EDHE299 - Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment in Health Education 1

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

EDET100 Effective Teaching 1: Becoming a Teacher

Incompatible

EDPH232 Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment in Health Education 1

Unit rationale, description and aim

Intending secondary teachers need an understanding of the junior secondary curriculum in order to plan lessons that promote learner engagement and enhance student learning.

Pre-service teachers will study relevant curriculum frameworks, including general capabilities and cross-curriculum priorities and other allied materials. They will explore theoretical frameworks associated with teaching and learning in Health education and evidence-based approaches to plan for effective teaching and learning, including embedded literacy and numeracy, and the use of digital technologies. They will learn strategies to engage learners and to meet the learning needs to diverse students. They will learn to compose good questions, to assemble productive assessment tasks and develop skills to shape the dialogic talk of the classroom. Pre-service teachers will formulate lesson and unit plans in order to demonstrate a knowledge of curriculum and learning theory. They will engage in microteaching to practice engaging students and guiding the classroom discourse. They will assemble a resource folio to demonstrate capacity to collect, create and critique resources for effective teaching and learning and to link with curriculum.

The aim of this unit is for the pre-service teacher to become familiar with the knowledge, understanding and skills necessary for teaching Health at a junior secondary level to promote the development of pedagogical content knowledge.

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     Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the junior secondary Health curriculum (GA4, GA5, GA8; APST 2.1, 2.3)

LO2     Apply a research-informed understanding of how students learn in Health, together with the range of pedagogical approaches emblematic of Health teaching, to the planning of engaging and purposeful teaching/learning sequences and the selection of resources for junior secondary Health (GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9; APST 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 2.5, 2.6, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.5)

LO3     Apply and critique a variety of pedagogical strategies in Health which allow the specific learning strengths and needs of students to be met (GA4, GA5, GA7, GA8, GA9; APST 1.3, 1.5, 3.1, 3.3, 4.1, 4.3)

LO4     Demonstrate an awareness of conversational and questioning techniques to effectively provide directions, explanations and support student learning (GA4, GA5, GA7, GA8, GA9, GA10; APST 1.3, 2.1, 3.3, 3.5, 4.1)

LO5     Demonstrate an understanding of how to create and maintain a safe and supportive learning environment (GA1, GA4, GA5, GA8; APST 1.3, 1.5, 3.3, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 7.2)

LO6     Demonstrate ability to plan, structure and sequence learning programs in junior Health including an awareness of assessment principles (GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9, GA10; APST 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.6, 3.2, 3.4, 5.1)

Graduate attributes

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

GA4 - think critically and reflectively 

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

GA7 - work both autonomously and collaboratively 

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

GA9 - demonstrate effective communication in oral and written English language and visual media 

GA10 - utilise information and communication and other relevant technologies effectively.

AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS - GRADUATE LEVEL

On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should be able to:

Content

Topics will include:

• Health in the Australian curriculum context: historical context and current frameworks and documentation
• General capabilities and cross curriculum priorities
• Theoretical frameworks associated with Health teaching and learning
• Pedagogical approaches emblematic of Health teaching and learning
• Planning and curriculum alignment
• Planning for effective teaching and learning in junior Health education
• Differentiated teaching in Health
• Needs of learners from diverse cognitive, physical, social, cultural backgrounds
• Needs of learners from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds
• Incorporating literacy and numeracy in Health teaching
• Digital technologies for teaching/learning in Health education
• Conversational, questioning and scaffolding techniques to shape dialogic classroom talk in Health education
• Teacher-presented explanations
• Assessment in junior secondary Health education
• Learning beyond the classroom
• Student welfare and safety in Health education classrooms and typical Health teaching/learning environments

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit applies a social constructivist approach to develop the pre-service teacher’s understanding of planning and assessment and skills in applying effective pedagogies through active engagement and collaborative learning. The pre-service teacher will have the opportunity to build on his/her understanding of teaching strategies through critical reading, lecturer modelling, discussion, and practice in tutorials. The pre-service teacher’s skills of professional communication and ability to work collaboratively will be practised through group activities and culminating in micro-teaching opportunities. Her/his teaching skills of planning and assessing, and his/her ability to locate and synthesise information, will be developed through designing Health education curriculum. The pre-service teacher will continue to gather and reflect upon evidence of attainment of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers: Graduate.

Teaching and learning strategies may include:

• Weekly face-to-face lectures and / or online lectures (synchronous and asynchronous)
• Hands-on tutorials and discussions that promote peer learning;
• Microteaching opportunities;
• Self-directed reading and research;
• Collaborative learning opportunities

Technology Enhanced Learning

The unit will include a Learning Environment Online (LEO) site with resources and online links, announcements, and a discussion board to post questions and reflections that promote connection between on campus content and school experiences. It may include:

• Online review exercises.
• Discussion board to exchange ideas and refine learning.
• Video illustrations of teaching practice and focussed readings addressing a wide spectrum of teaching contexts, practices and competencies

Assessment strategy and rationale

The assessment tasks and their weightings are designed to allow the pre-service teacher to progressively demonstrate achievement against the course learning outcomes by demonstrating attainment of academic and professional standards. The Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment units in this course focus on developing understanding of, and skills across the professional knowledge, practice and engagement domains needed to meet expectations of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers: Graduate.

The four assessment tasks are sequenced to allow feedback and progressive development. Through completing Task 1 the pre-service teacher will have the opportunity to demonstrate knowledge of curriculum, planning and teaching strategies. Through completing Task 2, the pre-service teacher will develop communication and teamwork skills and will deepen her/his understanding of effective teaching strategies. In Task 3 the pre-service teacher will deepen his/her knowledge of curriculum and effective teaching by curating teaching resources. In Task 4, the pre-service teacher will demonstrate knowledge of curriculum, planning and assessment in the development of a unit of work for use in a specific class context. These tasks mimic the ‘real world’ of school contexts and teaching responsibilities, thereby preparing the pre-service teacher for professional experience placement and one’s role as a teacher.

Minimum Achievement Standards

In order to pass this unit, pre-service teachers are required to demonstrate achievement of learning outcomes by submitting all assessment tasks and obtaining a combined score of at least 50%.

Assessment in this unit includes two Critical Tasks: Observation and Targeted Lesson Plan and Resource Folio and Critical Analysis. Pre-service teachers must demonstrate mastery of every summative Graduate Teacher Standard identified for each of these two Critical Tasks and attain a score of at least 50% in both Critical Tasks in order to pass this unit.

Electronic Submission, Marking and Return

Assessment task submission and return of marked assessment will be done through Turnitin on LEO. Tasks will be marked and returned three weeks after the assessment is completed.

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

Required text(s)

Australian Curriculum https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) www.acara.edu.au

Relevant jurisdictional curriculum documents