Year

2024

Credit points

10

Campus offering

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  • Term Mode
  • Professional Term 2Multi-mode
  • Term Mode
  • Professional Term 2Online Unscheduled
  • Term Mode
  • Professional Term 2Multi-mode

Prerequisites

EDAR276 Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment in Visual Arts Education 1 OR EDAR299 Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment in Visual Arts Education 1

Incompatible

EDAR477 Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment in Visual Arts Education 2

Unit rationale, description and aim

Intending secondary teachers need an understanding of the senior secondary curriculum in order to plan lessons that promote learner engagement and enhance student learning, with attention to the high-stakes assessment that is a common feature of the end of secondary schooling.

In this unit, pre-service teachers will consider the place of Visual Arts education in contemporary Australian society. They will explore a range of evidence-based approaches for curriculum development and alignment and to plan for effective teaching and learning, including formative and summative assessment and providing constructive feedback and reporting. They will engage in self-reflection on their familiarity with the concepts and substance of Visual Arts curriculum and consider their responsibilities as a Visual Arts teacher. They will identify and practice pedagogical approaches emblematic of Visual Arts teaching. Pre-service teachers will formulate unit and assessment plans in order to demonstrate a knowledge of curriculum, learning and assessment theory.

The aim of this unit is for the pre-service teacher to become familiar with the knowledge, understanding and skills necessary for teaching Visual Arts at a senior secondary level and 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.

Learning Outcome NumberLearning Outcome DescriptionRelevant Graduate Capabilities
LO1Explain the principles of curriculum design and the inherent knowledge, skills and understandings that students require to achieve the outcomes of the senior secondary Visual Arts curriculum.GC1, GC2, GC3, GC7, GC8, GC11, GC12
LO2Identify and describe research-informed teaching and learning strategies that support student academic growth across the full range of abilities and diverse backgrounds including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students .GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC11, GC12
LO3Develop a range of engaging and challenging activities incorporating a range of resources including ICT to meet the specific learning needs of all students.GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC7, GC8, GC10, GC11, GC12
LO4Develop a range of assessment strategies to support student learning and the evaluation of teaching and curriculum.GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC7, GC10, GC11, GC12
LO5Identify professional learning needs and appropriate sources of professional learning for improved student learning.GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC6, GC7, GC9, GC11, GC12

Australian Professional Standards for Teachers - Graduate Level

On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should have developed the following industry specific knowledge based on the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers - Graduate Level standards:

Industry StandardRelating toRelevant Learning Outcome
APST(GA)1.1Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students and how these may affect learning.LO1
APST(GA)1.2Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of research into how students learn and the implications for teaching.LO1, LO2, LO3
APST(GA)1.3Demonstrate knowledge of teaching strategies that are responsive to the learning strengths and needs of students from diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgroundsLO2, LO3
APST(GA)1.4Demonstrate broad knowledge and understanding of the impact of culture, cultural identity and linguistic background on the education of students from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgroundsLO2
APST(GA)1.5Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of strategies for differentiating teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities.LO2, LO3
APST(GA)2.1Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the concepts, substance and structure of the content and teaching strategies of the teaching area.LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4
APST(GA)2.2Organise content into an effective learning and teaching sequence.LO3
APST(GA)2.3Use curriculum, assessment and reporting knowledge to design learning sequences and lesson plans.LO4
APST(GA)2.5Know and understand literacy and numeracy teaching strategies and their application in teaching areas.LO3
APST(GA)3.1Set learning goals that provide achievable challenges for students of varying abilities and characteristics.LO3, LO4
APST(GA)3.3Include a range of teaching strategies.LO2, LO3
APST(GA)3.4Demonstrate knowledge of a range of resources, including ICT, that engage students in their learning.LO3
APST(GA)3.6Demonstrate broad knowledge of strategies that can be used to evaluate teaching programs to improve student learning.LO3, LO4
APST(GA)4.5Demonstrate an understanding of the relevant issues and the strategies available to support the safe, responsible and ethical use of ICT in learning and teaching.LO3
APST(GA)5.1Demonstrate understanding of assessment strategies, including informal and formal, diagnostic, formative and summative approaches to assess student learning.LO4
APST(GA)5.2Demonstrate an understanding of the purpose of providing timely and appropriate feedback to students about their learning.LO3, LO4
APST(GA)5.3Demonstrate understanding of assessment moderation and its application to support consistent and comparable judgements of student learning.LO4
APST(GA)5.4Demonstrate the capacity to interpret student assessment data to evaluate student learning and modify teaching practice.LO4
APST(GA)5.5Demonstrate 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.LO3, LO4
APST(GA)6.1Demonstrate an understanding of the role of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers in identifying professional learning needs.LO5
APST(GA)6.2Understand the relevant and appropriate sources of professional learning for teachers.LO5
APST(GA)6.4Demonstrate an understanding of the rationale for continued professional learning and the implications for improved student learning.LO5

Content

Topics will include:

  • Factors in the educational context (international, national, state, territory and local levels) including curriculum policies and perspectives that shape the identity of Visual Arts in Years 11-12, including the various courses offered across states and territories
  • Effective senior Visual Arts teaching and learning
  • General capabilities and cross -curriculum priorities including the integration of literacy, and local, state, territory and national perspectives in the Visual Arts classroom
  • Alignment and coherence in content, learning outcomes, pedagogy in curriculum programming in Visual Arts
  • Pedagogical strategies that promote problem solving and critical thinking
  • The relationship between reflexive learning and effective concept formation to build higher order thinking in Visual Arts
  • Catering for a diverse range of learners in Visual Arts
  • Discipline specific teaching strategies and issues related to Indigenous students in Visual Arts, including incorporating Indigenous texts into the curriculum
  • Effective use of resources for teaching, including digital resources and approaches specific to teaching Visual Arts
  • Pedagogical strategies to promote problem solving and critical thinking in Visual Arts
  • Digital resources and approaches for senior Visual Arts education
  • Conversational, questioning and scaffolding techniques to shape dialogic classroom talk in Visual Arts education
  • Assessing student learning, providing feedback and reporting achievement in senior Visual Arts education
  • High-stakes assessment in Senior Secondary Visual Arts education, including the specific moderation process, student data interpretation and using data to inform teaching
  • Professional responsibilities and relationships
  • Professional associations and continued professional learning.

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit applies a social constructivist approach to develop an 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 an understanding of teaching strategies through critical reading, reflection, discussion, and engagement with webinars, podcasts and video resources. 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. Teaching skills of planning and assessing, and the ability to locate and synthesise information, will be developed through designing a curriculum appropriate for an English education context. 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:

  • Microteaching opportunities.
  • Self-directed reading and research.
  • Collaborative learning opportunities.

The unit is hosted on a Learning Management System (LMS) site with resources and online links, announcements, and a discussion board to post questions and reflections that promote connection between content and educational experiences.

Mode of delivery: This unit may be offered in different modes to cater to the learning needs and preferences of a range of participants.

Multi-mode

Learning activities are delivered through a planned mix of online and in-person classes, which may include full-day sessions and/or placements, to enable interaction. Activities that require attendance will appear in a student’s timetable.

Online unscheduled

Learning activities are accessible anytime, anywhere. These units are normally delivered fully online and will not appear in a student’s timetable. 

ACU Online 

In ACU Online mode, this unit is delivered asynchronously, fully online using an active, guided learning approach. Pre-service teachers are encouraged to contribute to asynchronous weekly discussions and receive regular and timely feedback on their learning. 

Assessment strategy and rationale

The assessment tasks and their weightings are designed so that the pre-service teacher can progressively achieve the course learning outcomes and professional standards. The Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment units in this course focus on pre-service teachers acquiring content knowledge and developing the skills to assimilate conceptual knowledge to inform skills that will be applied in practice.

The assessment tasks are sequenced to allow feedback and progressive development. These tasks reflect ‘real world’ school contexts and teaching responsibilities, thereby preparing the pre-service teacher for professional experience placement and their role as a teacher.

Minimum Achievement Standards

The assessment tasks for this unit are designed to demonstrate the achievement of each learning outcome. In order to pass this unit, pre-service teachers are required to demonstrate achievement of all learning outcomes by submitting all assessment tasks and obtaining a combined score of at least 50% and meeting the requirements of the Critical Tasks which are core to the demonstration of a number of Australian Professional Teacher Standards:

·        Assessment Task 2: Resource folio and critical analysis

A Critical Task is synonymous with a Graded Hurdle Task as defined in Section 3 of the Assessment Policy. As such, failure to pass the Critical Task will mean you are not eligible for a supplementary assessment in this unit (in accordance with Section 1d of the Supplementary Assessment Policy). A student who is otherwise on track to pass the unit but has a result in the range of 45-49% for the Critical Task, may be offered a ‘revisit’ of the Critical Task by the Lecturer in Charge. The revisit is treated as an ungraded hurdle task (pass/fail). The revisit would be an opportunity for the student to address the feedback provided by the marker and make additions or minor alterations to their submission to bring it to a passing standard.

Overview of assessments

Brief Description of Kind and Purpose of Assessment TasksWeightingLearning OutcomesGraduate CapabilitiesStandards

Assessment Task 1: Design of a program/unit of work

Design a senior program/unit of work that supports student learning towards a selected summative assessment. Justify choices made with supporting evidence. 

50%

LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC6, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC10, GC11, GC12APST(GA)1.1, APST(GA)1.2, APST(GA)1.3, APST(GA)1.4, APST(GA)1.5, APST(GA)2.1, APST(GA)2.2, APST(GA)2.3, APST(GA)2.5, APST(GA)3.1, APST(GA)3.3, APST(GA)3.4, APST(GA)3.6, APST(GA)4.5, APST(GA)5.1, APST(GA)5.2, APST(GA)5.3, APST(GA)5.4, APST(GA)5.5, APST(GA)6.1, APST(GA)6.2, APST(GA)6.4

Assessment Task 2: Resource Folio and Critical Analysis

Critical Task

Create a folio of 8 learning activities across a range of topics and skills relevant to senior secondary education. Critically analyse each folio item to consider supporting 1. diverse learners, 2. classroom organisation, 3. student safety, and 4. the development of literacy, numeracy and ICT demands. Justify choices with supporting evidence.  

50%

LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5GC1, GC2, GC3, GC5, GC6, GC7, GC8, GC9, GC10, GC11, GC12APST(GA)1.2, APST(GA)1.3, APST(GA)1.4, APST(GA)1.5, APST(GA)2.1, APST(GA)2.2, APST(GA)2.3, APST(GA)2.5, APST(GA)3.1, APST(GA)3.3, APST(GA)3.4, APST(GA)3.6, APST(GA)4.5, APST(GA)5.1, APST(GA)5.2, APST(GA)5.3, APST(GA)5.4, APST(GA)5.5, APST(GA)6.1, APST(GA)6.2, APST(GA)6.4

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 State and territory curriculum and syllabus documents

Australian Capital Territory Senior Secondary http://www.bsss.act.edu.au/asset_lists/atmcv_courses

New South Wales K – 10 Syllabuses https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/k-10/understanding-the-curriculum/syllabuses-a-z

New South Wales Stage 6 Syllabuses https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/11-12/Understanding-the-curriculum/syllabuses-a-z

Queensland Senior subjects https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/senior/senior-subjects

The Victorian Curriculum F-10 https://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/

Victoria Senior Curriculum: VCE Study Designs https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/curriculum/vce/vce-study-designs/Pages/vce-study-designs.aspx

Relevant State and Territory Curriculum Authority

ACT Education Directorate: https://www.education.act.gov.au/public-school-life/Our-Curriculum

New South Wales Education Standards Authority (NESA): https://www.educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/home

Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (CAA): https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/

Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA): https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Pages/HomePage.aspx

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