Georgia Linnenbank (18366570)

102086 Designing Teaching and Learning 1H 2018

Assignment 1 Essay on the Foundation of Teaching & Learning

Georgia Linnenbank (18366570)

“He who can, does; he who cannot, teaches.” -George Bernard Shaw

A famous adage, oft sited in modern society and popular culture, Bernard-Shaw’s claim

against teachers is one that denies these professionals even basic autonomy and overlooks

the difficulties of this dynamic and demanding vocation. Despite the nonsensical nature of

the quote, for how could one teach what they do not know, the overarching view he

presents of teaching as an easy job is one that persists. In reality, teaching is a highly

regulated and scrutinized profession, and effective teaching requires the skilful

incorporation of many aspects, including subject knowledge, effective teaching practices,

interpersonal skills, classroom management and lesson planning, as well as assessing and

reflecting on teaching and learning. Focusing on current NSW practices and legislation, this

essay will defend teaching as a profession, before highlighting the complexity of teaching by

discussing the foundations of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment, their connections, and

how they are used together for best-practice teaching.

Professionalism

A profession is defined as a group of people with a governing ethical code of standards,

whom have participated in high level research/education that gives them specialised skills

and knowledge, which they apply in the interest of others (Professions Australia). Given this

definition, it is fitting to label teaching a ‘profession’ considering the following.

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Current standards, formed by the regulatory body ‘Australian Institute for Teaching and

School Leadership’ (AITSL), require pre-service teachers to obtain a qualification in the form

of a 4+ year university degree, and accreditation through the NSW Education Standards

Authority (NESA). There are strict rules around subject knowledge, professional placement,

standards of literacy and numeracy and general suitability (AISTL, 2015). However, AITSL

also require accredited teachers to continue to improve and demonstrate their ability

through mandatory professional development and work samples(AISTL, 2015). There are

currently four accreditation levels for teachers: Graduate, Proficient, Highly Accomplished

and Lead Teacher (AITSL, 2015). Even though these standards are fairly new, and continue

to change, there was a high standard for teacher education in Australia even in the early

1900s when Bernard-Shaw made his statement; with the creation of teacher colleges under

the Department of Education, often in consultation with universities (Vick, 2007, p.246).

Thus, it is fair to say that teachers are a highly skilled group with specialised skills.

AITSL is also responsible for the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST). The

APST are the ‘ethical code’ for teaching and proof of meeting the standards is required for

every level of accreditation. The APST comprise of ideals around knowledge, practice and

engagement, and relate very closely to the aforementioned foundations of teaching:

curriculum, pedagogy and assessment. See table 1. P. The APST are particularly significant

because they aim to “contribute to the professionalisation of teaching”, “support the

development of teachers” (NESA, 2014, p.3) and “ensure quality teaching and learning in

Australian schools” (NESA, 2014, p.7). As such, teaching is a profession.

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Domain No. Standard Related Foundation

1 Know the students and how they learn Pedagogy
Knowledge
2 Know the content and how to teach it Curriculum/Pedagogy
Plan for and implement effective teaching Curriculum/Pedagogy/
3
and learning Assessment
Create and maintain supportive and safe Pedagogy
Practice 4
learning environments
Assess, provide feedback and report on Assessment
5
student learning
Engage in professional learning Curriculum/Pedagogy/
6
Assessment
Engagement
Engage professionally with colleagues, Pedagogy/Assessment
7
parents/carers and the community
Table 1: Australian Professional Standards for Teachers

Curriculum

The term “curriculum” itself is an extremely loaded word. With early use in 1st Century BC

likening curriculum to a race-course, and Cicero using the word to describe temporal space,

and fields of study (Egan, 1978, p.66). The current OED definition is “the subjects comprising

a course of study”, thus defining curriculum as a sum of its syllabus. But a curriculum is

more than just Maths and English, it is significant as it is the basis of all teachers work; Egan

(1978) describes how ‘curriculum’ becomes concerned with what and how to teach, so that

it’s affiliated with pedagogy as well. In Australia we have recently introduced a national

curriculum, that is in the process of being rolled out, it is described in table 2 below.
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General Capabilities
(Outcomes/objectives)
Cross-Curriculum Priorities
Learning Areas
-Literacy
-Numeracy
-ICT capabilities
-Critical and creative thinking
-Personal and social capability
-Ethical understanding
-Intercultural understanding
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures
-Australia’s Engagement with Asia
-Sustainability
-English
-Maths
-Science
-HSIE
-Arts
-Technology
-Health and physical education
-Languages (ACARA, 2018)
Table 2: Australian Curriculum

Clearly, there is a lot to cover in the national curriculum, however this is only the explicit

curriculum (overtly written in policy), teachers also impart knowledge based on the implicit

curriculum (implied in policy), and hidden curriculum (not written or implied in policy,

consists of manners/rules of society that are imbedded in classrooms/teachers).

Pedagogy

Pedagogy is an extremely important part of teaching that broadly refers to methods of

teaching children. There are some very specific pedogeological theories, such as those

proposed by Vygotsky and Piaget, as well as relatively new pedogeological approaches, like

equity pedagogy. But overall, good pedagogy uses a combination of expository (explanation

of facts) and constructive (creation of knowledge through tasks) techniques, makes school

and learning inviting and fun, and gives students choices and opportunities. In NSW there is

a state-wide model called the Quality Teaching Model that attempts to quantify all the

aspects of best-practice pedagogy in a “comprehensive approach to teaching” that aims to

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ensure that “learning is deep and meaningful” (Gore, 2007, p.27/17). It consists of three

dimensions, Intellectual Quality, Quality Learning Environment and Significance, with six

specific elements in each, such as: deep understanding, higher-order thinking, high

expectations, social support and integration of cultural knowledge. (NSWDET, 2006)

Attempts like this at pedagogy improvement are important because teacher

professionality/quality and poor school outcomes, such as NAPLAN results, are often subject

to public scrutiny. Just last month the ABC published an article stating that there had been

no improvement in NAPLAN result in a decade (Robinson, 2018), and critical literature has

found serious achievement gaps for Indigenous students (Ford, 2013). Furthermore, quality

pedagogy is important because it can lead to better understanding of the curriculum, and

higher student attainment in assessment.

Assessment

Though ‘assessment’ may remind us of large scale tests, such as NAPLAN or the HSC, and

cumbersome take-home assignment tasks, like 2000-word essays, the term ‘assessment’ has

a much broader definition. It includes any activities that help teachers gauge the progress of

their students’ skills and understanding of the curriculum. As assessment may take on so

many forms, it can be difficult to track and quantify, but there are three main ways of

thinking about assessment;

Georgia Linnenbank (18366570)

WHAT THE ASSESSMENT DOES

Diagnostic Formative Summative
-Typically done at the -Typically done during a -Typically done at the end of
beginning of a period of period of study a period of study
study -Gathers information on -Evaluates how well a
-Assesses prior knowledge formation of knowledge student did overall
-Allows teachers to better -Allows teachers to tailor -Can be used to guide
understand their students & lessons to problem areas changes in teacher
plan for differentiation -Provides feedback for -Often formally presented
improvement to students/parents
WHAT THE ASSESSMENT IS
Formal Informal
-Occurs throughout the period of study at -Can occur throughout the period of study
pre-determined times at any time
- Students are aware they’re being assessed -Students may not be aware they’re being
-Obtrusive assessed
-Includes assessment ‘tasks’ e.g. tests and -Naturalistic/ unobtrusive
assignments -Could include questioning and observation
-Usually results in a ‘mark’ given as -Should be recorded but may not be
feedback presented
HOW THE ASSESSMENT IS MARKED
Norm-Referenced Criterion-Referenced
-Uses a pre-supposed ‘norm’ of -Uses a pre-supposed criterion
achievement -Students are marked against the criterion
-Students are marked against each other, and all can score well if they meet them
therefore some must do better than others -Deviates students only on their ability to
-Deviates students along a belle-curve achieve criterion
Table 3: Types of Assessment

Any given assessment may be any combination of the three categories presented in table 3,

for example, asking your students what they know about the solar system before starting a

syllabus on space would be diagnostic, informal and criterion-based, while the ATAR you

receive at the completion of year 12 is summative, formal and norm-referenced.

All forms of assessment are important to teachers because they give us different types of

information on student learning. Just how important they are is evident in the multiple

references to assessment in the aforementioned teaching standards. It is important to note

that assessment is tool that provides feedback that can be used to improve both student

performance AND teacher pedagogy.

Georgia Linnenbank (18366570)

Differentiation

Teaching and policies around education are not static, the examples given here act as a

snapshot of the current environment. Meanwhile, the above is simply an overview of the

many responsibilities of a teacher, highlighting the complexity of their daily work, ratifying

their standing as a professional, and noting the significance of the three foundations:

curriculum, pedagogy and assessment. There has been some recognition of how these

aspects overlap, but there is even greater complexity in using them all in unison for effective

teaching. One example of how this can be done is through differentiation of the curriculum

for Gifted and Talents (G&T) students.

NESA defines G&T students as individuals who demonstrate the ability to learn faster, solve

problems and deal with abstract ideas, they also advise that there are different levels of

giftedness, and that giftedness can come with its own difficulties (NESA, 2018a). As such,

these students have different learning needs, particularly in mainstream classes, work may

be too slow or simple for them, “lack[ing] sufficient depth and complexity . . . to keep them

fully engaged and to prevent them from feeling bored” (Yuen et al, 2018, p.37). Students

identified as G&T are sometimes placed in special programs, however in many public school

they remain in mainstream classes. Quality teaching means that G&T students’ needs

shouldn’t be ignored because of their extra capabilities, and one of the suggested strategies

for these students is differentiation.

Differentiation broadly means adjusting curriculum, pedagogy and assessment to fit the

differing needs of students (not only for G&T, differentiation may also be required for

disabled students, students that lack relevant prior knowledge, and any students in needs of

special considerations). Differentiation is the responsibility of teachers, it may include

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compacting the curriculum according to ability of the G&T student, and possibly facilitating

research beyond that specified within the syllabus. To allow for this change in curriculum a

teacher may consider changes to their pedagogical approach, perhaps including more

problem-based learning or project-based tasks, allowing G&T students greater autonomy

over their classwork, or restructuring the classroom and class routines to fit different needs.

Due to their additional knowledge, it may be appropriate to change the pattern of

assessment for these students (though this must be done fairly), for example, giving an

optional extended question allows these students to demonstrate their skills (NESA, 2018b).

In summation, it can be seen that differentiation is a complex task that should be completed

by teachers for student at a range of ability levels. It is only one of the ways that curriculum,

pedagogy and assessment come together in a teachers’ everyday work. As such, Bernard-

Shaw’s claim that it is only those who ‘cannot’ that choose to teach is utterly inappropriate

considering the vivid complexity of the profession.

Georgia Linnenbank (18366570)

References

Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority. (2018). Australian Curriculum

Retrieved from https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (2015). Accreditation of initial

teacher education programs in Australia: Standards and procedures. Melbourne, VIC:

AITSL. Retrieved from: https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-source/default-

document-library/accreditation-of-ite-programs-in-

australiace118891b1e86477b58fff00006709da.pdf?sfvrsn=86f9ec3c_2

Egan, K. (1978). What is curriculum? Curriculum Enquiry, 8(1), 65-72. Retreived from:

http://www.jstor.org/stable/1179791

Ford, M. (2013). Achievement gaps in Australia: what NAPLAN reveals about education

inequality in Australia. Race, Ethnicity and Education 16(1), 80-102.

doi:10.1080/13613324.2011.645570

Gore, J. (2007). Improving Pedagogy. In J. Butcher & L. McDonald (Eds.) Making a Difference:

Challenges for Teachers, Teaching and Teacher Education (pp.15-32). Rotterdam,

The Netherlands: Sense Publishers.

NSW Department of Education and Training; Professional Learning and Leadership

Development Directorate. (2006). Quality Teaching in NSW Public Schools: An

Assessment Practice Guide. Ryde, NSW: NSWDET. Retrieved from

https://stjohnsprimarystaff.wikispaces.com/file/view/asspracg.pdf

NSW Education Standards Authority. (2014). Australian Professional Standards for Teachers:

Teacher Accreditation. Sydney, NSW: NESA. Retrieved from:

Georgia Linnenbank (18366570)

http://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/wcm/connect/8658b2fa-62d3-40ca-

a8d9-02309a2c67a1/australian-professional-standards-

teachers.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CVID

NSW Education Standards Authority. (2018a). Gifted and Talented Students. Retrieved from

http://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/k-10/diversity-in-

learning/gifted-and-talented-students

NSW Education Standards Authority. (2018b). Differentiated Programming. Retrieved from

http://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/k-10/understanding-the-

curriculum/programming/differentiated-programming/

Professions Australia. (2016). What is a profession? Retrieved from

http://www.professions.com.au/about-us/what-is-a-professional

Robinson, N. (2018, March 7). Calls for NAPLAN review after report reveals no change in

decade of results. The Guardian. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-

03-07/naplan-call-review-after-report-reveals-no-change-in-decade/9519840

Vick, M. (2007). Australian Teacher Education 1900–1950: Conspicuous and Inconspicuous

International Networks. Paedagogica Historica, 43(2), 245-255. doi:

10.1080/00309230701248362

Yuen, M., Chan, S., Chan, C., CL Fung, D., Ming Cheung, W., Kwan, T. & KS Leung, F. (2018).

Differentiation in key learning areas for gifted students in regular classes: A project

for primary school teachers in Hong Kong. Gifted Education International, 34(1), 36-

46.