Unit rationale, description and aim
The unit introduces the Catholic school system in Australia and in particular, the role of Religious Education. It recognises that Catholic schools operate within an increasingly diverse and pluralist society and so seeks to examine formal religious teaching in the classroom as both an expression of the life of the Catholic parish and an opportunity for dialogue with people of other and no faith. Specific attention is paid to curriculum design sacramental education and liturgical preparation. This unit focusses on early years primary school settings, aiming to equip pre-service teaches with an understanding of contemporary early childhood theory and practice, as well as the spiritual and religious development of young children.
This unit is designed to contribute to accreditation requirements to teach in a Catholic School. It specifically addresses requirements for Category C Accreditation for Leadership in a Catholic School in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory and CECV Policy in Victoria.
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.
Identify and analyse the development of approaches...
Learning Outcome 01
Describe the nature and purpose of religious educa...
Learning Outcome 02
Explore and critically apply theories of human and...
Learning Outcome 03
Develop and apply skills for liturgy, prayer and c...
Learning Outcome 04
Plan and implement appropriate teaching and learni...
Learning Outcome 05
Critically evaluate and implement major religious ...
Learning Outcome 06
Content
Topics will include:
- Terminology of religious education. Various perspectives concerning its nature and purpose. Religious Education as part of the mission of the Church. History and development of religious education in the Catholic sector.
- The sources of Catholic teaching which shape religious education curriculum.
- The human and religious development of young children and their readiness for religion; implications for religious education.
- A study of local diocesan curriculum/guidelines - underlying principles, structure, content and methodology for religious education in the early years. Lesson and unit planning in religious education.
- Personal and liturgical prayer with early years’ students. The preparation and celebration of Class Non-Eucharistic liturgies and celebrations of faith.
- Approaches to sacramental education and preparation, with a focus on Sacraments of Christian Initiation: parish, family and school-based programs.
- The theory and practice of teaching scripture to early years’ students.
Assessment strategy and rationale
The unit builds towards assessment of students’ knowledge of the nature and context of Religious Education and their ability to apply the necessary knowledge and skills required to be a classroom teacher in a Catholic primary school. The assessment tasks are aligned with the Learning Outcomes. There will be three pieces of assessment in this unit, each reflective of a different content area. The percentage weighting for each task will vary according to specific task requirements. Total assessment is the equivalent of 4,000 words.
The first assessment task focusses on the nature and purpose of RE in the early year’s classroom setting. It asks students to consider the faith context of young students and how they learn and develop spiritually and then apply this knowledge to a particular aspect of RE (LO1, LO2).
The second task builds on the understanding of the context of RE to include Diocesan curriculum documents and their aims and purposes in a more particular way. Students are expected to demonstrate the application of the Diocesan documentation to specific teaching and learning activities in the RE classroom, including but not confined to the key elements of Church life (LO2, LO3, LO5, LO6).
The third task requires students to consider some of the broader spiritual and religious aspects of Catholic school life, and demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the sacramental life of the Church by designing age-appropriate activities for liturgical celebrations, sacramental preparation and learning about scripture and morality (LO4, LO5, LO6).
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1 The focus of the first assessm...
Assessment Task 1
The focus of the first assessment item will be on the nature and purpose of the various approaches to the classroom teaching of religious education in the Australian Church context. It includes the development of one teaching and learning activity that supports that particular approach.
30%
Assessment Task 2 The focus of the second assess...
Assessment Task 2
The focus of the second assessment item will be on an area of the local/other diocesan curriculum in religious education. It is to include the necessary theological background, creative teaching/learning activities and resources that reflect early years’ students’ contextual backgrounds, their spiritual/religious development, as well as contemporary early childhood theory and practice.
40%
Assessment Task 3 The focus of this assessment w...
Assessment Task 3
The focus of this assessment will be on students’ critical knowledge and understanding of liturgy preparation, sacramental preparation and education, scripture and moral/values education.
30%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
EDRE290 is taught in numerous modes (i.e. face to face, intensive, online, multi) and involves 150 hours of focused learning. This consists of lectures and tutorials in the face-to-face mode, and recorded lectures (for asynchronous use), videoconferencing and webinars in the online mode. The remaining hours are reserved for private research and cooperative learning through forums and reflective journals, leading to the completion of the required assessment tasks.
EDRE290 is intended for undergraduate students (Primary and Early Child) who wish to complete their bachelor degree with the necessary skills and knowledge to be able to successfully teach Religious Education in the early years of Catholic schools. Together with other units that combine and are foundational to the teaching of Religious Education, EDRE290 leads to accreditation to teach religious education in their diocese.
In this unit, students will investigate and understand various theories about the teaching of Religious Education in the early years, in the context of how young children develop spiritually and the Diocesan Curriculum documents that will frame their teaching and learning in Catholic primary schools. They will learn how to apply their knowledge of key elements of Church life to effectively construct positive learning experiences for young children in Catholic schools. They will also learn how to develop an age-appropriate prayer life for their students, including class non-Eucharistic liturgies and other celebrations of faith.
The unit is taught in a variety of settings: face to face, intensive and fully online. As such, a variety of teaching/learning strategies may be used including lectures, seminars, individual supervision, and research adapted to internal, online or multi-mode. Accessing local Diocesan Religious Education curriculum materials is part of this unit.
Lectures, tutorials, workshops are used to provide students with a range of opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills that are necessary to demonstrate the learning outcomes.
The unit duration will be 150 hours in total with a normal expectation of 24 hours of directed study and the total contact hours should not exceed 24 hours. Directed study might include lectures, tutorials, webinars, podcasts etc. The balance of the hours becomes private study.
AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS - GRADUATE LEVEL
On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should be able to: