EDFD229 - Professional Identity as Teacher in Early Learning Contexts

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

EDCX202 Curriculum Decision-Making in the Early Years: Connections and Continuities

Unit rationale, description and aim

Pre-service teachers will be introduced to the complexities of the role of early childhood teacher in a range of early learning contexts. The unit will enhance pre-service teachers' capacity to take on the professional and leadership responsibilities within early learning environments. This unit will focus on assisting pre-service teachers to develop and apply a critical understanding of a variety of social and cultural contexts, including addressing issues of diversity and inclusion. It is expected that through this unit pre-service teachers will enhance their knowledge of social justice and inclusivity, as an understanding of the diverse religious, cultural and social backgrounds of children is emphasised. Pre-service teachers will develop an understanding of the importance of working appropriately with a range of professionals, families, and community members. This will include development of communication, planning and organisational skills. They will reflect on the ways in which the learning in this unit contributes to the development of their professional philosophy and practice.

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

LO1 - Discuss and critically examine the complexity of the social and cultural worlds of children, families and learning environments and consider the impact that these have on learning communities and learning outcomes for young children (GA1, GA2, GA4; ACECQA D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, E1, E3)

LO2 - Articulate the nature and importance of professional advocacy in their role as early childhood teacher (GA1, GA5; ACECQA E3, F1, F4)

LO3 - Identify and reflect on the professional and leadership roles they play in the development and maintenance of a well-managed learning environment (GA1, GA5; ACECQA C3, E3, F1, F2, F3, F4)

LO4 - Reflect critically upon professional roles, responsibilities and practices of early childhood teachers (GA4; ACECQA E3, F3)

LO5 - Identify, develop and apply communication skills that foster interaction within and beyond the learning environment and which are appropriate to shared reflection and collaboration with colleagues, family and community members and a range of other professionals (GA5, GA8; ACECQA D1, E3, F1, F2, F3, F4).

Graduate attributes

GA1 - Demonstrate respect for the dignity of each individual and for human diversity

GA2 - Recognise their responsibility to the common good, the environment and society 

GA4 - Think critically and reflectively 

GA5 - Demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession 

GA8 - Locate, organise, analyse, synthesise and evaluate information 

ACECQA CRITERIA

On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should have developed the following specific knowledge:

Content

Topics may include:

• Understanding society, families, learning environments and communities taking into account a variety of social and cultural contexts, and issues of diversity and inclusion
• Communication, planning and organisational skills and strategies to facilitate the ability to work appropriately with a range of professionals, families and community members.
• The roles and responsibilities of early childhood teachers in a range of early learning contexts
• The professional and leadership responsibilities within early learning environments.
• Issues of social justice and inclusivity within contexts of diverse religious, cultural and social experiences of young children, their families and communities.

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

Pre-service teachers will be involved in a variety of teaching-learning strategies to progress and demonstrate their understandings in this unit. Participants will be involved in a variety of teaching-learning strategies to support learning, including online engagement, lectures, tutorials, seminar presentations and group discussions, both online and face-to-face, self-directed study activities and assessment tasks. Some participation in appropriate educational settings may be required.

This is a 10-credit point unit and has been designed to ensure that the time needed to complete the required volume of learning to the requisite standard is approximately 150 hours in total with a normal expectation of 36 hours of directed study and the total contact hours should not exceed 36 hours. Directed study might include lectures, tutorials, webinars, podcasts etc. The balance of the hours then becomes private study.

Assessment strategy and rationale

The assessment tasks and their weightings are designed to allow pre-service teachers to progressively demonstrate achievement against the unit learning outcomes and demonstrate attainment of professional standards.

Assessment tasks can include a variety of strategies such as essays, projects, presentations, displays, reflective journals and examinations.

Minimum Achievement Standards

The assessment tasks for this unit are designed to demonstrate the achievement of each learning outcome.

The total of assessment tasks will amount to the equivalent of 4,000 words.

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

Blaise, M., & Nuttall, J. (2011). Learning to teach in the early years classroom. South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

Feeney, S., Moravcik, E., Nolte, S. (2013). Who am I in the lives of children? : An introduction to early childhood education (9th ed.). Boston: Pearson,

Hill, L., Stremmel, A., & Fu, V. (2005). Teaching as enquiry: Rethinking curriculum in early childhood education. Sydney: Pearson.

Thomas, L. (2012). New possibilities in thinking, speaking and doing: Early childhood teachers’ professional identity constructions and ethics. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood 37 (3), 87-95.

Woodrow, C. (2008). Discourses of professional identities in early childhood movements in Australia. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 16 (2), 269-28