• Introduction
• Key Features of the Redesigned Curriculum

Key Features of the Redesigned Curriculum

At the heart of British Columbia’s redesigned curriculum are the Core Competencies, essential learning, and literacy and numeracy foundations. All three features contribute to deeper learning:

A. The Core Competencies

B. Essential Learning

C. Literacy and Numeracy Foundations

A. The Core Competencies

Core Competencies underpin the curricular competencies in all areas of learning. They are directly related to the educational citizen and as such are what we value for all students in the system.

The Core Competencies along with literacy and numeracy foundations and essential content and concepts are at the centre of the redesign of curriculum and assessment. Core Competencies are sets of intellectual, personal, and social emotional proficiencies that all students need to develop in order to engage in deep learning and life-long learning. Through provincial consultation, three core competencies were identified.

Communication

The communication competency encompasses the set of abilities that students use to impart and exchange information, experiences and ideas, to explore the world around them, and to understand and effectively engage in the use of digital media.

(From BC Ministry: https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/sites/curriculum.gov.bc.ca/files/pdf/CommunicationCompetencyProfiles.pdf)

Thinking

The thinking competency encompasses the knowledge, skills and processes we associate with intellectual development. It is through their competency as thinkers that students take subject-specific concepts and content and transform them into a new understanding. Thinking competence includes specific thinking skills as well as habits of mind, and metacognitive awareness.

(From BC Ministry: https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/sites/curriculum.gov.bc.ca/files/pdf/CreativeThinkingCompetencyProfiles.pdf)

Personal and Social

Personal and social competency is the set of abilities that relate to students’ identity in the world, both as individuals and as members of their community and society.  Personal and social competency encompasses the abilities students need to thrive as individuals, to understand and care about themselves and others, and to find and achieve their purposes in the world. These include:

•        Positive personal & cultural identity
•        Personal awareness & responsibility
•        Social Responsibility

B. Essential Learning

The curriculum for each subject area includes the essential learning for students, which represent society’s aspirations for BC’s educated citizen. The redesigned curriculum develops around key content, concepts, skills and big ideas that foster the higher-order thinking demanded in today’s world.

C. Literacy and Numeracy Foundations

Literacy is fundamental to all learning. Fin’s Friends supports the foundation of literacy as the ability to understand, critically analyze, and create a variety of forms of communication, including oral, written, visual, digital, and multimedia, in order to accomplish one’s goals.

Numeracy is the ability to understand and apply mathematical concepts, processes, and skills to solve problems in a variety of contexts.