Ontario Government unveils details of new Grade 9 Mathematic Curriculum

BY PAUL JUNOR

There has been pressure on the Ontario Government to release information about the new Grade 9 Mathematics Curriculum since it was announced in July 2020.

On Wednesday, June 9^th, 2021 Minister of Education, Stephen Leece finally released details of what this curriculum will look like. It was unveiled in a news release titled “Modernized Math Course Prepares Students for Jobs of the Future and Life Skills.” Minister Leece states in the news release, “We are better preparing students with the life and job skills they require – with a focus on financial literacy, coding and data literacy to ensure Ontario students succeed. With the emphasis on real-world applications, this course will teach students valuable fundamentals that will give them a competitive advantage when they graduate. With new math-focused learning support and a new curriculum, our government is taking the first step toward ending streaming in Ontario, while promoting equal opportunities for all students.”

The emphasis in this de-streamed Grade 9 Math course aligns with the revision to the new elementary Math curriculum, which was released on June 23^rd, 2020. The changes in the Grade 1- 8 curriculum include an emphasis on: number facts, spatial sense, fractions, mathematical confidence, coding and financial literacy. The revised Grade 9 Math course “Includes mandatory new learning on coding, data literacy, mathematical modelling and an emphasis on financial literacy.” The goal is to build their mathematical basics and numeracy skills. The expectation is that it will:

• Ensures relevance to today’s job market with an emphasis on practical life skills-from: concept of interest, debt, savings, personal budgeting and price comparisons.
• Builds on learning from the modernized and landmark Grade 1-8 math curriculum to better prepare students for more advanced math to allow students to pursue any postsecondary, skilled trade and pathway in science, technology, engineering and mathematics that they choose.
• Help students prepare for the jobs of tomorrow by introducing new learning of how to apply coding skills to understand complex mathematics and make predictions.
• Builds on student’s understanding of data to represent and analyze real-life situations.

The Ministry of Education believes that an emphasis on practical, real-life and everyday examples will provide authentic reinforcement of essential skills. David Ellis, FIRST Robotics Canada President states in a news release, “The jobs of tomorrow demand a solid understanding of mathematics. As we see more jobs being created in coding, data management and engineering, proficiency in math will become even more important. By giving Ontario’s math curriculum a much-needed update, the government is taking decisive action to help students succeed in the job market.”

Shernett Martin, Executive Director of ANCHOR is supportive of the changes. He notes, “Parents, students and community leaders have been asking for changes for decades, finally we have a Minister who has listened.” NDP Education told the Canadian Press that the changes do not go far enough and should include other subjects and ensure that funding is available.

The government has indicated that $40 million will be available to support teachers. Harvey Bischof, President of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers Federations is supportive of de-streaming and would have preferred that it was announced earlier with enough time for implementation and support. He states, “Educators will do their best but they shouldn’t be left on their own to implement this successfully.”