Year
2024Credit points
0Campus offering
Prerequisites
EDFX318 Professional Experience Birth to Two Years (B-2) AND EDFX319 Professional Experience Upper Primary AND EDCX202 Curriculum Decision-Making in the Early Years: Connections and Continuities AND LNTE111 Literacy and Numeracy Test OR LNTE100 LANTITE - Literacy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students AND LNTE101 LANTITE - Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students
Unit rationale, description and aim
This school-based professional experience is undertaken in the final year of the course and facilitates the induction of pre-service teachers into the profession. This practicum focuses on the identification of the professional role of the teacher as one of reflector, thinker, learner, and investigator within a particular classroom context and as an integral member of a school community. The unit allows principals, school coordinators, supervising teachers and pre-service teachers to work collaboratively with the University to assess, challenge, develop and extend the abilities of pre-service teachers. It also provides opportunities for school-based study and the development of closer links between theoretical considerations and the teaching and learning experiences encountered in schools.
This unit aims to provide pre-service teachers with a substantial block of extended reflective professional experience that more closely approximates the realities of everyday teaching and extends the pre-service teachers’ repertoire of pedagogical skills including the use of ICTs to support teaching and learning, and develop the pre-service teacher’s appreciation of the teacher’s role within the school and broader educational community. Pre-service teachers will be required to plan, implement, assess and report using appropriate teaching and learning programs, informed by content, knowledge and appropriate student data.
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.
| Learning Outcome Number | Learning Outcome Description | Relevant Graduate Capabilities |
|---|---|---|
| LO1 | Demonstrate achievement of the professional standards for beginning teachers (APST 6.1; ACECQA E3) | GC2, GC8, GC9, GC10, GC11, GC12 |
| LO2 | Synthesise teaching and learning theory with current approaches to classroom practice including the use of appropriate ICTs (APST 2.6; ACECQA C4) | GC1, GC2, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC10 |
| LO3 | Make effective decisions regarding classroom teaching and management approaches that facilitate effective learning, including assessment, interpretation, moderation and reporting (APST 2.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5; ACECQA C4) | GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC6, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC10, GC11, GC12 |
| LO4 | Develop and utilise self-evaluation critiques and reflection to refine professional practice (APST 6.1; ACECQA F3) | GC3, GC7 |
| LO5 | Implement and critically reflect on a variety of classroom organisational procedures and, assess and use a broad range of teaching resources, including effective retrieval and appropriate use of ICT resources (APST 4.2, 4.5; ACECQA C4) | GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC10, GC11, GC12 |
| LO6 | Demonstrate a sound knowledge of and ability to plan, implement and evaluate the key learning areas that comprise the primary school curricula and relevant general capabilities (APST 2.1, 2.2, 2.3; ACECQA B2, B9, C4) | GC1, GC2, GC5, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC10, GC11 |
| LO7 | Demonstrate an ability to communicate effectively with members of the school community including students, teachers and parents, and, where appropriate, with the broader educational community (APST 7.4; ACECQA D1, E3, F4) | GC4, GC5, GC6, GC11, GC12 |
AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS - GRADUATE LEVEL
On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should be able to:
2.1 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the concepts, substance and structure of the content and teaching strategies of the teaching area. |
2.2 Organise content into an effective learning and teaching sequence. |
2.3 Use curriculum, assessment and reporting knowledge to design learning sequences and lesson plans. |
2.6 Implement teaching strategies for using ICT to expand curriculum learning opportunities for students. |
4.2 Demonstrate the capacity to organise classroom activities and provide clear directions. |
4.5 Demonstrate an understanding of the relevant issues and the strategies available to support the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching. |
5.1 Demonstrate understanding of assessment strategies, including informal and formal, diagnostic, formative and summative approaches to assess student learning. |
5.2 Demonstrate an understanding of the purpose of providing timely and appropriate feedback to students about their learning. |
5.3 Demonstrate understanding of assessment moderation and its application to support consistent and comparable judgements of student learning. |
5.4 Demonstrate the capacity to interpret student assessment data to evaluate student learning and modify teaching practice. |
5.5 Demonstrate understanding of a range of strategies for reporting to students and parents/carers and the purpose of keeping accurate and reliable records of student achievement. |
6.1 Demonstrate an understanding of the role of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers in identifying professional learning needs. |
7.4 Understand the role of external professionals and community representatives in broadening teachers’ professional knowledge and practice. |
ACECQA CRITERIA
On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should have developed the following specific knowledge:
B. Education and curriculum studies B2. The Australian curriculum B9. Curriculum planning, programming and evaluation |
C. Early childhood pedagogies C4. Teaching methods and strategies |
D. Families and community partnerships D1. Developing family and community partnerships |
E. History and philosophy of early childhood E3. Ethics and professional practice |
F. Early childhood professional practice F3. Identity F4. Development advocacy |
Content
Topics will include:
- Current teaching and learning theories in the primary classroom
- Establishing an engaging learning environment
- Curriculum and work programs
- Managing relationships within the school community
- Classroom management approaches
- The place of reflection in developing effective classroom practice
- Expectations and the teacher’s role as an integral member of the school and wider educational community
- Australian legal and social context: legal principles and legislative provisions, mandatory reporting, resources
- School, parents and community.
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
- Pre-service teachers in this final year of the Professional Experience Program undertake at least 6/8 weeks of extended professional experience
- Seminars, tutorials, or workshops, which include pre-service teacher-led discussions and group work, provide opportunities for pre-service teachers to reflect on and build on their experiences in the field
- Use of the information and communication technologies, including online discussion, will be utilised to facilitate the formation of a network of pre-service teachers who remain connected to each other, with their University representatives/mentors, and the PEC Office while participating in their professional experiences.
Assessment strategy and rationale
A pass or fail grade will be awarded for the professional experience completed for this unit. The University will award the final grade based on two pieces of assessment evidence collated about the student’s attainment of the Australian Professional Standards of Teachers: Graduate. As described in the table below, this evidence is: i) the final report of Professional Experience Assessment; and ii) the Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment (GTPA). Students must meet the graduate level requirements for both tasks/pieces of evidence to pass this unit.
Pre-service teachers who fail this unit will be asked to ‘show cause’ and will be terminated from enrolment in their course if the unit is failed twice.
Overview of assessments
| Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment Tasks | Weighting | Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|---|
The summative Professional Experience is assessed in consultation with a supervising teacher and a university academic over the placement. The pre-service teacher must demonstrate attainment of the Australian Professional Standards of Teachers: Graduate within the context of classroom/school setting practices. Refer to the Unit Professional Experience Guidebook for interim and final reports. | 50% | LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5, LO6, LO7 |
Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment (GTPA) Learning outcomes for this unit will also be demonstrated by completion of the Graduate Teacher Performance Assessment (GTPA). The GTPA asks pre-service teachers to critically reflect on a teaching, learning and assessment cycle and its impact on student learning. It must be accompanied by documentary evidence of the teaching, learning and assessment cycle and of student learning. The GTPA is a common, culminating assessment used across multiple ITE programs and providers. Information about the specific requirements of the GTPA is detailed in the guideline materials supplied each semester via the Canvas site. | 50% | LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5, LO6, LO7 |
Representative texts and references
Barry, K., & King, L. (2007). Beginning teaching and beyond (4th ed.). Southbank, Vic: Cengage Learning.
Henniger, M. L, & Duckworth, R.R. (2009). The teaching experience: An introduction to reflective practice (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Custom Publishing.
Killen, R. (2013). Effective teaching strategies: Lessons from research and practice (6th ed.). South Melbourne, Vic.: Cengage Learning.
Lyons, G., Ford, M., & Slee, J. (2014). Classroom management: Creating positive learning environments (4th ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Cengage Learning.
Marsh, C. J. (2010). Becoming a teacher. Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia.
McBurney-Fry, G. (2005). Improving your practicum: A guide to better teaching practice (2nd ed.). Katoomba, NSW: Social Science Press.
Murdoch. K., & Wilson, J. (2004). Learning links: strategic teaching for the learner-centred classroom. Carlton South, Vic.: Curriculum Corporation
Pirola-Merlo, S. (2003). Relationship management in the primary school classroom. Strategies in the legal and social context. Frenchs Forest, NSW: Pearson Education Australia.
Pollard, A. (2008). Reflective teaching: Evidence-informed professional practice (3rd ed.). London/New York: Continuum International Publishing Group.
Wilson, J., & Jan, L. W. (2003). Focus on inquiry: a practical approach to integrated curriculum planning. Carlton South, Vic.: Curriculum Corporation.