Units

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Sample subject outline - Semester 2 2013

Note: Subject outlines often change before the semester begins. Below is a sample outline.

Rationale

Unit Rationale
As teachers in the middle years of schooling you will be required to work collaboratively with other teachers to develop and implement transdisciplinary curriculum. Therefore, you must see yourself primarily as a generalist teacher who is capable of making connections between knowledge and skills across subject disciplines and key learning areas to create meaningful, intellectually challenging learning experiences for your students. Science and technology are core fields of knowledge that enable students to understand and manipulate their physical world in particular ways with a specific set of skills and practices. Teaching science and technology in the middle years needs to focus on the application of basic scientific understandings to allow students to relocate their learning into real-world contexts. This curriculum unit is designed to provide some fundamental pedagogical practices associated with teaching science and technology in the middle years of schooling.

Aims

The aim of this unit is to develop the skills and understandings you require to integrate science and technology education across the curriculum and create meaningful learning experiences that cater for the diverse needs of students in the middle years.

Objectives

On completion of this unit you should be able to:

1. Design engaging and flexible learning experiences that develop language, literacy and numeracy in science and technology for middle year's class groups (QCT Standard 1& 2);
2. Design intellectually challenging learning experiences that apply fundamental concepts in science and technology to real-world contexts and cater for the diverse needs of middle years students (QCT Standard 3,4 & 6);
3. Design assessment and reporting techniques and strategies applicable to transdisciplinary science and technology learning (QCT Standard 5);
4. Commit to reflective practice and research-based practice and demonstrate effective professional communication (QCT Standard 10)

Content

This unit will cover the following topics:
- Contemporary ideas about adolescent learning needs in relation to the Key learning Areas (KLAs) of Science and Technology within the middle years' curriculum.
- Science and Technology content appropriate for middle schooling and the interconnectedness of other key learning areas.
-Current curriculum documents that assist planning, implementing and designing transdisciplinary science and technology learning experiences.
The content of this unit will contribute to your developing Professional Learning Profile.

Approaches to Teaching and Learning

This unit incorporates a range of investigative approaches designed to develop your teaching competencies for middle schooling. Collaborative learning provides the opportunity to explore ways to develop skills and knowledge about integrated teaching-learning approaches that emphasise fundamental concepts in science and technology through real-world contexts. Both assessment tasks are designed as learning experiences, and are designed to help you build your personal and professional knowledge and skills in designing an authentic assessment task and planningextended learning experiences.

Assessment

Assessment in the unit is both formative and summative and will be viewed in terms of the principle of 'assessment as learning'. Formative assessment is provided through verbal and online feedback, and through written comments on assignment work. In this unit one assessment item will focus the upper primary years (Years 4-7) and the other will focus on the lower secondary years (Years 8-9).

Two summative assessment items are incorporated.

Assessment name: Professional Plans
Description: Design an extended learning plan that includes integrated learning experiences that apply fundamental concepts in science and technology to real-world contexts.
Length: 1500 words or equivalent
Relates to objectives: 1-4
Weight: 40%
Internal or external: Both
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Mid-Semester

Assessment name: Professional Plans
Description: Design an authentic transdisciplinary assessment task
Length: 2000 words or equivalent.
Relates to objectives: 1-4
Weight: 60%
Internal or external: Both
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: End-Semester

Academic Honesty

QUT is committed to maintaining high academic standards to protect the value of its qualifications. To assist you in assuring the academic integrity of your assessment you are encouraged to make use of the support materials and services available to help you consider and check your assessment items. Important information about the university's approach to academic integrity of assessment is on your unit Blackboard site.

A breach of academic integrity is regarded as Student Misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties.

Resource materials

Text

There is no set textbook for this unit

References

Venville, G., & Dawson, V. (Eds). (2004). The art of teaching primary science. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin.
Pendergast, D., & Bahr, N. (Eds). (2005). Teaching middle years: Rethinking the curriculum, pedagogy and assessment. Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin.

Risk assessment statement

There are no out-of-the-ordinary risks associated with the general conduct of this unit. However, students must be familiar with the procedures for the safe handling of science equipment and materials. Workplace health and safety protocols in relation to computer use will apply.

Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of semester.

Last modified: 31-Oct-2012