Learning and Teaching, Theory and Practice

This subject helps the pre-service teacher develop their approach to teaching informed by their personal beliefs and values and the theoretical perspectives of learning and teaching theory and practice, informed by evidence based research, applicable across a range of settings.

Awards offering Learning and Teaching, Theory and Practice

This unit is offered as a part of the following awards:

• Master of Teaching (Secondary)

Unit Content

Curriculum Objective

This subject helps the pre-service teacher develop their approach to teaching informed by their personal beliefs and values and the theoretical perspectives of learning and teaching theory and practice, informed by evidence based research, applicable across a range of settings. It provides opportunity to critique the impact of major educational thinkers on a range of curricula, teaching and assessment strategies while examining the strategies and opportunities impacting education in the 21st Century for practices a cross curricular programming to enhance and equip students for the 21st century.

Outcomes

1. Critically analyse the impact of major educational thinkers on one’s own teaching;
2. Synthesise a detailed understanding of student learning theory, content and direct teaching strategies, within the Australian curriculum or relevant syllabus, including awareness of Australian Indigenous cultures and language and engagement with parents/carers in the planning of lesson plan schedules;
3. Argue a case for the development of a learning and teaching framework that incorporates strategies and opportunities from 21st century Christian learning and teaching theory and practice;
4. Integrate literacy communication and numeracy skills and with contemporary research on effective learning and teaching of literacy and numeracy in the content areas;
5. Critique a range of curricula, teaching and assessment strategies;
6. Create a unit of work designed to illustrate the application of cross-curricular programming skills.

Subject Content

1. Learning and Teaching Theory and Practitioners e.g. AS Neill; L Wittgenstein; LS Vygostky; J Piaget; P Freire; I Illich and N Noddings;
2. Developing a Christian perspective on educational theories and teaching strategies;
3. How students learn; cognitive science; stages of development; information processing; discovery; direct teaching; observation; cross curricular strategies; cultural dimensions of learning, learning communities; child and adolescent development and milestones, student well-being and mental health, and an understanding of the implications for learning and the management of behavior; physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students and how these may affect learning;
4. 21st Century Educational Opportunities: blended learning, flipped classroom, globalisation; ICT; ability to construct and manipulate texts and images, create presentations and store and retrieve digital information for classroom and on-line learning, classroom organisation by verbal and non-verbal communication strategies;
5. Literacy and Numeracy Strategies: application to teaching and learning practice, identification of resources that support literacy and numeracy at a range of grades and curricular, analysis of the literacy and numeracy demands across the range of curricula; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and students from diverse backgrounds needs and prior knowledge in language, literacy and numeracy of content areas.
6. Analysing strategies: cross curricular lesson planning; assessment strategies, including informal and formal, diagnostic, formative and summative approaches to assess student learning; reporting; analysis of student work samples, student feedback, assessment moderation, interpretation of assessment data for unit programming, how to support student’s learning, parent/teacher interviews.

This course may be offered in the following formats

• Face-to-Face
• Intensive
• Distance/E-Learning

Please consult your course prospectus or enquire about how and when this course will be offered next at Alphacrucis University College.

Assessment Methods

1. Comparative Literature Review (30%)
2. Interactive Teaching Module – Group and Individual (40%)
3. Unit of Work and Reflection (30%)

Prescribed Text

• References will include the most current curriculum requirements for schools.

Check with the instructor each semester before purchasing any prescribed texts or representative references