Unit rationale, description and aim
Senior secondary presents a complex landscape shaped by jurisdictional curriculum authorities, high‑stakes assessment regimes, diverse learner pathways and evolving conceptions of evidence-informed practice. Preservice teachers need strong knowledge of the curriculum, assessment and pedagogical expectations that guide teaching in the senior years, alongside a capacity to design learning that supports students’ transition to further study, training and employment. This unit develops preservice teachers’ understanding of senior secondary systems, frameworks and professional responsibilities, enabling them to engage ethically and effectively with the rigour, equity considerations and disciplinary demands of this context.
Learning experiences engage preservice teachers in analysing curriculum documents, subject‑specific pedagogies and assessment practices within their teaching area. Through seminars, guided activities and investigation, they compare curriculum and assessment designs, explore evidence‑informed pedagogies for senior learners, and evaluate approaches to differentiation, moderation, feedback and the use of data to progress learning. They examine the alignment between senior syllabuses or study designs, assessment tasks, reporting structures and professional standards, while producing evidence‑informed learning and assessment resources.
This unit aims to develop preservice teachers’ capability to apply and evaluate curriculum, assessment and pedagogical principles that enhance senior secondary students’ learning, engagement and achievement within their first teaching area.
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.
Explain the key principles and practices that info...
Learning Outcome 01
Analyse the implications of senior years curriculu...
Learning Outcome 02
Apply evidence informed pedagogical principles and...
Learning Outcome 03
Evaluate the effectiveness of pedagogical approach...
Learning Outcome 04
Content
Topics will include:
Module A: Senior Secondary Curriculum and Assessment in Selected Jurisdiction
- State-based curriculum bodies and their role in senior years
- Curriculum/syllabus in the senior years
- Differentiation and pathways for senior students
- Data, appraisal and feedback for promoting learning
- High stakes and external assessment in the senior years
- School-based assessment requirements in the senior years
- Moderation and feedback in senior years
- Working and communicating with colleagues, including moderation processes
Module C: Senior Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment in First Teaching Area
- Overview of the senior secondary curriculum for the first teaching area
- Auditing knowledge and skills against the senior curriculum
- Professional Associations for the first teaching area, including opportunities for professional learning and development
- Assessment tasks, tools and practices for the first teaching area
- Subject-specific pedagogies and approaches to learning for senior students
- Developing senior students’ subject-specific literacy and numeracy capabilities
- Subject-specific differentiation, including adjustments and modifications in alignment with senior curriculum and assessment expectations
- Evidence-informed teaching and learning of content and skills in the first teaching area, e.g. teacher-led instruction, clear and explicit instruction, effective questioning, scaffolded to independent practice, spacing and retrieval practice, worked examples and modelling, reducing cognitive load and feedback
Assessment strategy and rationale
Assessment in this unit is designed to build preservice teachers’ capability to interpret, evaluate and apply senior secondary curriculum, assessment and pedagogical principles. The unit includes two complementary tasks that together integrate theory, research and practice. Both tasks explicitly scaffold ethical and effective use of generative AI for brainstorming, document comparison, idea organisation, editing and enhancing clarity. Students must demonstrate original analysis, professional judgement and correct attribution, with transparency and academic integrity modelled throughout the unit.
Task 1 develops preservice teachers’ ability to analyse senior secondary curriculum and assessment frameworks by producing a research paper comparing their local jurisdiction’s senior years system with either junior secondary approaches or the senior structures of another Australian jurisdiction. This task supports deep engagement with policy, critical comparison and an understanding of equity, rigour and system-level design. Task 2 is a portfolio in an open format, enabling preservice teachers to demonstrate their capacity to apply evidence-informed pedagogical principles, justify planning and assessment decisions, and evaluate teaching approaches for senior learners. The portfolio encourages authentic engagement with professional artefacts and the creation of classroom-ready resources.
To pass this unit, preservice teachers need to complete and pass both assessment tasks and receive a passing grade of 50% overall
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1: Comparative Analysis: Senior ...
Assessment Task 1:
Comparative Analysis: Senior Years Curriculum and Assessment
Using your first teaching area as the focus, prepare a research paper that draws on policy documents and scholarly literature to compare the design and practices of curriculum and assessment in the senior years (Years 11-12) in your local jurisdiction with either (1) curriculum and assessment practices in junior secondary (Years 7-10), or with (2) senior years practices in another Australian jurisdiction. Evaluate similarities and differences to articulate the implications of senior years curriculum, including syllabuses and/or study designs, on teachers and teaching.
50%
Assessment Task 2: Portfolio of Pedagogical Prac...
Assessment Task 2:
Portfolio of Pedagogical Practices:
Develop a multimedia portfolio demonstrating evidence informed pedagogical strategies for senior secondary in your first teaching area. Include teaching materials, exemplars, plans or resources across a range of senior level topics. Critically analyse how these artefacts support diverse learners, including the development of subject specific knowledge and skills, and literacy, numeracy and ICT capabilities. Justify pedagogical choices using contemporary research and curriculum requirements and informed pedagogical strategies for senior
50%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
Learning and teaching strategies in this final year unit emphasise autonomy, professional judgement and readiness for the transition into senior secondary teaching. The design mirrors the demands of professional practice to independently analyse jurisdictional policies, interpret syllabus and study design requirements, and evaluate assessment structures. Workshops provided across the two interrelated modules will model evidence-informed pedagogies such as explicit instruction, worked examples, modelling and scaffolded practice, with preservice teachers then examining how these approaches apply to senior learners. Collaborative seminars and case-based discussions support preservice teachers to interrogate authentic scenarios, apply disciplinary knowledge, and make informed pedagogical decisions.
Learning activities prioritise reflective practice, analytical reasoning and the iterative development of resources suited to senior secondary contexts. Microteaching, peer feedback and structured critique enable preservice teachers to trial and refine subject-specific strategies, evaluate the impact of their pedagogical choices, and strengthen professional communication. The unit acknowledges the diverse needs of adult learners and provides accessible materials and reasonable adjustments for activities involving complex curriculum documents, digital tools or multimodal communication. Preservice teachers are supported to use generative AI responsibly as a professional tool for organising ideas, analysing policy and reviewing written work, while applying academic integrity and critical evaluation principles.
Representative texts and references
Recommended texts and documents
Senior syllabus/curriculum documents as per local jurisdiction.
Recommended references
Alonzo, D., & Gearhart, M. (2019). Teacher assessment literacy: A review of international research and implications for teacher education. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 26(3), 263–279.
Archer, A. L., & Hughes, C. A. (2018). Explicit instruction: Effective and efficient teaching. Guilford Press.
Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2020). National report on schooling in Australia 2020. ACARA.
Barrett, S., & Heffernan, A. (2022). Teacher judgement, workload and curriculum reform: Implications for assessment policy. Australian Educational Researcher, 49(5), 875–893.
Brady, L. (2019). Curriculum reform in Australian senior secondary education: Challenges and opportunities. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 51(4), 523–538.
Carter, M., & Luke, A. (2020). Assessment, standards and teacher professionalism in Australian schooling. Curriculum Journal, 31(2), 204–221.
Cumming, J., & Cormack, P. (2018). Reforming senior secondary assessment: Insights from Queensland. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 25(5), 573–589.
Hardy, I. (2017). Data-driven improvement and its effects on teacher professionalism. Educational Assessment, Evaluation and Accountability, 29(1), 73–89.
Hattie, J. (2023). Visible learning: The sequel. Routledge.
Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. E. (2018). The case for explicit instruction. Educational Psychologist, 53(3), 169–184.
Klenowski, V., & Wyatt-Smith, C. (2018). Moderation and teacher judgement in a standards-referenced system. Oxford Review of Education, 44(1), 55–70.
Lingard, B., Thompson, G., & Sellar, S. (2016). National testing, accountabilities, and the reshaping of Australian schooling. Journal of Education Policy, 31(6), 685–699.
Lingard, B., & Lewis, S. (2020). Digital data infrastructures and teacher work. Learning, Media and Technology, 45(4), 383–395.
Masters, G. N. (2020). Reforming assessment: A global perspective. Australian Council for Educational Research.
Priestley, M., & Drew, V. (2019). Curriculum design and enactment in secondary schooling. Curriculum Perspectives, 39(1), 5–18.
Rosenshine, B. (2017). Principles of instruction. International Academy of Education.
Sahlberg, P. (2021). Finnish lessons 3.0: What can the world learn from educational change in Finland? Teachers College Press.
Van der Kleij, F., & Adie, L. (2022). Feedback practices in upper secondary education. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 29(5), 599–617.
Wyatt-Smith, C., Klenowski, V., & Colbert, P. (2021). Achieving consistency in teacher judgement: Scaffolds for moderation. *Assessment Matters, 13, 45–68.
Ziebarth, S., & O'Neill, M. (2023). High-stakes assessment and equity in senior secondary schooling. Australian Journal of Education, 67(2), 178–195