Unit rationale, description and aim

A high level of literacy is one of the key factors contributing to young people’s success in education across all curriculum areas, as well as for future training and the workplace. For pre-service teachers to effectively teach literacy to children, they require extensive knowledge as well as practical professional experience to apply this knowledge in the classroom. This unit builds about two previous units of primary English study to expand upon curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment across all primary years to focus particularly on mastery of literacy concepts, analysis of language development, and development of an informed understanding of the role of children’s literature as an essential part of literacy education. 


This unit combines lectures, tutorials, and self-paced independent study, with a professional experience component that comprises a minimum of 16 days placement and supervised teaching in a school context. As part of an employment-based course, professional experience enables pre-service teachers to synthesise and situate critical bodies of knowledge of teaching in a genuine context that will enable them to practice and provide evidence of their progression towards the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST.) The aim of this unit is to provide pre-service teachers with the foundational content knowledge, understanding and skills for teaching English and literacy across all learning areas and assessment using a variety of resources, including children’s literature, and strategies to implement literacy and children’s literature in their own classroom.  

2025 10

Campus offering

No unit offerings are currently available for this unit

Prerequisites

(EDLL613 Primary English 2 AND LNTE511 Literacy and Numeracy Test ) OR (EDLL613 Primary English 2 AND LNTE100 LANTITE - Literacy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students AND LNTE101 LANTITE - Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education Students )


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.

Apply knowledge of phonology, phonemic awareness, ...

Learning Outcome 01

Apply knowledge of phonology, phonemic awareness, phonics, and oral language to analyse and evaluate spoken and multimodal texts and determine implications for teaching and academic support, including differentiation (APST 1.1, 1.2, 1.5, 2.1, 2.5, 3.3)

Determine and evaluate appropriate instructional r...

Learning Outcome 02

Determine and evaluate appropriate instructional responses to students’ language development, with reference to theories; through application of knowledge of vocabulary, grammar and visual design by examining printed, written and multimodal texts to determine how meaning is made in a variety of texts (APST 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.5, 3.3, 3.4, 5.4)

Apply and evaluate an extensive range of children’...

Learning Outcome 03

Apply and evaluate an extensive range of children’s literature, including ICT for varying purposes and contexts to assist in the selection of texts for children and adolescents to promote early and continued language and reading development (APST 2.1, 2.6, 4.5, 3.4)

Apply knowledge, compare and analyse the contexts ...

Learning Outcome 04

Apply knowledge, compare and analyse the contexts and strategies for responding to, thinking about and critiquing children’s literature through application of literacy, semiotic and language theories that inform an awareness of justice and equity issues and practical implications for teaching and learning (APST 2.1, 2.4, 3.3, 3.4)

Synthesise and apply knowledge of primary English ...

Learning Outcome 05

Synthesise and apply knowledge of primary English curriculum, pedagogy and assessment into planning, instruction, evaluation of teaching and learning, and reflection upon professional experience (APST 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.6, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 4.1, 4.2, 4.5, 5.1, 5.2, 5.4, 6.3, 6.4)

Content

Topics will include:

  • Language development and learning
  • Imaginative, informative and persuasive texts.
  • Functions of language and expressions of meaning: grammar, vocabulary, phonology and visual design in a range of texts
  • Individual and sociocultural perspectives (e.g., gender, ethnicity, home language, ideology and context) and the influence on language and literacy development)
  • Critical approaches to reading children’s literature and the influence of purpose, audience, and mode in oral, written and multimodal texts
  • Linguistic analysis of grammatical, lexical, phonological and visual features in a range of spoken, written and multimodal texts
  • Application of phonology, phonemic awareness, phonics understanding to a range of texts
  • Analysis of the language of literature (e.g., metaphor, alliteration, simile, poetic devices, the lexico-grammar of literature)
  • Literary theories in relation to children’s literature (e.g., reader response, post-structuralist, post-modern, gender, critical literacy)
  • Characteristics of literary genres in children’s literature (e.g., folk and fairy, realism, fantasy, historical, multicultural and Indigenous; non-fiction, post-modern and multi-modal digital genres)
  • Issues in children’s literature (e.g., bravery, coming of age, journey, exploration, social realism; social justice) 

Assessment strategy and rationale

The assessment tasks and their weightings are designed so that the pre-service teachers can progressively achieve the Course Learning Outcomes and the Professional Standards and is consistent with University assessment requirements (https://policies.acu.edu.au/student_policies/assessment_policy_and_assessment_procedures).


This unit will focus on developing understanding of, and skills across the professional knowledge, practice and engagement needed to meet expectations of the Graduate Attributes and the APST: Graduate level.

Assessment task 1 focusses on the analysis of a learner’s oral language sample to identify phonology, phonemic awareness, phonics, and oral language and evaluate their language development with reference to key theories.  Assessment task 2 requires pre-service teachers to analyse and evaluate a range of high quality printed, written and multimodal factual and imaginative texts and create a multimodal text to explain their purpose, context and how authors use language and visual design to make meaning to demonstrate an understanding of the interrelationship of words and pictures to support language development. Assessment task 3 builds upon the previous assessments and evidenced learning outcomes from the first two primary English units by emphasising the synthesis of deep knowledge across all units, culminating in its application to professional experience. This final assessment task leverages and supports the employment-based structure of the course, enabling pre-service teachers to demonstrate attainment of learning outcomes in an authentic context. The three assessment tasks are sequenced to allow feedback and progressive development of content knowledge and skills to prepare pre-service teachers for pedagogical knowledge units in the sequence of language and literacy units.

Overview of assessments

Assessment task 1: Analysis of language developme...

Assessment task 1: Analysis of language development:

Select and analyse a learner’s oral language sample to identify phonology, phonemic awareness, phonics, and oral language used and evaluate their language development with reference to key theories and determine implications for teaching and academic support, including differentiation.

Weighting

30%
Learning Outcomes LO1, LO2

Assessment Task 2: Analysis of Texts Analyse and...

Assessment Task 2: Analysis of Texts

Analyse and evaluate a range of high quality printed, written and multimodal factual and imaginative texts and create a multimodal text to explain purpose, context and how authors use language and visual design to make meaning to demonstrate an understanding of the interrelationship of words and pictures that supports language development. Articulate an accompanying instructional plan that incorporates this text 

Weighting

40%
Learning Outcomes LO3, LO4

Assessment task 3: Professional Experience Report...

Assessment task 3: Professional Experience Report

Professional Experience requirements include compilation of evidence as required, within the area of primary English instruction. 

(Refer to Professional Experience Handbook and Report).

Compilation of evidence will include:

  • structured observation and analysis of school and classroom contexts
  • evidence and discussion of students’ language development and engagement with literary texts.
  • preparation for all teaching episodes including the setting of goals, outcomes, content, assessment criteria catering for a variety of abilities and characteristics
  • relevant teaching resources
  • critical reflection on own teaching experiences
  • feedback from supervising teacher/s and university staff.

This evidence must be compiled into a well-presented and well-organised Professional Experience folder, which must be regularly updated throughout the professional experience. 

Artefacts and reflections should provide evidence of attainment of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers: Graduate and can be included in the ePortfolio.

Weighting

30%
Learning Outcomes LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

The learning and teaching strategies in this unit include (1) lectures which may be delivered as online workshops to encourage active learning and high level of engagement, (2) tutorials to consolidate learning content and apply knowledge in problem solving tasks and develop analytical and evaluating skills and (3) possible independent online learning tasks to work both autonomously and collaboratively. The learning and teaching strategy is based on a Constructivist approach in a sociocultural context.


This is a unit 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 learning such as reading, reflection, discussion, webinars, podcasts, video etc.

AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS - GRADUATE LEVEL

On successful completion of this unit, pre-service teachers should be able to:

AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR TEACHERS - GRADUATE LEVEL

1.1 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students and how these may affect learning.

1.2 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of research into how students learn and the implications for teaching.

1.3 Demonstrate knowledge of teaching strategies that are responsive to the learning strengths and needs of students from diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds.

1.5 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of strategies for differentiating teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities. 

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.

2.4 Demonstrate broad knowledge of, understanding of, and respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and languages.

2.5 Know and understand literacy and numeracy teaching strategies and their application in teaching areas.

2.6 Implement teaching strategies for using ICT to expand curriculum learning opportunities for students.

3.1 Set learning goals that provide achievable challenges for students of varying abilities and characteristics.

3.2 Plan lesson sequences using knowledge of student learning, content and effective teaching strategies.

3.3 Include a range of teaching strategies.

3.4 Demonstrate knowledge of a range of resources, including ICT, that engage students in their learning.

3.5 Demonstrate a range of verbal and non-verbal communication strategies to support student engagement.

3.6 Demonstrate broad knowledge of strategies that can be used to evaluate teaching programs to improve student learning.

4.1 Identify strategies to support inclusive student participation and engagement in classroom activities.

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.

5.4 Demonstrate the capacity to interpret student assessment data to evaluate student learning and modify teaching practice.

6.3 Seek and apply constructive feedback from supervisors and teachers to improve teaching practices.

6.4 Demonstrate an understanding of the rationale for continued professional learning and the implications for improved student learnings. 

Representative texts and references

Representative texts and references

Derewianka, B., & Jones, P. (2016). Teaching language in context (2nd ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

Emmitt, M., Zbaracki, M., Komesaroff, L., & Pollock. J. (2015). Language and learning: An introduction for teaching (6th ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

Flanagan, V. (2013). Similarity or difference: The problem of race in Australian picture books, Bookbird: A Journal of International Children’s Literature, Vol.51(2), pp.13-22.

Keifer, B., & Tyson, C., Barger, B.P., Patrick, L., & Reilly-Sanders, E. (2019). Charlotte Huck’s children’s literature: A brief guide. (3rd ed.). New York NY: McGraw-Hill

McDonald, L. (2018). A literature companion for teachers (2nd ed.). Marrickville, NSW: Primary English Teaching Association Australia (PETAA).

McLeod, S., & McCormack, J. (2015). An introduction to speech, language and literacy. South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

Nel, P. (2017) Was the Cat in the Hat Black?: The hidden racism of children’s literature and the need for diverse books. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Owens, R.E. (2020). Language development: An introduction, Global edition. (9th ed). Australia: Pearson Education

Serafini, F. (2014). Reading the visual: An introduction to teaching multimodal literacy. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Winch, G., Johnston, R., March, P., Ljungdahl, L., & Holliday, M. (2020). Literacy: Reading, writing and children’s literature (6th ed.). South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press. 

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