the MLA citation format taught in class. This includes research,
quotations, or statistics in your work without using the MLA citation format.

The consequences for plagiarism will vary according to the type and severity of the case.
Consequences will be determined using the teacher and administrator’s professional judgement in
consultation with ministry and board policies. Depending on the severity of plagiarism, students
may be asked to redo their work under supervision, complete an alternate assignment, receive a
mark of zero for all or part of the assignment, and/or face additional consequences from the
administration.

Students must keep rough drafts of submitted assignments and all returned assignments in a
binder/Google Drive and be prepared to submit them to the teacher if requested to do so.

Technology and Cellphone use

While technology is encouraged in the learning process, the use of cellphones and other electronic
equipment, unless provided by the school, should not be used in class unless permitted by the
teacher.

Programming may require students to use various technologies and programs to complete or submit
work. However, they are not to be abused in any way and all student work must be authentic.

Any recording, video or picture taking in class of students or teachers is strictly prohibited.

In addition, students are to follow board and school policy on the safe and proper use of technology.

Any student not following proper use of technology, may have their computer access taken away
and/or face consequences of the board or school policy for the use of technology.

Course: ESL EO-02

Acknowledgement and Signatures

By signing this form, I am acknowledging that I have read through the course outline with my
parent(s) or guardian(s). I am also acknowledging that I have understood the department policies
listed in the course outline.

Student name (printed): _____________________________________________

Student signature: _________________________________________________

Parent/guardian name (printed): ______________________________________

Parent/guardian signature: __________________________________________

Relationship: _____________________________________________________

Parent/Guardian’s primary phone #: __________________________________

Parent/Guardian’s email: ___________________________________________

Attention Parents/Guardians:
● My primary method of notification will be via email whenever possible. Please ensure that
you have provided the correct email above.
● Mark updates are available on Teach Assist and can be accessed by asking your child for
the password. Mark updates can also be sent via e-mail if requested.
● Should you wish to contact me, e-mail is the fastest form of communication. I will return your
e-mail as soon as possible.