EDCU20043 - Teaching Humanities and Social Sciences

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit develops pre-service teachers’ knowledge and understanding of the content and disciplinary approaches to teaching and learning in the four Australian Curriculum Learning Areas that constitute the Humanities and Social Sciences in primary school settings. You will develop an applied understanding of the integral place of ICTs in contemporary geographical inquiries related to physical and human aspects of place and space using a Geographical inquiry approach through the Australian Curriculum: Geography (Year 1-6). You will reflect on the knowledge base necessary to structure historical inquiry and teach historical literacy skills that support learners in developing evidence-informed explanations of past events through the Australian Curriculum: History (Year 1- 6). You will investigate political and legal systems, and explore the nature of citizenship, diversity and identity in contemporary society through exploring the Australian Curriculum: Civics and Citizenship (Year 3-6). You will develop consumer and financial literacy skills, enterprising capabilities, and the ability to make responsible and informed decisions through engagement with the Australian Curriculum: Business and Economics (Year 5-6). Learning and assessment activities in this unit promote further development of teachers as beginning professionals by consolidating their understandings, practical skills and dispositions for innovation and evaluation of classroom practice, planning and assessment.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 9
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 1
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the 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).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 3 - 2024

Term 3 - 2024 Profile
Online
Term 3 - 2025 Profile
Online

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).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Postgraduate 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.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 50%
2. Group Work 50%

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

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 3 - 2023 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 88.89% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 26.47% response rate.

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.

Source: Student feedback
Feedback
Format and timing of recording sessions
Recommendation
An after hours time slot has been requested for 2023 and all sessions will be recorded.
Action Taken
The format for the Zoom sessions for this unit have now returned to a two-hour combination lecture/workshop style which students appreciated.
Source: Student feedback
Feedback
Use of exemplars.
Recommendation
Exemplars are considered to stifle creativity for this assignment and add to the risk of using AI, so they will not be added; however, further explanation and scaffolding will be included in the Zoom sessions.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student feedback
Feedback
Practical application.
Recommendation
Topical examples related to curriculum, pedagogy and other aspects of classroom practice will continue to be provided.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Identify key ideas, contemporary influences and conflicting perspectives on curriculum development in the humanties and social science learning areas
  2. Analyse the content of the humanities and social science learning areas to identify implications for practice in teaching about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and languages
  3. Synthesise understandings of the knowledge, practice and dispositions for teaching in the humanities and social science learning areas to identify opportunities for professional learning
  4. Select source materials, activities and teaching strategies for learning in the humanities and social science learning areas that develop students’ empathy and understanding of their world; focus on societies, events, movements and developments; and promote learning as an active and informed citizen
  5. Design inquiry learning that integrates literacy and numeracy and knowledge, understanding and skills from the curriculum
  6. Identify ICTs that encourage student participation and interaction and provide opportunities for accessing, constructing and communicating knowledge beyond the immediate environment.

Successful completion of this unit provides opportunities for you to demonstrate the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers focus areas of:

1.2 Understand how students learn

2.1 Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area

2.2 Content selection and organisation

2.3 Curriculum, assessment and reporting

2.4 Understand and respect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to promote reconciliation between Indigenous and non Indigenous Australians

2.5 Literacy and numeracy strategies

2.6 Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

3.3 Use teaching strategies

3.4 Select and use resources

4.1 Support student participation

5.1 Assess student learning

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 - Written Assessment • • •
2 - Group Work • • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 - Knowledge • • • • • •
2 - Communication • • • • •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • • • • • •
5 - Self-management • •
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility • • • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8