Unit rationale, description and aim
Educators play a vital role in advocating for and supporting the educational and social development of all students, particularly those with complex needs, unique attributes and challenging behaviours. All professionals in their work with children and young people play a significant role in advocating on their behalf, assuring their safety and supporting their educational and social development
This unit will identify best practice for creating inclusive curriculum, instruction, and assessment, aimed at ensuring that all students have access to learning experiences that are meaningful and engaging. It will also examine the social and emotional needs of students and how to create positive and supportive classroom environments. By exploring legal and ethical considerations, students will gain a deeper understanding of their responsibilities as educators and the impact of their actions on their students.
Students will explore the responsibilities of professionals to advocate for children and provide inclusive education informed by policy and contemporary research. Principles of social justice and equity, which form the foundation of inclusive practices, will be discussed in the context of international agreements, national legislation, local policies, and procedures, as well as current research and practice. Key contemporary issues that affect inclusive practices will also be analysed from a social justice and equity perspective.
The aim of this unit is to provide educators with the tools and knowledge necessary to address the social and emotional needs of all students and to develop strategies for creating positive and supportive classroom environments.
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.
Critically review and analyse policies and practic...
Learning Outcome 01
Identify strategies and best practices for creatin...
Learning Outcome 02
Analyse the social, cultural and political factors...
Learning Outcome 03
Apply critical analysis, problem-solving and decis...
Learning Outcome 04
Content
Topics will include:
- Current policies and priorities relevant to the promotion of inclusion in local schools and education systems and communities
- Key Rights Treaties – United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- Critique of international, national, and local frameworks/models for teaching diverse student populations with a focus on Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD)
- Developing a pedagogical framework responsive to policy priorities and objectives
- Understanding the legal and policy frameworks for inclusive education, including the rights of students with disabilities and the importance of inclusive education for all students
- Examining research on inclusive education practices and their effectiveness in promoting student learning and wellbeing
- Exploring the role of teachers, administrators, and other stakeholders in creating and implementing inclusive education policies and practices
- Current challenges and opportunities facing inclusive education,
- Working with and for Parents,
- Contemporary perspectives relevant to social competence - attachment, temperament, self-concept, self-regulation, pro-social behaviours, atypical development and behaviours, social and emotional literacy
- The role of Peer relations in inclusive practice – Beyond bullying.
Assessment strategy and rationale
The assessment strategy used allows students to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes and professional standards consistent with University assessment requirements.
The assessment relates directly to the achievement of the learning outcomes. Some flexibility may be exercised in the assessment task to align with the needs of the students; for example, some students may be working in schools or other educational contexts, in an administrative role or currently on leave from teaching in a school. In order to pass this unit, students are required to successfully complete both assessment tasks and achieve an overall score of 50% or above.
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1 Policy Analysis Analyse the...
Assessment Task 1
Policy Analysis
Analyse the common elements of and differences between key international, national and local policy frameworks guiding inclusive education in your school context.
50%
Assessment Task 2 Exploration of one contemporar...
Assessment Task 2
Exploration of one contemporary issue relevant to current professional duties.
50%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
This unit is offered fully online and uses an active learning approach to support students in the exploration of the essential knowledge associated with the enactment of a rights respecting framework for supporting children and young people in inclusive settings. Students will explore key issues and develop a deeper contextualised understanding of the impact of policy and regulatory frameworks on practice through online asynchronous activities. Other activities may include recorded lectures and reading, self-directed learning, participant critical reflection against relevant professional standards with particular reference to case studies, engagement with the literature, dialogue and interrogation of concepts, theories and practices, and the application in professional contexts.
This is a 10 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 150 hours in total across the teaching period, comprising directed tasks and self-study.