Guiding Principles
- Education is a parental responsibility. The school shall endeavour to provide access to its curriculum and other teaching tools so as to assure parents with the knowledge of what their children are being taught.
- The School Board and its committees are charged with running the school on behalf of the parents. They have a responsibility to listen to and respond to parental concerns raised. Parents should also have confidence in that process.
- A healthy learning environment also requires that teachers can feel confident about their material. Hence, all teaching materials should be considered through the appropriate review process which considers the input of parents and staff.
- For each secondary course taught in the school, there will be a course outline on file. The courses offered by this school have been developed according to the requirements of the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training. (Ontario Secondary Schools, 1999, p. 42; all Ontario Curriculum policy documents can be found at http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/curriculum/secondary/subjects.html). Secondary courses also integrate various elements of the Goals of Christian Education, a Christian world view, and are in agreement with the Mission Statement of the school.
Policy
- Parents shall be provided access to review the curriculum on the school premises during regular school hours. The administration shall make all reasonable efforts to accommodate parental request, provided this can be done so as not to disrupt the normal operations of the school.
- Copies of the school’s curriculum should only be made and distributed to those who are involved in a formal review of the materials. This may include those charged with this process by the Board or a committee, or individuals who have particular expertise who may be requested to help in this process.
- Parents with particular concerns about a course or particular section of the course shall discuss those concerns with the Principal. Should the concerns not be answered to the satisfaction of the parent, they should raise these concerns with the Education Committee.
- For each secondary course taught in the school, there will be a course outline on file developed according to the requirements of the Ontario Ministry of Education (OSS, 1998, p.42), in agreement with the school’s Mission Statement, and the Goals of Christian Education.
- Parents who want to exclude their child from a particular unit or book being taught in a course must fill out a Curriculum Objection Form that indicates the reason(s) for their objection, suggest an alternate book or assignment, and submit this form to the Principal for consideration. Suggested alternatives are subject to the approval of the Principal. These forms are available from the school office.
- Parents who object to a particular unit or book being taught in a course can write a letter to the Education Committee requesting a change in the curriculum. If the Education Committee decides that it is in the best interest of the school community for this book or unit to remain in the curriculum, parents can appeal to the Board.
(Revised November, 2008)