CQUniversity Unit Profile.

This task is to be completed individually and contains two parts. Your task must demonstrate explicit literacy instruction both in early reading foundations and in subjects other than English. You must submit both parts outlined in detail under the headings “Annotated bibliography” and “Ways to use the texts” below.

Context for the task
Being able to understand the multiple ways in which quality texts can be used to teach the foundation skills for early reading is important. This task will encourage you to carefully select texts and design ways in which you can use them to teach phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, oral language, and comprehension for reading success.

Part A: Annotated bibliography
Select TWO quality* texts published in the period 2010-present. Your selection should include a variety of texts in print, multimodal or digital form.  These texts may include picture books, stories in a range of forms, poetry, rhyming verse, non-fiction, or any other text suitable for reading instruction in P-2 classes in the primary school and/or the development of foundation skills for reading in early childhood education and care settings. Each text should be suitable for teaching in either Science, Mathematics, History or Geography curriculum contexts. 

Provide an overview of each text’s purpose, content and genre. Using the template provided and correct grammatical terminology, describe the key language features and illustrations/graphics that facilitate the teaching of reading and the age group and curriculum year level for which each text will be used.

For each text, demonstrate your understanding of novice versus expert readers by:

• Identifying specific challenges a novice reader would face with this text (e.g., unfamiliar vocabulary, complex sentence structures, background knowledge requirements)
• Explaining how expert readers would approach the same text differently

Part B: Ways to use the texts
Choose ONE of the texts you have selected.

Using the template provided, identify the curriculum content descriptions for the chosen year level (F-2) or the learning outcomes from the Early Years Learning Framework that will be the teaching and learning focus for the text. Considering the chosen level, design ways in which you would use it to support the explicit teaching of reading at that level (i.e. outlining and organising strategies and activities for before, during and after the reading and rereading of the text).

Your selected planning ideas should include:

• Activities based on a range of expressive and interpretative modes such as drama, media activities, use of ICTs, visual art activities, expressive movement, or any other modes for making and communicating meaning
• Strategies that draw on the learning outcomes of the Early Years Learning Framework and/or the literacy capabilities of the Australian Curriculum to specifically target the development of the learners' use and understanding of oral and written language
• Scaffolding strategies that support novice readers in developing towards more expert-like reading behaviours
• Explicit instruction strategies for subject-specific literacy skills, including teaching discipline-specific vocabulary, text structures, and reading/writing conventions relevant to the chosen curriculum area (Science, Mathematics, History, or Geography), demonstrating how literacy instruction can be embedded within content learning rather than taught in isolation
• A range of questions that could be posed when using this text. The range must span the hierarchy of questions in Bloom’s Taxonomy. Try to make the questions specific to the text rather than generic. Justify your chosen strategies and activities. Why have you chosen the strategy/activity? How will it help readers develop the skills for effective reading?  What features of the text support explicit teaching of these skills? How do your planned activities bridge the gap between novice and expert reading approaches?

Tasks must be described in detail. Where cloze is adopted, for example, you must indicate which words or sections of text are deleted and why. Indicate page numbers and text excerpts where appropriate.

Where these ideas are derived from existing sources, you must reference this AND state how and why you have adapted the activity.

You will turn in:

Assignment cover page

• Two Template A, one for each text. Each should be no longer than 2 A4 pages** (minimum 10pt font, Arial or Times New Roman, single-spaced).
• One Template B, one for the selected text. This should be no longer than 4 A4 pages** (minimum 10pt font, Arial or Times New Roman, single-spaced).
• Reference list
• Appendix - You may include any activity instructions, worksheets, and/or resources you develop in an appendix. GenAI prompts used to complete parts of this task could also be included in an appendix.

*Quality denotes the use of authentic and rich language and textual features. Do not include texts from commercially available reading schemes.

**The page limit only applies to each template. It excludes the cover page, abstract, contents page, reference page, and appendices.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence agents (Gen AI)
Within this assessment, the use of Gen AI agents is as follows: 

• AI Assessment Scale: Level 2

  You may use AI for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas. Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.

• See more information here on how to use GenAI appropriately:
  • CQU Copyright for Students
  • Guidelines for Referencing Large Language Models or Artificial Intelligence in Assessments

Word Count: While there is no specific word count, please adhere to the page, font and spacing requirements listed above. **The page limits only apply to each section as described. It excludes the cover page, abstract, contents page, reference page, and appendices. It includes in-text references and direct quotations.

Support for completing this task will be provided on the Moodle site and in Zoom tutorials.

Australian Professional Standards for Teachers addressed in this task: 2.1, 2.2, 2.5, 3.3, 3.4

Please note: The 72-Hour grace period applies to Assessment Task 1

If you need longer than 72 hours, you will still need to use the normal Assessment Extension System process.

• Knowledge and understanding of texts suitable for explicit literacy instruction across curriculum areas.
• Knowledge of text purpose, genre, grammatical, illustrative/graphic features as the focus for reading instruction.
• Alignment between teaching and learning activities and curriculum content.
• Knowledge and understanding of activities that support explicit and balanced instruction in early reading and across different subject areas.
• Knowledge and understanding of the characteristics of novice versus expert learners and the implications for reading instruction 
• Ability to justify pedagogical decisions using evidence-based approaches to the design of reading tasks, activities and instruction.
• Communication demonstrating personal literacy competence.

Task Description

This task is designed to develop practical knowledge of how to interpret assessment information and evidence to design experiences that build on and support students’ literacy, and reading development, in particular.

On the Moodle site for this unit, you will find two student data sets. Each data set contains the following:

• two recordings of the student's reading
• comprehension responses
• writing samples, including planning sheets, and
• a single word spelling test

Part A - Analysis

You are to choose one student data set and are required to analyse and interpret the assessment data. Following analysis, record a summary of the assessment data in relation to the Achievement Standards of the Australian Curriculum: English for your chosen student’s year level.

The analysis must refer to all literacy samples and conclusions reached justified in the data. Consider what (and how) the student has demonstrated achievement and set specific learning goals for the student to guide future development and instruction. Your analysis must demonstrate how you would use multiple assessment types systematically to evaluate student progress and inform instructional adjustments. The analysis should be accompanied by examples of the feedback that you would provide to the learner.  The feedback should be explicit and constructive and help the learner know what he/she needs to do to improve knowledge and skills for effective reading.

Brain-Based Learning Analysis: Your analysis must include discussion of how the student's current performance reflects their position on the novice-to-expert continuum in reading development. Identify specific evidence from the assessment data that shows the neural processes occurring as this student progresses towards reading mastery. Explain how the brain changes you observe (or anticipate) should inform your instructional decisions and justify why certain teaching approaches would be more effective given the student's current stage of brain-based learning development.

Each aspect of the data set must be considered in relation to what the artefacts show about the learner’s acquisition of skills in phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, oral language and comprehension for the development of early reading and this section of the task must be no longer than 3 A4 pages in length.

Part B - Planning

Based on your findings, write a detailed overview of how you would extend this student’s literacy development in the context of a whole class over a three-week period.  The plan must include evidence of a reading program that uses a balanced approach to instruction inclusive of guided reading at the learner’s instructional level as determined by the completed reading running record.  

The overview needs to identify the focus for instruction, texts you would use and details of the range of teaching strategies that you would include e.g. shared, modelled, guided and independent reading, explicit teaching of skills such as phonics, etc.  Your planning decisions must explicitly address how you will adjust your practice in response to the student's current stage in the novice-to-expert progression, demonstrating understanding of the neural processes occurring during reading skill development. Your planning decisions should be justified to show how they are constructed to cater for students from diverse backgrounds and ability levels and build on diverse literacy practices including those of EAL/D and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners.

Meaningful links to the Australian Curriculum: English need to be made. This overview can be presented as a table, but should not exceed 3 A4 page.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence agents (Gen AI)
Within this assessment, the use of Gen AI agents is as follows: 

• AI Assessment Scale: Level 2

  You may use AI for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas. Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.

• See more information here on how to use GenAI appropriately:
  • CQU Copyright for Students
  • Guidelines for Referencing Large Language Models or Artificial Intelligence in Assessments

Word Count: While there is no specific word count, please adhere to the page, font and spacing requirements listed above. *The page limits only apply to each section as described. It excludes the cover page, abstract, contents page, reference page, and appendices. It includes in-text references and direct quotations.

Support for completing this task will be provided on the Moodle site and in Zoom tutorials.

Australian Professional Standards for Teachers addressed in this task: 1.3, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 5.1, 5.2, 5.4

Please note: The 72-Hour grace period applies to Assessment Task 2

If you need longer than 72 hours, you will still need to use the normal Assessment Extension System process.

• Application of knowledge of reading skills to the interpretation of assessment data
• Ability to effectively select and justify a range of evidence-based assessment practices to evaluate progress, set learning goals, provide targeted feedback and adjust instruction for students of varying abilities using assessment information
• Ability to plan lessons and programs for reading instruction that address identified needs and include a range of effective teaching strategies
• Application and justification of teaching strategies that cater for students with a range of language backgrounds and skills in reading
• Knowledge and understanding of the impact of the linguistic and cultural backgrounds of EAL/D and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners on the comprehension of texts, oral language development and skills for early reading
• Knowledge and understanding of novice brain progression towards reading mastery and ability to adjust instructional practice accordingly
• Communication demonstrating personal literacy competence

Task Description

This task comprises two parts:

• Four personal literacy competency online tests that are completed each week from Week 6 to Week 9.
• A reflective statement.

Further information about the tests:

The tests will cover key terminology of language & literacy learning (e.g. graphophonic knowledge, morpheme, phoneme, syntax, etc.) and your personal literacy competency (e.g. grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc.)

1 attempt only at each quiz. 10 questions per quiz. 1 mark per question. 30 minutes to complete each quiz.

Each weekly quiz will be open for normal working days during the week only (i.e Week 8 quiz will be open from Monday of Week 8 through to Friday of Week 8)

Once you complete the quiz and submit, your overall score only will be available. Solutions will be released once the quiz has closed for that week. You are not able to go back in and attempt the quiz again.

Further information about the Reflective Statement:

You are to write a 1000 word (maximum)** reflective statement outlining your strengths and challenges with respect to your personal literacy competency, a professional learning plan to address the challenges identified and the implications for student learning.

This reflective statement must include:

• Your literacy strengths and challenges as identified through self-reflection and online quiz performance.
• A personal plan for professional learning outlining both short term and long term goals, and the professional learning resources you plan to draw on to support your acquisition of the literacy knowledge, understanding and skills required for the effective and accurate description of literacy ideas that support children’s literacy development
• A justification for your plan that links to (a) scholarly literature; and (b) the development of professional knowledge and practice for teaching literacy using selected focus areas of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (specifically 6.2 and 6.4)*
• A preliminary evaluation of the effectiveness of the plan for your short term goals, and an informed reflection on the relationship between professional learning, improved practice and improved student learning in literacy in early childhood and primary schooling contexts.

*A full copy of the AITSL Professional Standards for Australian Teachers is available at: http://www.aitsl.edu.au/australian-professional-standards-for-teachers

You must achieve a pass standard in this task to be eligible to pass this unit.

Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence agents (Gen AI)
Within this assessment, the use of Gen AI agents is as follows: 

• AI Assessment Scale: Level 2

  You may use AI for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas. Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity.

• See more information here on how to use GenAI appropriately:
  • CQU Copyright for Students
  • Guidelines for Referencing Large Language Models or Artificial Intelligence in Assessments

Word Count: **The word count is considered from the first word of the introduction to the last word of the conclusion. It excludes the cover page, abstract, contents page, reference page, and appendices. It includes in-text references and direct quotations.

Support for completing this task will be provided on the Moodle site and in Zoom tutorials.

Australian Professional Standards for Teachers addressed in this task: 6.2, 6.4

Please note: The 72-hour grace period DOES NOT apply to the weekly quizzes. The 72-Hour grace period only applies to the Reflective Statement of Assessment Task 3. 

If you need longer than 72 hours, you will still need to use the normal Assessment Extension System process.

• Apply personal competence in literacy appropriate for performing the professional work of teachers.
• Engage in professional learning and improve practice - Understanding the relevant and appropriate sources of professional learning for teachers.
• Apply professional learning and improve student learning - Demonstrate an understanding of the rationale for continued professional learning and the implications for improved student learning.