Course Outline

EDU408 Professional Experience: Teacher Identity and Professional Practice

Course Coordinator:Anne Drabble (adrabble@usc.edu.au) School:School of Education and Tertiary Access

2024Semester 2

Online

Online You can do this course without coming onto campus.

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 final Professional Experience (PEx) course  you consolidate your professional knowledge, professional practice, and professional engagement to strengthen your developing teacher identity. You will complete a 25-day PEx in a Prep classroom to demonstrate your achievement of the APST at graduate level. As you prepare to transition into the profession, you will use evidence  accumulated in your APST professional portfolio to demonstrate a cohesive alignment between quality intentional teaching and learning in prior to school and early school contexts.

How will this course be delivered?

Activity Hours Beginning Week Frequency
Online
Learning materials – Learning materials are independently accessed in Canvas. They include course content, activities, readings and resources for active engagement and participation in the online tutorials. 2hrs Week 1 7 times
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Tutorial 1: Seven two hour weekly online tutorials scheduled via zoom, involving active participation. Additional modalities may be used to support learning in this course. 2hrs Week 1 7 times
Tutorial/Workshop 2 – Tutorial 2: Three one hour online tutorials scheduled via zoom, involving active participation. Additional modalities may be used to support learning in this course. 1hr Week 1 3 times
Placement – After your initial site visit to meet with your Supervising Teacher and to spend time in the Prep classroom to prepare for the PEx, you will undertake 7.25 hours of PEx each day for 25 consecutive days of PEx in a Prep classroom, The PEx Handbook includes specific requirements for the PEx, and can be accessed on SONIA. 181.25hrs Week 8 Once Only

Course Topics

Course topics:

  • Australian Curriculum: Learning areas and General Capabilities for a Prep classroom
  • Australian Curriculum: Achievement Standards for a Prep classroom
  • Australian Curriculum: Literacy and Numeracy Progressions
  • Compliance with the Code of Conduct
  • Early Years Learning Framework and the Queensland Kindergarten Guidelines
  • Evidencing  achievement of the APST at Graduate Stage
  • Requirements and assessment of the EDU408 PEx
  • The teaching cycle in a Prep classroom for the 25-day block PEx (planning, teaching, assessing, reflecting and evaluating) 
  • The Teaching Performance Assessment (TPA) and classroom readiness

What level is this course?

400 Level (Graduate)

Demonstrating coherence and breadth or depth of knowledge and skills. Independent application of knowledge and skills in unfamiliar contexts. Meeting professional requirements and AQF descriptors for the degree. May require pre-requisites where discipline specific introductory or developing knowledge or skills is necessary. Normally undertaken in the third or fourth full-time study year of an undergraduate program.

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 Demonstrate compliance with the Code of Conduct to different audiences. Ethical
2.5, 7, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3
2 Evidence achievement of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) at graduate stage in prior to school and school contexts. Knowledgeable
Empowered
Ethical
Engaged
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
3 Implement all aspects of the teaching cycle in a Prep classroom using the Australian Curriculum and supporting early years curriculum Knowledgeable
Creative and critical thinker
Engaged
3, 4, 5
4 Analyse research to determine impact of knowledge and practice on developing teacher identity Knowledgeable
Creative and critical thinker
Engaged
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
5 Evaluate readiness for the teaching profession through the EDU408 PEx and the QTPA. Knowledgeable
Empowered
Ethical
Engaged
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

* Competencies by Professional Body

CODE COMPETENCY
Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership
1 PROFESSIONAL KNOWLEDGE: Know students and how they learn
2 PROFESSIONAL KNOWLEDGE: Know the content and how to teach it
2.5 Literacy and numeracy strategies: Know and understand literacy and numeracy teaching strategies and their application in teaching areas.
3 PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE: Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning
4 PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE: Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments
5 PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE: Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning
6 PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENT: Engage in professional learning
7 PROFESSIONAL ENGAGEMENT: Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community
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.
7.3 Engage with the parents/carers: Understand strategies for working effectively, sensitively and confidentially with parents/carers.

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

EDU308 or EDU336 or EDU217 and enrolled in Program ED303 and the successful completion of LANTITE

Co-requisites

EDU415 and enrolled in ED303

Anti-requisites

Not applicable

Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)

Not applicable

How am I going to be assessed?

Grading Scale

Limited Grading (PNP)

Pass (PU), Fail (UF). All assessment tasks are required to be passed for successful completion of the course.

Details of early feedback on progress


            

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 1a Activity Participation Individual
LANTITE results.
Week 1 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 1b Activity Participation Individual
Semester of enrolment including the PEx.
Week 1 Online Submission
All 2 Portfolio Individual
Length will be determined by the observations, artefacts and reflections provided to evidence each of the seven APST using the Digital Portfolio template
Week 7 Online Submission
All 3 Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece Group
You will be provided with a lesson plan template and a weekly overview to use for this task.

2500 words or equivalent
Week 5 Online Submission
All 4 Placement performance Individual
7.25 hours each day for 25 consecutive days of PEx, including the initial site visit to meet your Supervising Teacher, and a two hour debrief tutorial following completion of the PEx.
Refer to Format SONIA
All 5 Oral and Written Piece Individual
Written: 3000-words or equivalent and 
Oral: 15 minutes presentation
Refer to Format Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All - Assessment Task 1a:LANTITE
Goal:
The goal of Assignment 1a is to evidence Standard Achieved in Literacy and Standard Achieved in Numeracy for the Literacy and Numeracy Test for Initial Teacher Education (LANTITE).
Product: Activity Participation
Format:
You are required to provide official ACER evidence of your LANTITE results. Results are submitted in Canvas and due midnight Friday Week 1.


This assignment must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass the course.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Confirmation of ACER Literacy Standard Achieved.
2
Confirmation of ACER Numeracy Standard Achieved.
All - Assessment Task 1b:Code of Conduct
Goal:
The goal of Assignment 1b is to understand, agree to, and comply with the Code of Conduct for the School of Education and Tertiary Access.
Product: Activity Participation
Format:
You must comply with the Code of Conduct, throughout the course including the PEx, the PEx debrief, and the QTPA.
One copy of the Code of Conduct must be submitted in Canvas and due midnight Friday Week 1.
A second, signed copy of the Code of Conduct must be included in your EDU408 PEx file.

This assignment must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass the course.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Compliance with all aspects of the Code of Conduct.
1
All - Assessment Task 2:APST Digital Portfolio
Goal:
The goal of Assignment 2 is to evidence achievement of each of the APST in prior to school and school contexts.
Product: Portfolio
Format:
Continue using the APST Digital Portfolio template to evidence achievement of the APST in prior to school and school contexts.

Initial feedback will be provided in Week 2, 4 and 6. For final marking the APST portfolio is submitted in Canvas and due midnight Friday Week 7.

This assignment must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass the course.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Compilation of quality examples to evidence achievement of the APST in prior to school and school contexts.
2
2
Explanation of evidence of achievement of the APST in prior to school and school contexts.
2
3
Identification of alignment between the APST and developing teacher identity in prior to school and school contexts and developing teacher identity.
2 4
All - Assessment Task 3:Teaching workshop
Goal:
The goal of Assignment 3 is to develop and present a lesson sequence for use in a Prep classroom.
Product: Artefact - Creative, and Written Piece
Format:
You will be allocated an Australian Curriculum Learning Area and a content description to develop a full lesson plan with a weekly overview for a Prep classroom.
You will be required to discuss and share your lesson planning and weekly overview in Week 5 tutorials.

Written submission submitted in Canvas and due midnight Friday Week 5.

This assignment must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass this course.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Application of strategies that consider each aspect of the teaching cycle (planning, teaching, assessing, reflecting and evaluation).
3
2
Explanation of content and explicit teaching strategies and resources for students in Prep
3
3
Presentation of a sequence of age-appropriate learning activities for students in Prep
5
4
Application of written and verbal communication skills and academic literacies
5
All - Assessment Task 4:Professional Experience (PEx) and Debrief
Goal:
The goal of Assignment 4 is to demonstrate your achievement of the APST criteria in the PEx Final Report.
Product: Placement performance
Format:
Assessment Task 4 has two parts: PEx and Debrief

PEx: complete the requirements of the 25 days PEx as outlined in the PEx Handbook.
Debrief: attend the debrief tutorial at the completion of the PEx.

This assignment must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass the course.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Evaluation of the APST listed for the Interim Report
•	Below Developing 
•	Towards Graduate level
•	Developing Towards Graduate Level
5
2
Evaluation of the APST listed for the Final Report:
Achievement Standards used on the report include:
•	Below Graduate Level
•	Developing Towards Graduate Level
•	Graduate Level
•	Exceeding Graduate Level
5
3
Evaluation is undertaken by the Supervising Teacher, in collaboration with relevant PEx staff.
3
All - Assessment Task 5:Quality Teaching Performance Assessment (QTPA)
Goal:
The goal of Assignment 5 is to successfully meet the criteria of the Quality Teaching Performance Assessment (QTPA).
Product: Oral and Written Piece
Format:
The QTPA has two parts:

Written and Oral presentation. Please refer to the QTPA Handbook for detailed information. The written component is submitted in Canvas and due 5 working days after the completion of your EDU408 PEx.

You will be advised by email of the due date for your Oral presentation.


This assignment must achieve a Pass (PU) to pass the course.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Evaluation of context, data and learning sequences to the teaching cycle.
5
2
Application of theoretical and fundamental concepts of the teaching cycle to enrich a developing teacher identity.
4 5
3
Appraisal of Impact of Teaching.
For illustrative features of the above criteria please refer to: Quality Teaching Performance Assessment: Instructions for preservice teachers.
5

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

There are no required/recommended resources for this course.

Specific requirements

Current Blue Card for place-based field trip and the 25 day block  PEx.
It is expected that you will have  transportation to the PEx site required for this course.
It is also expected you will have access to the internet to access electronic material available online via the University Canvas and the library.

How are risks managed in this course?

Risk assessments have been performed for all field activities and a low level of health and safety risk exists. Some risks concerns may include working in an unknown environment as well as slip and trip hazards. It is your responsibility to review course material, search online, discuss with lecturers and peers and understand the health and safety risks associated with your specific course of study and to familiarise yourself with the University’s general health and safety principles by reviewing the online induction training for students, and following the instructions of the University staff.

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

Limited Graded Course:
All assessment tasks in this course are PC/WIL tasks.
This course will be graded as Pass in a Limited Grade Course (PU) or Fail in a Limited Grade Course (UF) as per clause 4.1.3 and 4.1.4 of the Grades and Grade Point Average (GPA) - Institutional Operating Policy of the USC.

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.
You are required to complete the PEx in 25 consecutive days as a 25-day bock PEx (7.5 hours each day). Absent days must be completed as soon as possible and negotiated with the Supervising Teacher.

 

 

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

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