Year
2023Credit points
10Campus offering
No unit offerings are currently available for this unitPrerequisites
NilUnit rationale, description and aim
At a time of rapid ongoing change in society and education, the role of educators and allied professionals with specialist knowledge and skills in promoting the wellbeing of children and young people and fostering strong family and community partnerships that enable wellbeing and learning is ever more important. In this unit, within the Wellbeing specialisation of the Graduate Certificate in Education and Master of Education, students will develop an understanding of key factors, including aspirations and the integration of family and community knowledge, experiences and resources into learning, that contribute to or hinder the development of family and community partnerships. Students will then examine evidence-informed approaches to building and sustaining strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships. Finally, on the basis of their literature review and knowledge of local policies, practices, and the principles of Catholic Social Teaching, students will design an initial action plan for enhancing family and community partnerships in their professional context. Therefore, the aim of this unit is to support students in developing the required advanced knowledge, understanding and skills they need in order to enable strong, collaborative family and community partnerships that promote the wellbeing and engagement with learning of children and young people.
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 - Articulate theoretical and applied understanding of the key factors, including the role of aspirations and the integration of family and community knowledge, experiences and resources into learning, that contribute to or hinder the development of strong, respectful and collaborative family and community partnerships (GA1, GA2, GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9, GA10; APST 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 4.1, 4.4, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4)
LO2 - Analyse evidence-informed approaches and practices that build and sustain strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships (GA1, GA2, GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9, GA10; APST 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 4.1, 4.4, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4)
LO3 - Develop an action plan for enhancing family and community partnerships that is informed by an understanding of local policies, practices, the role of social-emotional learning, and the principles of Catholic Social Teaching (GA1, GA2, GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9, GA10; APST 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 4.1, 4.4, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4)
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
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
On successful completion of this unit, students should have gained evidence towards the following standards
1.1 Physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students (Highly Accomplished) |
1.2 Understand how students learn (Highly Accomplished) |
1.3 Students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds (Highly Accomplished) |
4.1 Support student participation (Lead) |
4.4 Maintain student safety (Highly Accomplished) |
7.1 Meet professional ethics and responsibilities (Highly Accomplished) |
7.2 Comply with legislative, administrative and organisational requirements (Lead) |
7.3 Engage with the parents/carers (Highly Accomplished) |
7.4 Engage with professional teaching networks and broader communities (Highly Accomplished) |
Content
Topics will include:
- key factors that contribute to or hinder the development of family and community partnerships
- consideration of the role of aspirations and the integration of family and community knowledge, experiences and resources into learning as contributors in the development of family and community partnerships
- consideration of the role of opportunities, capabilities, connections, beliefs and values, and confidence or self-efficacy required to build and sustain strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships
- consideration of the role of local policies and practices in building and sustaining strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships
- consideration of the potential contribution of principles of Catholic Social Teaching to building and sustaining strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships
- evidence-informed approaches to building and sustaining strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships
- developing action plans for building and sustaining strong, respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships in learning contexts.
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
This unit may be offered in online, on campus or in blended learning modes. The use of LEO will be integral to the unit in exploring concepts and testing understandings and propositions. Strategies used may include lectures, engagement with the literature, self-directed learning, critical reflection against relevant professional standards, case studies, dialogue and interrogation of concepts, theories and practices, and the application of learning to current professional contexts.
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 across the semester. To achieve a passing standard in this unit, students will find it helpful to engage in the full range of learning activities and assessments utilised in this unit, as described in the learning and teaching strategy and the assessment strategy. The learning and teaching and assessment strategies include a range of approaches to support your learning such as reading, reflection, discussion, webinars, podcasts, video, workshops, and assignments etc.
Assessment strategy and rationale
The assessment tasks for this unit are designed for students to demonstrate achievement of each of the learning outcomes. In addition, the tasks represent an opportunity to align with the particular needs of students and their professional contexts.
The total assessment will be equivalent to 5,500 words. In order to pass this unit, students are required to submit and pass both assessment tasks.
Overview of assessments
| Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment Tasks | Weighting | Learning Outcomes | Graduate Attributes |
|---|---|---|---|
Assessment Task 1 Critical Review This task requires students to critically review the current relevant literature and demonstrate their understanding of key factors (including the role of aspirations and the integration of family and community knowledge, experiences and resources into learning) that contribute to and hinder the development of strong, respectful and collaborative family and community partnerships. Students should then select a contemporary evidence-informed approach to developing family and community partnerships and critique this approach in relation to the key factors identified in the review of literature. Students may present their findings in the format of their choice (e.g., essay, presentation, online activity, etc.). | 50% | LO1, LO2 | GA1, GA2, GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9, GA10 |
Assessment Task 2 Initial Action Plan This task requires students to develop a proposal for an initial action plan for developing respectful, collaborative family and community partnerships in relation to their professional context. The plan should be consistent with current policy and practices and include consideration of the need for the action plan as well as a rationale for its design. Students should also include a brief description of selected evidence-informed strategies to be utilised as well as a description of the evidence that would be gathered to monitor implementation and potential outcomes of the action plan. | 50% | LO1, LO2, LO3 | GA1, GA2, GA4, GA5, GA8, GA9, GA10 |
Representative texts and references
Bowes, J., Grace, R., & Hodge, K. (2012). Children families & communities: Contexts and consequences. South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.
Crosnoe, R. (2015). Continuities and consistencies across home and school systems. In S M. Sheridan & E. M. Kim (Eds.), Processes and pathways of family-school partnerships across development (pp. 61-80) Cham, Switzerland: Springer. (e-book)
Di Paola, L. (2016). Connecting and relating. The experiences of a ‘School as Core Social Centre’ (SACSC) cluster in building school family and community engagement (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia.
Frederico, M., & Whiteside, M. (2016). Building school, family and community partnerships: Developing a theoretical framework. Australian Social Work, 69(1), 51-66.
Hardy, I., & Grootenboer, P. (2016). Cultivating community: Detailing school and community engagement under complex conditions. Teaching Education, 27(1), 21-38.
Holloway, S. D., & Kunesh, C. E. (2015). Cultural processes and the connections among home, school and community. In Processes and pathways of family-school partnerships across development (pp. 61-80) Cham, Switzerland: Springer. (e-book)
Stefanski, A., Valli, L., & Jacobson, R. (2016). Beyond involvement and engagement: The role of the family in school-community partnerships. School Community Journal, 26(2), 135-160.
Patrikakou, E. N. (2016). Contexts of family-school partnerships: A synthesis. In S. M. Sheridan & E. M. Kim (Eds.), Family-school partnerships in context (pp. 109-120). Cham, Switzerland: Springer. (e-book)
Trudgett, M., Page, S., Bodkin-Andrews, G., Franklin, C., & Whittaker, A. (2017). Another brick in the wall? Parent perceptions of school educational experiences of Indigenous Australian children. In M. Walter, K. L. Martin, & G. Bodkin-Andrews (Eds.), Indigenous children growing up strong: A longitudinal study of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families (pp. 233-258). London: Palgrave Macmillan.
Valli, L., Stefanski, A., & Jackson, R. (2016). Typologising school-community partnerships: A framework for analysis and action. Urban Education, 51(7), 719-747.