Course Outline
EDU339 Professional Experience: Curriculum Approaches and Pedagogies
Course Coordinator:Anne Drabble (adrabble@usc.edu.au) School:School of Education and Tertiary Access
2026Trimester 1
UniSC Sunshine Coast |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Please go to usc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
What is this course about?
Description
In this Professional Experience (PEx) course, you are introduced to teaching in primary schools. You will complete a 10-day PEx in a middle - upper primary classroom where you will use your knowledge of the Australian Curriculum, explicit instruction, and pedagogies from your early childhood PEx. to participate in the teaching cycle for primary classrooms through intentional planning, teaching, assessing, and reflecting. You will continue to demonstrate your knowledge of the APST through evidencing quality examples of engagement and achievement in your APST digital portfolio.
How will this course be delivered?
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Learning materials – Learning materials are independently accessed in Canvas. They include course learning content, activities, readings and resources for active engagement with course learning outcomes. | 2hrs | Week 1 | 9 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Tutorials are on-campus synchronous tutorials, including technology-enabled blended learning. | 2hrs | Week 1 | 10 times |
| Placement – After your initial site visit to meet with your Supervising Teacher and to spend time in the classroom to prepare for the PEx, you will undertake 7.25 hours of PEx each day for 10 consecutive days of PEx in a Year 4 or Year 5 classroom in a primary school. The PEx Handbook includes specific requirements for the PEx, and can be accessed on SONIA. | 72.5hrs | Week 11 | Once Only |
Course Topics
Course topics:
- ACARA curriculum learning areas for Year 4 and Year 5 with a focus on ACARA curriculum Technologies
- Ethical standards, Code of Conduct, child protection, trauma and healing
- Diversity, inclusion differentiated practices and adjustments for students with a wide range of capabilities
- Effective use of resources to promote student participation and engagement.
- Essential Skills of Classroom Management and Positive Behaviour for Learning for managing challenging student behaviour
- High Impact Teaching Strategies including Explicit Instruction and the teaching cycle
- Planning lesson sequences and learning activities for Year 4 and Year 5
- Professional Knowledge, Professional Practice and Professional Engagement for the 10-day PEx
- Developing Teacher Identity, Wellbeing and Resilience
What level is this course?
300 Level (Graduate)
What is the unit value of this course?
12 units
How does this course contribute to my learning?
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Mapping Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | Professional Standard Mapping * Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership | |
| 1 | Reflect on and establish connections between curriculum approaches and teaching in the early years and in primary schools |
Knowledgeable Engaged |
1.1, 1.5, 2.1, 2.3, 3.2, 3.3, 5.4 |
| 2 | Understand, enact, and comply with the professional practices as outlined in the SETA Code of Conduct |
Ethical Sustainability-focussed |
7.1, 7.2 |
| 3 | Engage professionally in the school community to evidence engagement with the APST in the areas of Knowledge, Practice and Engagement |
Engaged Sustainability-focussed |
7.1, 7.2, 7.4 |
| 4 | Plan and teach across a range of learning areas using collaborative, and explicit teaching strategies to promote learner engagement | Engaged |
2.1, 2.6, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.1, 4.5, 5.2 |
| 5 | Identify areas for professional learning and improved practice |
Knowledgeable Engaged |
6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4 |
* Competencies by Professional Body
| CODE | COMPETENCY |
| Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership | |
| 1.1 | Physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students and how these may affect learning. |
| 1.5 | Differentiate teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities: 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 | Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the concepts, substance and structure of the content and teaching strategies of the teaching area |
| 2.3 | Curriculum, assessment and reporting: Use curriculum, assessment and reporting knowledge to design learning sequences and lesson plans. |
| 2.6 | Information and Communication Technology (ICT): Implement teaching strategies for using ICT to expand curriculum learning opportunities for students. |
| 3.1 | Establish challenging learning goals: Set learning goals that provide achievable challenges for students of varying abilities and characteristics. |
| 3.2 | Plan, structure and sequence learning programs: Plan lesson sequences using knowledge of student learning, content and effective teaching strategies. |
| 3.3 | Use teaching strategies: Include a range of teaching strategies. |
| 4.1 | Support student participation: Identify strategies to support inclusive student participation and engagement in classroom activities. |
| 4.5 | Use ICT safely, responsibly and ethically: 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. |
| 5.2 | Provide feedback to students on their learning: Demonstrate an understanding of the purpose of providing timely and appropriate feedback to students about their learning |
| 5.4 | Interpret student data: Demonstrate the capacity to interpret student assessment data to evaluate student learning and modify teaching practice. |
| 6.1 | Identify and plan professional learning needs: Demonstrate an understanding of the role of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers in identifying professional learning needs. |
| 6.2 | Engage in professional learning and improve practice: Understand the relevant and appropriate sources of professional learning for teachers |
| 6.3 | Engage with colleagues and improve practice: Seek and apply constructive feedback from supervisors and teachers to improve teaching practices. |
| 6.4 | Apply professional learning and improve student learning: Demonstrate an understanding of the rationale for continued professional learning and the implications for improved student learning. |
| 7.1 | Meet professional ethics and responsibilities: Understand and apply the key principles described in codes of ethics and conduct for the teaching profession. |
| 7.2 | Comply with legislative, administrative and organisational requirements: Understand the relevant legislative, administrative and organisational policies and processes required for teachers according to school stage. |
| 7.4 | Engage with professional teaching networks and broader communities: Understand the role of external professionals and community representatives in broadening teachers’ professional knowledge and practice. |
Am I eligible to enrol in this course?
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Pre-requisites
EDU217 or EDU336 and enrolled in Program ED303
Co-requisites
Not applicable
Anti-requisites
EDU215
Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)
Not applicable
How am I going to be assessed?
Grading Scale
Limited Grading (PNP)
Details of early feedback on progress
Students will receive timely feedback before Week 4 Census to support learning and guide subsequent assessments.
Assessment tasks
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Code of Conduct | Individual | The PEx is a 10 consecutive day placement at a minimum of 7.25 hours each day, including an initial PEx site visit with the Supervising Teacher. Compliance with the Code of Conduct applies for the entire trimester of enrolment. The Code of Conduct quiz is a 15 minute quiz to be completed in Canvas by Monday 10:00am, Week 2 |
Refer to Format | Online Test (Quiz) |
| All | 2 | Portfolio | Individual | The length of the APST portfolio will vary depending on the observations, artefacts, and reflections included since enrolment in the early childhood program. |
Week 11 | Online ePortfolio Submission |
| All | 3 | Artefact - Creative, and Oral | Individual | The length of the written component is 1000 words (or equivalent), with a 10 minute in-class presentation. |
Week 7 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check and in class |
| All | 4 | Oral and Written Piece | Individual and Group | Assessment 3 consists of a 2,000 word (or equivalent) written component and a 20 minute in-class presentation. |
Refer to Format | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check and in class |
| All | 5 | Placement performance | Individual | Duration is 10-day block PEx in a school (minimum 7,25 hours each day), including one initial PEx site visit to meet with the Supervising Teacher, and a two hour debrief at the conclusion of the PEx. |
Refer to Format | SONIA |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Code of Conduct | ||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of Assessment 1 is to demonstrate understanding of and compliance with, the Code of Conduct for the School of Education and Tertiary Access (SETA). You must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass this course. |
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| Product: | Code of Conduct | |||||||||
| Format: | Assessment 1 includes submission of three components: a: Complete the Code of Conduct quiz in Canvas b:Upload an electronic copy of the Code of Conduct to Canvas c: Include a signed hard copy of the Code of Conduct in your EDU339 PEx file.. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation |
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| All - Assessment Task 2:APST Digital Portfolio | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of Assessment 2 is to provide evidence demonstrating achievement of the relevant APST at graduate stage in both prior to school contexts and school contexts demonstrating understanding of your won professional learning needs. You must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass this course. |
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| Product: | Portfolio | ||||||||||||
| Format: | The APST Digital Portfolio is uploaded using the designated Canvas submission options by Monday 10:00am, Week 11. For initial feedback, students are encouraged to submit the APST Digital Portfolio in Canvas by Monday10.00am, Week 3. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 3:Infographic: My Classroom Management Plan | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of Assessment 3 is to develop a personal classroom management plan to demonstrate your knowledge of managing classroom behaviour, guiding behaviour, the Essential Skills of Classroom Management and Positive Behaviour for Learning |
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| Product: | Artefact - Creative, and Oral | |||||||||||||||
| Format: | The infographic, is completed using the University's secure online assessment platform indicated in Canvas. The written component is due by Monday 10:00am, Week 5 with the in-class presentations due in Week 5 or Week 6. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies |
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| All - Assessment Task 4:Teaching a Lesson Sequence | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of Assignment 4 is to work collaboratively in groups to develop and present a planned explicit teaching sequence in an allocated learning area to promote student learning, student feedback and reporting to parents. You must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass this course. |
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| Product: | Oral and Written Piece | |||||||||||||||
| Format: | The Lesson Sequence is completed using the University's secure online assessment platform indicated in Canvas. The written component is due by Monday 10:00 am, Week 8. The presentation of the Lesson Sequence is due in-class in Week 8 or Week 9. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 5:Professional Experience (PEx) and Debrief | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of Assignment 5 is to demonstrate knowledge, practice and engagement against the APST at Graduate stage as identified in the PEx Final Report. You must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass this course. |
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| Product: | Placement performance | ||||||||||||
| Format: | PEx: complete the requirements of the 10 days as outlined in the PEx Handbook, with all PEx documentation completed and signed in SONIA Attendance at the scheduled debrief is compulsory. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy |
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Directed study hours
A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
What resources do I need to undertake this course?
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
Prescribed text(s) or course reader
Please note that you need to have regular access to the resource(s) listed below. Resources may be required or recommended.
| Required? | Author | Year | Title | Edition | Publisher |
| Recommended | Iva Strnadová,Michael Arthur-Kelly,Phil Foreman | 2021 | Inclusion in Action 6e | n/a | Cengage AU |
Specific requirements
Current Blue Card for place-based field trip and the 10 day block Professional Experience (PEx) Students are expected to have access to reliable transport to and from their PEx site, as well as internet access to engage with online learning materials available through the University's Canvas platform and the library.
How are risks managed in this course?
What administrative information is relevant to this course?
Assessment: Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Assessment: Additional Requirements
This course will be graded as Pass in a Limited Grade Course (PU) or Fail in a Limited Grade Course (UF) as per clause 5.1.1.3 and 5.1.1.4 of the Grades and Grade Point Average (GPA) - Academic Policy.
In a course eligible to use Limited Grades, all assessment items in that course are marked on a Pass/Fail basis and all assessment tasks are required to be passed for a student to successfully complete the course. Supplementary assessment is not available in courses using Limited Grades.
Assessment: Submission penalties
You must contact your Course Coordinator and provide the required documentation if you require an extension or alternate assessment.
Refer to the Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs – Procedures.
SafeUniSC
UniSC is committed to a culture of respect and providing a safe and supportive environment for all members of our community. For immediate assistance on campus contact SafeUniSC by phone: 07 5430 1168 or using the SafeZone app. For general enquires contact the SafeUniSC team by phone 07 5456 3864 or email safe@usc.edu.au.
The SafeUniSC Specialist Service is a Student Wellbeing service that provides free and confidential support to students who may have experienced or observed behaviour that could cause fear, offence or trauma. To contact the service call 07 5430 1226 or email studentwellbeing@usc.edu.au.
Study help
For help with course-specific advice, for example what information to include in your assessment, you should first contact your tutor, then your course coordinator, if needed.
If you require additional assistance, the Learning Advisers are trained professionals who are ready to help you develop a wide range of academic skills. Visit the Learning Advisers web page for more information, or contact Student Central for further assistance: +61 7 5430 2890 or studentcentral@usc.edu.au.
Wellbeing Services
Student Wellbeing provide free and confidential counselling on a wide range of personal, academic, social and psychological matters, to foster positive mental health and wellbeing for your academic success.
To book a confidential appointment go to Student Hub, email studentwellbeing@usc.edu.au or call 07 5430 1226.
AccessAbility Services
Ability Advisers ensure equal access to all aspects of university life. If your studies are affected by a disability, learning disorder mental health issue, injury or illness, or you are a primary carer for someone with a disability or who is considered frail and aged, AccessAbility Services can provide access to appropriate reasonable adjustments and practical advice about the support and facilities available to you throughout the University.
To book a confidential appointment go to Student Hub, email AccessAbility@usc.edu.au or call 07 5430 2890.
Links to relevant University policy and procedures
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
- Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
- Review of Assessment and Final Grades
- Supplementary Assessment
- Central Examinations
- Deferred Examinations
- Student Conduct
- Students with a Disability
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
Student Charter
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
General Enquiries
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In person:
- UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
- UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
- UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
- UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
- UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
- UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
- Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
- Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au