ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

Student Number 32013870

Student Name Annabelle Tickner

Unit Code EDUC 5005

Unit Title Advanced Teaching Skills

Assignment
Assignment One
Topic/Title
Unit Lecturer Linda Cranley

Unit Tutor Linda Cranley

Due Date 15th March 2021

Word Count
FORMATTING and REFERENCING
Your assignment must meet the formatting and referencing requirements noted in the unit outline. By signing below you are
confirming that you have met those requirements.

DECLARATION
This assignment is my own original work. No part of this work has been copied from any other source or person except
where due acknowledgement is made, and no part of the work has been previously submitted for assessment at this or any
other institution. I have read the Student Academic Integrity Policy and understand its implications. For the purposes of
assessment and standards, I give the University permission to retain this assignment; provide a copy to other assessors; and
evaluate its academic integrity through the use of a plagiarism checking service (which may store a copy of the assignment
on its database for future plagiarism checks).

Student’s signature
Typed name is permitted if submitting via Annabelle Tickner Date
Blackboard or Notre Dame email address

ASSIGNMENT RECEIPT

Student Number

Student Name

Unit Code & Title

Assignment Title
 1. Content Descriptors and Learning Objectives

Content Descriptors:

Understand how texts vary in complexity and technicality depending on the approach to the
topic, the purpose and intended audience (ACELA1490)
(purpose of an information report)

Incorporate new vocabulary from a range of sources into student’s own texts including
vocabulary encountered in research (ACELA1498)

Plan, draft and publish imaginative, informative and persuasive texts containing key
information and supporting details for a widening range of audiences, demonstrating
increasing control over text structures and language features (ACELY1694)

Learning Objectives:

 Write a report which includes at least six researched facts about an Australian native
animal of your choice, including three physical features and three behavioural
characteristics of the animal.

 Write a report which demonstrates the use of appropriate language features (sentence
structure, vocabulary, purpose of the text) to express ideas.  

 Apply accurate spelling, grammar and punctuation within your written report.

Needs Improvement Satisfactory Good Exc

(Bronze) (Silver) (Gold) (Dia
Criteria

Provided a written Provided a written Provided a written Provided

report which included report which report which included report wh
Write a report which less than six researched included six six researched facts more tha
includes at least six facts about an researched facts about an Australian researche
researched facts about Australian native about an Australian native animal. The about an
an Australian native animal. native animal. facts outlined both native an
animal, including three the animal’s physical facts wer
physical features and features (3 facts in great det
three behavioural total) and clearly ou
characteristics. behavioural animal’s p
 characteristics (3 features (
facts in total). and beha
character
more).
Sentence Structure: Sentence Structure: Sentence Structure: Sentence
Writing lacks varied Writing reflects Writing reflects Writing re
Write a report which sentence structure. some varied varied sentence varied sen
demonstrates the use of sentence structure. structure with some structure
appropriate language Vocabulary: fluency. fluency.
features (sentence Vocabulary used to Vocabulary:
structure, vocabulary, express ideas is very Vocabulary used to Vocabulary: Vocabula
purpose of the text) to limited. express ideas is Vocabulary used to Vocabula
express ideas.   limited but express ideas is express id
Purpose of the text: appropriate. appropriate and appropria
Writing does not reflect descriptive. descriptiv
an understanding of the Purpose of the text: innovativ
purpose of the text. Writing reflects an Purpose of the text:
There is a lack of factual understanding of Writing reflects a Purpose o
language. the purpose of the good understanding Writing re
text. Factual of the purpose of the sound un
language has been text. Factual language of the pur
used with some has been used text. Fact
fluency. throughout the has been
report with fluency. purposefu
througho
report wi
fluency.

Writing does not Writing Writing demonstrates Writing d

Apply accurate spelling, demonstrate the demonstrates the the application of the applic
grammar and application of correct application of some correct spelling, correct sp
punctuation within your spelling, grammar and correct spelling, grammar and grammar
written report. punctuation. grammar and punctuation, with the punctuati
punctuation. exception of one or througho
two errors. report.

2. Assessment Tool
 3. Providing Effective Feedback.
Gemma, well done on producing a report which highlighted six interesting facts about an
Australian native animal or your choice, the echidna. I can see you have met the criteria by
clearly outlining facts which include both behavioural characteristics and physical features
of the echidna.

From your writing, it is evident that you understand the purpose of a factual report and I
can see that you have made a real effort to use factual language in order to express this.
Reading your report, I found that the words you used to describe your native Australian
animal were appropriate. In saying this, I would like to see you step outside your comfort
zone and expand your vocabulary during writing tasks. Next time you start a piece of
writing, I’d like you to ask yourself the following questions:

 How can I include new words in my writing? What strategies could help me?

 Have I looked at the Writing Word Wall to see if I can find any new words that I
could include in my sentences?

 Have I used a thesaurus to check for synonyms of words I already know?

Asking yourself these questions will help you to expand your vocabulary, adding more
expression to your writing.

Another area I would like you to focus on when writing is varying your sentences; most of
the sentences in your report were ‘compound’ sentences. As we have learned about in
class, using a variety of simple, compound and complex sentences can help to reduce
repetition, making our writing more engaging for the reader. Again, by referring to the Word
Wall, you will see a list of subordinate conjunctions that we have discussed at the beginning
of the term, which list words like “though”, “since”, “whereas”. Using these sorts of words
to join sentences together will help to improve your writing greatly and allow you to express
your ideas more clearly.

From reading your report, I can also see you have made some improvements in your
spelling, grammar and punctuation, however, there were a few mistakes. Remember, it is
important to always read over your writing to see if it makes sense. Using your editing
checklist can assist you with this. Also, it is important to underline any word or phrase that
you are unsure of. This way you can come back to it and check it by either using a dictionary
or practice writing the word in your spelling pad and asking your spelling buddy to check it.

Overall, your report highlighted some very interesting facts about the echidna; I have never
heard the term spiny anteaters before!

Gemma, I am confident that your vocabulary and overall writing fluency will improve
significantly if you keep up the good work and use these strategies I mentioned.
4. Moderation Practice

Moderator 1: Moderator 2:
Name: Annabelle Tickner Name: Edward Ewing

Signature: A. T Signature: E.E

Student Sample: Year 4 English: Factual report on an Australian native animal.

Write a paragraph about how you arrived at an overall judgement of the quality of the
student’s work. Make explicit the strengths and limitations that you considered in
assessing this student’s work.

Drawing from the assessment data, an overall grade of C was awarded for this factual report.
I arrived at this judgement by using a rubric to assess the student’s work against a set of
objectives. These objectives outline the learning intention, and were used to measure the
student’s ability to write a report which:

 includes at least six researched facts about an Australian native animal of your
choice, including three physical features and three behavioural characteristics of the
animal.

 demonstrates the use of appropriate language features, such as, sentence structure,
vocabulary and purpose of the text to express ideas.  

 applies accurate spelling, grammar and punctuation.

When assessing the student’s work, one of the strengths I considered was that the writing
reflects an understanding of the purpose of a report; to inform the reader. This was
demonstrated through the use of appropriate factual language throughout the report.
Additionally, the student had met the criteria by providing a written report which
outlined six researched facts about an Australian native animal, including three facts
about the animal’s physical features and three facts regarding the animal’s behavioural
characteristics.

In terms of the limitations that were taken into consideration during the assessment
process, it was evident that writing fluency was an area of difficulty for the student. Some
of the pertinent weaknesses that were present in the student’s writing included a lack of
varied sentence structure and limited use of vocabulary to express ideas. The piece of
writing suggests that the student might have some difficulties when it comes to exploring
unfamiliar words and descriptive language during writing tasks. Additionally, the student
 had made a number of spelling and punctuation errors throughout the report, along with
some incorrect use of grammar.

Proposed grade of student work prior to moderation: C

Finalised grade of student work as a result of moderation: C

Comment on the grade adjustment addressing the following:

Where your partner’s grading decision and yours differed, what was the source of the
difference (e.g., interpretations of the specified criteria)?

My moderation partner Edward and I had quite similar learning objectives, and we
both agreed that the student should be awarded a C, as an overall grade for this writing task.
A point of difference in our assessment tool, was Edward’s focus on text structure, in
particular, the student’s ability to organise their writing with the use of a clear introduction,
body and conclusion. Edward felt that the student’s writing lacked structure and
organisation, as it did not provide a sufficient introduction and conclusion. In saying this, our
assessment tools both highlighted the importance of identifying the student’s ability to apply
correct spelling, grammar and punctuation in their writing. Given the number of mistakes in
this area, Edward and I both agreed that the student’s work met this objective at a
satisfactory level only.
Additionally, both of our assessment tools included the student’s use of vocabulary as part of
our marking criteria. After deliberating on the quality of the student’s writing, we established
that factual language was used appropriately throughout the report, however, their writing
reflected limitations with regard to the use of vocabulary. This was apparent in the student’s
repetition of familiar words and lack of descriptive language when describing features and
characteristics of their chosen Australian animal.

What feedback would you report to the student and parents about this student’s
achievement?

When reporting my feedback back to the student and parents, I would ensure to
firstly highlight some of the strengths in the student’s work. This would include stating the
student’s ability to demonstrate an understanding of the purpose of a factual report, through
the use of appropriate factual language in their writing. I would also mention that the
student made a considerable effort in meeting the learning objectives by including six
researched facts about a native Australian animal in their report. In terms of constructive
feedback, I would address some of the areas that the student can improve on, such as
expanding their vocabulary to include more descriptive language and the use of varied
sentence structure to improve their writing fluency. In saying this, I would ensure to provide
the student with useful strategies they can utilise to assist them in these areas during writing
tasks, such as referring back to the Writing Word Wall or using a thesaurus to check for
synonyms of familiar words. With regard to providing feedback on the student’s spelling,
grammar and punctuation, I would outline that the student is performing at a satisfactory
level, however a little targeted intervention will be useful in improving their writing. Hence, I
would provide the parents with additional resources they can work through at home at their
own pace, that would assist their child in this area. I would also remind the student of the
simple strategies that they can utilise in class to check their spelling, grammar and
punctuation, such as using an editing checklist or spelling pad.

What did you learn about the application of scoring rubrics, criteria specifications and
standards used in the judgement of student work?

Something I have learnt about this assessment process and moderation activity, is
that the teacher’s judgement regarding the student’s overall grade is completely contingent
upon the criteria specifications outlined in the scoring rubric. Although my moderator
partner and I both arrived at the overall judgement of a C grade, it was interesting to see
how easily marks could vary depending on what the learning objectives or criteria stipulates.
I think this highlights the importance of a teacher’s ability to generate a scoring rubric that
appropriately draws from key elements of the WA Curriculum, such as, content descriptors
and achievement standards in order to formulate a valid assessment tool.

What would be the next steps for teaching and progressing the learning of this student?

Drawing from the data presented in the assessment tool, it is evident that the student
will need some targeted intervention in areas such as writing fluency and spelling, grammar
and punctuation. With regard to improving the student’s writing fluency, in particular the use
of vocabulary, one of the next steps might be to conduct a series of student-teacher
conferences. Here, the student can receive one-on-one feedback and explicit teaching of
strategies for expanding their vocabulary. For example, the teacher might spend some time
showing the student how to create their own personal vocabulary Word Wall, which the
student can continue to add to and also refer back to during writing tasks.
In response to the student’s limited use of varied sentence structure, this is something the
teacher would need to revisit, in order to develop those skills further. This can be done
through explicit instruction during mini writing lessons and also taught contextually during
modelled, shared or guided writing sessions. Similarly, the teacher will also need to
incorporate explicit spelling, grammar and punctuation instruction during writing lessons,
along with providing the student with appropriate supports in this area, such as spelling and
editing checklists. Again, one-on-one conferencing would also be useful here, as the teacher
can ask the student to read their writing aloud and use their metacognitive skills to identify
any grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors.
5. Assessing, Feedback and Professional Judgement Cognitive
Commentary

Formative activities to support student learning and metacognitive development

Providing effective and timely feedback is a crucial aspect of formative assessment

processes, as it provides students with the guidance they need in order to meet specific
learning intentions and improve their overall achievement (Hattie, 2003). With regard to this
particular work sample, a combination of formative activities was utilised, with the aim to
support the student’s learning and metacognitive development. Firstly, the work was
assessed against a set of learning objectives using a rubric assessment tool, to identify the
student’s achievement in this learning area. With this information, it was possible to provide
the student with specific feedback on their current level of ability, along with outlining the
areas that need attention, such as expanding their vocabulary and using more varied
sentences to enhance their writing fluency.
However, it should be noted that merely outlining the student’s weaknesses is not
considered effective feedback and will not help them in their learning development; it is
important to follow this with direction on how they can progress and meet the learning
objectives (Hattie, 2003). Therefore, effort was made to provide the student with practical
suggestions and strategies they might find useful, like asking themselves reflective questions
during writing tasks, such as, “have I looked at the Writing Word Wall, or used a thesaurus
to check for new words?”. Exercising this kind of self-questioning will prompt the student to
consider different ways of incorporating more unfamiliar and descriptive words in their
writing, allowing them to take ownership of their own learning and achievement (Black &
William, 2009).

Aside from providing the student with feedback, another formative measure considered was
to organise a series of teacher-student conferences. This will provide the student with
opportunities to receive explicit teaching of useful skills and strategies, that will help them
to improve their writing fluency. For example, time might be allocated to play literacy games
with the student, involving building sentences using different conjunction words or assisting
them to create their own vocabulary Word Wall or Word Bank.

Assessment validity and suitability: Identifying assessment to be used for formative and
summative purposes

Regardless of the form of assessment strategy selected, it is essential that

assessment tools follow guiding principles to ensure they are valid and suitable for their
intended purpose (Brady & Kennedy, 2019). The assessment tool chosen for assessing this
particular work sample considers these guiding principles and incorporates some of their
elements. Essentially, the rubric is structured according to a specific criterion consisting of
three learning objectives, which reflects appropriate content descriptors and achievement
standards. Ensuring that the learning objectives closely align with the curriculum content
and developmental age of the student, guarantees the tool to be a valid form of assessment
(Brady & Kennedy, 2019).

The rubric serves as a formative assessment tool by outlining four scaled achievement bands
relating to each learning objective, allowing the assessor to identify the student’s abilities
and make a judgement on their overall level of achievement. Additionally, marks were
intentionally not included in the assessment tool, based on the consideration that it could
have a negative impact on the student’s confidence and overall motivation to improve their
learning. Drawing from the rubric information, the teacher can then make an informed
decision on how to construct their written feedback and what steps will need to be taken in
order for the student to reach their learning goals (Brady & Kennedy, 2019). With this
feedback, the student has the opportunity to apply the proposed strategies and develop any
necessary skills prior to a summative assessment task.

The rubric could also be utilised for summative purposes (with the possible inclusion of
marks for each objective) as a way to report on the student’s current achievement standing.
With this information, both the student and parents have a clear understanding of how the
teacher reached an overall judgement and allocated a grade.

Making judgments based on the curriculum and achievement standards, limitations and
weaknesses of the student’s work

The overall grade allocation for this work sample was made by taking into account
both the relevant curriculum content and achievement standards, along with the strengths
and weaknesses of the student’s work. As per the Year 4 English sub strand text structure
and organisation, students are becoming more familiar with identifying the language
features of various text forms, such as information reports (SCSA, 2014). This includes the
ability to write a report using factual language in order to express ideas, which the student’s
work sample did present throughout their report. This was highlighted in the feedback as
one of the prominent strengths that was taken into consideration when allocating an overall
grade.

Under the sub strand expressing and developing ideas, it is outlined that students in Year 4
are incorporating new vocabulary into their writing (SCSA, 2014). Judging from the work
sample, it is evident that the writing is somewhat limited in this area, particularly with the
repetition of descriptive words. Under the sub strand creating texts, students are learning to
create information reports with increasing control over language and text features (SCSA,
2014). This includes writing using appropriate and varied sentences to express and organise
ideas. As the student’s work was mostly written using compound sentences with repeated
conjunctions, such as ‘and’ and ‘so’, it highlights another area for improvement. The
achievement standards also stipulate that by the end of Year 4, students demonstrate
understanding of grammar, and apply accurate spelling and punctuation in their writing
(SCSA, 2014). Given the student’s work contained a number of grammatical, spelling and
punctuation errors, it signified another limitation which needed to be addressed and was
also taken into account during the process of allocating an overall grade.
Moderation and its reliability in the judgement of grade allocation, planning and teaching

Prior to moderation, an overall grade of ‘C’ was awarded to the student for their
efforts on producing a factual report. The overall judgment of the student’s work remained
the same throughout and after the moderation process. This might have been due to the
fact that both moderators chose to use a rubric assessment tool which outlined similar
learning objectives, thus arriving at the same judgement.

Drawing from the information provided by both assessment tools, extensive discussion was
made regarding the quality of the student’s work. This prompted reflection on the process
of moderation itself as being a valuable and reliable way of cross-checking a student’s level
of achievement and an effective way to inform future planning and teaching. After
reviewing the work sample, both moderators agreed that the student would require
additional supports to improve their writing, such as editing checklists and graphic
organisers to help them organise their ideas into a clear introduction, body and conclusion.
Additionally, it was established that the student will need more explicit teaching on how to
expand their vocabulary. This could be achieved through both one-on-one conferences and
whole-class instruction or mini writing lessons to strengthen their knowledge and skills in
this area.

Reflecting on the moderation process, it became apparent that another reason moderation
is so essential, is that it ensures teacher judgements are consistent (Connolly & Klenowski &
Wyatt-Smith, 2012). This consistency is mostly achieved through the process of analysing
and comparing standards of achievement to reach a consensus. Without judgement
consistency, the validity of grade allocation could become undermined (Connolly &
Klenowski & Wyatt-Smith, 2012).
 References

Black, P., & William., D. (2009). Developing the theory of formative assessment. Retrieved
from
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/225590759_Developing_the_theory_of_f
ormative_assessment

Brady, L., & Kennedy, K. J (2018). Assessment and reporting: Celebrating student
achievement (5th ed.) Melbourne, Victoria. Pearson Education Australia.

Connolly, S., & Klenowski, V., & Wyatt-Smith, C. (2012). Moderation and consistency of
teacher judgement: teachers’ views. British Educational Research Journal, 38(4), pp.
593-614. doi: 10.1080/01411926.2011.569006

Hattie, J. (2003). Formative and Summative Interpretations of Assessment Information.

Retrieved from
www.researchgate.net/publication/254577897_Formative_and_Summative_Interpre
tations_of_Assessment_Information

School Curriculum Standards Authority. (2014). Western Australian Curriculum. Retrieved

from https://k10outline.scsa.wa.edu.au/home/teaching/curriculum-browser