Overview
Biological and Earth and Space Sciences develops understanding of both the content and pedagogy required to teach Science in Primary and Early Childhood classrooms. Students are introduced to concepts around how children learn Science; the importance of Science education in an Australian and international context; and current views around effective pedagogical practice linked to research. The focus on pedagogy will be linked to two content areas from the Australian Curriculum: Biological sciences and Earth and Space sciences.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2022
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Unit and Teaching Evaluation (SUTE) feedback
Technical videos
Unit coordinator to create instructional videos to help students manage the technical aspects of the digital assessment tasks.
- Evaluate examples of teaching practice in science to identify how connections are made to students’ prior knowledge or experience to promote learning and inform pedagogical practice
- Access/evaluate and apply professional literature on contemporary science education to develop a rationale for learning design
- Analyse and incorporate content that recognises the experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in the science classroom
- Select teaching and learning strategies that promote higher order thinking and scaffold students’ understanding of core concepts in the areas of Biological and Earth and Space sciences
- Create learning resources in which learner engagement is transformed by the use of ICT for collaboration and inquiry.
Successful completion of this unit provides opportunities for students to engage with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Career Stage) focus areas of:
1.1 Physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students
1.2 Understand how students learn
1.4 Strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students
2.1 Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area
2.2 Content selection and organisation
2.6 Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
3.3 Use teaching strategies
3.4 Select and use resources
4.1 Support student participation
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Presentation - 50% | |||||
| 2 - Practical and Written Assessment - 50% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Presentation - 50% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Practical and Written Assessment - 50% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Teaching primary science constructively
Edition: 7th (2021)
Authors: Skamp & Preston (Eds.)
Cengage
South Melbourne South Melbourne , VIC , Australia
ISBN: 9780170443401
Binding: Paperback
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
d.mallett@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Theoretical frameworks for teaching science
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 1 – Primary science: every teacher, every child.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
The Australian Curriculum (Science)
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 3a – Implementing the Australian Curriculum: Science with a constructivist mindset (pp. 84-112).
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Science and the cross-curriculum priorities
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 3b – Implementing the Australian Curriculum: Science with a constructivist mindset (pp. 112-141).
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Engaging learners in science
Chapter
No reading this week.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Curriculum design: The anatomy of a science unit
Chapter
No reading this week.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Biological sciences content (1/3)
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 8 – Living things and environments.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Biological sciences content (2/3)
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 9 – Living things: a technologies context.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Biological sciences content (3/3)
Chapter
No reading this week.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Earth and Space sciences content (1/3)
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 12 – Our place in space.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Earth and Space sciences content (2/3)
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 13 – Our planet Earth.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Earth and Space sciences content (3/3)
Chapter
Skamp & Preston (2021). Chapter 14 – Weather and the environment.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Unit review and consolidation
Chapter
No reading this week.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Presentation
Create a ‘Pecha Kucha 20 x 20’ style presentation on one of the 10 research topics (listed below). Topics focus on contemporary issues in science education and research including how children learn science, the structure of the curriculum, and so on. Choose a Primary Connections unit from either Biological or Earth and Space sciences (available on Moodle). Your chosen Primary Connections unit will give you some context for addressing your research topic.
You also need to demonstrate your understanding of the three strands of the Australian Curriculum (Science), the three cross-curriculum priorities, and how these relate to your research topic and chosen Primary Connections unit.
Research topics:
- The world is complex and ever changing – each day what counts as knowledge is challenged by new knowledge and process considerations. Using your selected Primary Connections unit, present a researched argument to support the claim that inquiry-based learning is the keystone to developing deeper science understandings in today’s science classrooms.
- Using your selected Primary Connections unit, identify what role technology could play in enriching student learning. Be sure to consider pedagogical approaches, assessment strategies, and any relevant learning theories.
- One of the three cross-curriculum priorities in the Australian Curriculum is ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures’. Explain what this cross-curriculum priority is about and how it is embedded in the Primary Connections unit you have chosen. Be sure to consider pedagogical approaches as well as assessment strategies.
- One of the three cross-curriculum priorities in the Australian Curriculum is ‘Sustainability’. Explain what this cross-curriculum priority is about and how it is embedded in the Primary Connections unit you have chosen. Be sure to consider pedagogical approaches as well as assessment strategies.
- ‘Engagement’ is the first stage of the 5Es model that underpins the Primary Connections curricula. Using the Primary Connections unit you have selected, explain why engagement is so important in science teaching and outline the strategies and techniques you plan to use to engage your students in the future, with particular attention to ‘identifying misconceptions’ and ‘diagnostic techniques’.
- Using the Primary Connections unit you have selected, identify some potential barriers to student engagement in science learning. Choosing a selection of three barriers, describe in further detail how you might overcome these barriers using engagement strategies.
- Referring to the Primary Connections unit you have selected, explain the value of using the 5Es teaching and learning model and highlight the connection between planning, teaching and assessing science understanding.
- Discuss some of the reasons why STEM education is becoming increasingly important in schools all around the world. Referring to the Primary Connections unit you have selected, show examples of where STEM is incorporated and/or places where STEM could logically have been incorporated.
- Referring to the Primary Connections unit you have selected, explain the importance of an understanding of ‘working scientifically’. Outline the importance of connecting children’s scientific learning to their ‘real’ world and the way that scientists work (include links to research). How can you make science learning authentic and make connections to the scientific community?
- Communicating science using narrative techniques can be valuable and enhance children’s engagement. Using two examples, explain and justify how narrative and storytelling can be used to add richness to children’s learning in the Primary Connections unit you have selected. Be sure that you make links to research to justify your position.
Week 6 Thursday (21 Apr 2022) 11:45 pm AEST
Submit online via Moodle
Week 9 Thursday (12 May 2022)
Feedback on this assessment task will be provided following moderation.
- Quality and depth of content for a chosen science education issue from the ‘Research topics’ list (below) using authoritative sources such as journal articles.
- Relevance and/or alignment between the research topic and a Primary Connections unit (Biological or Earth and Space sciences).
- Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of the three strands of the Australian Curriculum (Science).
- Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of the cross-curriculum priorities of the Australian Curriculum and their relevance to both the research topic and Primary Connections unit.
- Clear and concise presentation consistent with ‘Pecha Kucha 20 x 20’ specifications.
- Evaluate examples of teaching practice in science to identify how connections are made to students’ prior knowledge or experience to promote learning and inform pedagogical practice
- Access/evaluate and apply professional literature on contemporary science education to develop a rationale for learning design
- Analyse and incorporate content that recognises the experience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in the science classroom
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
2 Practical and Written Assessment
Part A: Choose two items from your pedagogical toolkit to write about. The idea of the 'toolkit' is that your practice will continually evolve to include numerous strategies, resources and activities to help engage students. Examples include problem-based learning, worksheets or components of the inquiry method such as 'questioning and predicting'. Other examples include resources such as online simulations, explanatory videos and even songs.
By identifying and explaining these items you should state what you like about each one. Remember that you are holding up these two items as good examples of practice in science education so only choose things that you approve of. Use professional literature such as journal articles to discuss any pedagogical issues relating to your chosen items. For example, for explanatory videos you could discuss ‘cognitive load’ and how content should be age appropriate and not too easy or difficult.
The word count for Part A is not stated (1,000 - 2,000 words guide). There is no word count for Part B.
Part B: Develop TWO digital task cards that could be used to scaffold independent learning in science. The cards should demonstrate a clear understanding of the items selected in Part A and use content from the two sub-strands of Biological (for one card) and Earth and Space sciences (for the other card). The cards should cover a range of activities and include:
Biological sciences: A card suitable for use by learners in a primary classroom (select one year level from Foundation to Year 6). This card must be printable and suitable for a student to use with minimal teacher support.
Earth and Space sciences: A card suitable for use by learners in a different primary classroom (select one year level from Foundation to Year 6). This card must be printable and suitable for a student to use with minimal teacher support.
Each card should clearly identify the learning outcomes from the Australian Curriculum (Science) that it supports. The card should also contain basic instructions for use but most of this information is best written on the website that the task card links to. Any hyperlinks that are used must work so avoid using sites which require registration for the user (i.e., marker).
Week 12 Thursday (2 June 2022) 11:45 pm AEST
Exam Week Friday (17 June 2022)
Feedback on this assessment task will be provided following moderation.
- Selection and appropriate use of teaching strategies and resources that support the processes of working scientifically.
- Knowledge and understanding of the use of ICT in supporting student-centred learning and engagement.
- Relevance of the chosen resources for the intended age group.
- Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of the content from the two sub-strands of Biological and Earth and Space sciences.
- Design and technical functionality of the task cards.
- Access/evaluate and apply professional literature on contemporary science education to develop a rationale for learning design
- Select teaching and learning strategies that promote higher order thinking and scaffold students’ understanding of core concepts in the areas of Biological and Earth and Space sciences
- Create learning resources in which learner engagement is transformed by the use of ICT for collaboration and inquiry.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
