Unit rationale, description and aim
Since effective literacy skills are essential for academic achievement, it is critical that teachers and allied professionals possess specialist knowledge and skills to identify language and literacy learning difficulties, adjust instruction, and implement effective literacy interventions.
In this unit within the Language and Literacy specialisation, students will have opportunities to develop advanced knowledge and skills in relation to literacy learning in primary school and to generate instructional solutions that account for the multidimensional causes of literacy underachievement and literacy-related learning disabilities. In analysing students’ literacy needs and designing appropriate adjustments, scaffolding strategies, and interventions, teachers will generate plans that are consistent with the overall aims of the specialisation, namely, to promote data-driven literacy intervention that meet the literacy needs of individual students and improve the overall literacy performance of all students.
The aim of this unit is to support students in developing the required specialist knowledge, understanding, and skills they need to address the literacy needs and differences of learners.
Campus offering
No unit offerings are currently available for this unit.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.
Analyse a literacy text comprehension model that s...
Learning Outcome 01
Explain development, individual differences, under...
Learning Outcome 02
Evaluate protocols and procedures for: assessing l...
Learning Outcome 03
Describe a literacy intervention framework that de...
Learning Outcome 04
Apply a problem-solving approach to implementing l...
Learning Outcome 05
Use the literacy teaching framework to differentia...
Learning Outcome 06
Content
Topics will include:
- How readers and writers build a mental model of a text and the endogenous (cognitive, metacognitive, verbal, identity, motivational) and exogenous (environmental-cultural, societal and teaching) factors that influence model-making. The factors are synthesised into an explanatory model of text comprehension.
- Developmental and environmental-cultural influences on literacy acquisition processes.
- Explaining the causes of reading underachievement in terms of these influences (factors and processes) and their implications for describing literacy learning profiles for diagnosis and intervention;
- Research relating to effective literacy intervention, including earlier meta-analyses of literacy interventions as well as literature related to the Simple View of Reading, the National Reading Panel in the US, and the National Inquiry into the Teaching of Reading in Australia.
- A literacy teaching framework that derives from this research and its implications for differentiating regular literacy pedagogy.
- Teaching implications of the model including the three-phase comprehending process and pedagogy for each phase: word reading, phonological, phonemic, phonic and orthographic aspects; teaching comprehending of sentences, vocabulary, paragraphs and topics; teaching comprehension; teaching the metacognitive and self-efficacy aspects; teaching for identity and positive self-efficacy as a reader; teaching the cultural and social aspects of literacy transactions. In addition, procedures for evaluating the effectiveness of each aspect of the teaching will be considered.
- Planning and implementing personalised literacy intervention programs.
- Procedures for embedding the literacy intervention in the classroom and school.
Assessment strategy and rationale
In order to successfully complete this unit, postgraduate students need to complete and submit two graded assessment tasks. The assessment strategy used allows students to demonstrate their knowledge and skill related to literacy learning and intervention
The total assessment will be equivalent to 11,000 words. In order to pass this unit, students are required to submit or participate in all assessment tasks. each worth 50% of the final grade for the unit. The first task is a critical analysis of an aspect of literacy learning; the second task applies a literacy intervention framework and reports on the application.
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1 Critical Analysis A critica...
Assessment Task 1
Critical Analysis
A critical analysis of a selected aspect of literacy learning in relation to the literacy text comprehension model and a consideration of implications for assessment and identification of literacy learning difficulties.
50%
Assessment Task 2: Application and Report Ap...
Assessment Task 2:
Application and Report
Application of the literacy intervention framework to a second selected aspect of literacy learning (LO4). The report will review research re. teaching the aspect to students who have reading difficulties, and adopt a problem-solving approach to planning a relevant intervention within a ‘response to intervention’ framework.
50%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
This unit is offered in multi-mode and will be supported by a unit LEO (learning environment online) site. Engagement for learning is the key driver in the delivery of this curriculum. The unit will facilitate active participation in pedagogical approaches that demonstrate alignment of teaching, learning and assessment and incorporate:
- Online digital resources, including reference readings, online assessment and teaching materials, analysis of scenarios of oral language use. These will include ‘flipped learning’ opportunities and ‘group learning’ through webinars.
- Dialogic teaching and small group collaborative learning in group ‘face to face’ formats will be used to foster reflective practice following the personal analysis, evaluation and synthesis of relevant literature;
- Videotapes of students’ use of oral language will be used to display developmental trends in each aspect, to develop screening and diagnostic skills and skills in planning interventions
- Online forum and chat tools will be used as appropriate to build a community of learners;
- Problem-based learning sessions will be used to develop assessment and differentiation of pedagogy skills and to analyse and apply learning to educational case studies for the purposes of assessment.
This is a 20-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 300 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.
Australian Professional Standards For Teachers - Highly Accomplished/Lead
On successful completion of this unit, students should have gained evidence towards the following standards: