EDEC28004 - Working with Infants and Toddlers

Showing: 2026 HE Term 1
General Information

Unit Synopsis

Working with infants and toddlers draws on a specialised and growing body of research about the capabilities and characteristics of young learners. Recognition of infant and toddler agency informs how pedagogies are selected to build and sustain respectful and reciprocal relationships are enacted within early childhood education and care contexts. In this unit you will interrogate your personal assumptions and capabilities for working with infants and toddlers and reflect on the centrality of partnerships with children’s families. You will complete a 15-day professional placement in an early childhood setting with children aged birth to two years where the focus is on observing and enacting pedagogies that are responsive to the needs of infants and toddlers.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 8
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 1 - 2026

Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 2 - 2026 Profile
Mixed Mode

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. Professional Practice Placement 0%
3. Presentation 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

Previous Feedback

No previous feedback available

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.

Unit Learning Outcomes

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

  1. Interpret observed interactions and care practices to identify key pedagogies that educators use as they work with infants and toddlers that promote secure, respectful and reciprocal relationships and ensure appropriate care and to meet the specific learning needs of children across the full range of abilities
  2. Critically reflect on personal assumptions about infants and toddlers to generate personal attributes and capabilities required for working with infants and toddlers
  3. Select and utilise strategies that facilitate positive interactions, nurture relationships, promote wellbeing, belonging and learning and ensure the continuation of centre routines and rituals to support all childrens’ learning, participation and engagement
  4. Plan, implement and document learning experiences that promote the engagement, participation and care of infants and toddlers and are responsive to their characteristics, stage of development and social, cultural and linguistic backgrounds
  5. Demonstrate professional responsibility through adherence to placement guidelines, codes of conduct and ethics and legislative, administrative and organisational policies and processes for teachers at the professional experience site
  6. Reflect on the importance of genuine partnerships with families/caregivers and with other professionals with consideration of need for sensitivity and confidentiality during interactions in order to support children’s learning, development and wellbeing
  7. Propose a plan for continued professional learning for working with infants and toddlers.

This unit contributes to meeting the curriculum content requirements outlined by the Australian Children's Education & Care Quality Authority (ACECQA)  and the completion of a placements with infants and toddlers.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1 - Written Assessment • •
2 - Professional Practice Placement • • •
3 - Presentation • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1 - Knowledge • • • • • • •
2 - Communication • • • •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • •
4 - Research •
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 8