EDUC 6520A - Geography Curriculum & Methodology A

Course Details

Course Code	EDUC 6520A
Course	Geography Curriculum & Methodology A
Coordinating Unit	School of Education
Term	Semester 1
Level	Postgraduate Coursework
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	2 hours per week, in addition to a 2 hour common lecture focussing on Planning and Teaching
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Prerequisites	Pass in 6 semesters of Geography courses - in certain circumstances students with 4 semesters of Geography courses may be accepted
Restrictions	Available to GradDipEd students only

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Rita Shepherd

Please only use the contact details given below as the lecturer is based in a school not at the University.

Rita Shepherd Lecturer/ Tutor
St Dominics Priory College
139 Molesworth St North Adelaide 5006
rshepherd@stdominics.sa.edu.au
Phone: 82673818 (w) 0422 438 309 (m)

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

#	On Successful completion of this course student will be able:	APST Standard	AQF7/8	GA
Semester One
1	Demonstrate deep knowledge and understanding of the complexity of the discipline and theteaching strategies of the learning area.	2.1	Knowledge	1,2,3,5,6,7
2	Design and sequence unit and lesson plans based on essential content of the subjectarea, curriculum, including effective assessment principles.	2.2 & 2.3 & 3.2	Application	1,2,3
3	Assemble a range of subject-appropriate resources, including online, that engage a diversity of students in their learning.	2.6 & 3.4	Application	2, 4, 5, 8
4	Integrate relevant research and theory to develop a broad repertoire of subject-appropriate teaching and learning strategies, including use of ICT.	3.3 7 3.2	Skills	2,3,5
5	Assemble relevant and appropriate sources of professional learning for teachers including subject professional associations.	6.2, 6.3 & 7.4	Knowledge & Skills	4, 5, 6, 7, 8
6	Demonstrate a commitment to work ethically and collaboratively so as to meet the professional expectations required of teachers	6.2, 6.3, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4	Knowledge, Skills & Application	3,4,8
7	Demonstrate communication skills to present a clear and coherent exposition of knowledge and ideas to a diverse range of students	3.5, 4.2, 5.5	Knowledge, Skills & Application	2,4
Note: Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST): http://www.decd.sa.gov.au/hrdevelopment/pages/workforcedevelopment/Standards/?reFlag=1 Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF): http://www.aqf.edu.au/aqf/in-detail/aqf-levels/ Graduate Attributes: University of Adelaide Graduate Attributes: http://www.adelaide.edu.au/learning/strategy/gradattributes/

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Knowledge and understanding of the content and techniques of a chosen discipline at advanced levels that are internationally recognised.	1,2
The ability to locate, analyse, evaluate and synthesise information from a wide variety of sources in a planned and timely manner.	1, 2, 3, 4, 7
An ability to apply effective, creative and innovative solutions, both independently and cooperatively, to current and future problems.	1,2,4,6
Skills of a high order in interpersonal understanding, teamwork and communication.	3,5,6,7
A proficiency in the appropriate use of contemporary technologies.	1,3,4,5
A commitment to continuous learning and the capacity to maintain intellectual curiosity throughout life.	1,5
A commitment to the highest standards of professional endeavour and the ability to take a leadership role in the community.	1,5
An awareness of ethical, social and cultural issues within a global context and their importance in the exercise of professional skills and responsibilities.	3,5,6

Required Resources

Selected readings will be distributed by the lecturer

Recommended Resources

REFERENCES-
Leat D (Ed) ‘Thinking through Geography’ – Second Edition , Chris Kington Publishing, Cambridge, 2004

Nichols A and Kinninment D (Ed), Chris Kington Publishing, Cambridge, 2001

SACE Board of South Australia Geography Stage 1 & 2 Curriculum Statements, , www.saceboard.sa.edu.au

On line questionnaires - www zoomerang.com, surveymonkey.com.au

Learning & Teaching Modes

A variety of teaching and learning modes will be employed. Lectures will be supported by practical activities relating to material covered by the lecturer, group discussion and also skills workshops.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The University expects full-time students (i.e. those taking 12 units per semester) to devote a total of 48 hours per week to their studies. A subject worth 3 points, therefore, should take 12 hours (incl 2 hours of formal classes) during the teaching weeks of the course. Students in this course are expected to attend regularly throughout the semester. Please refer to Access Adelaide for your timetable and enrolment details. http://www.adelaide.edu.au/access/

Learning Activities Summary

Schedule
Week 1	The nature of Geography A picture of what a classroom representing quality teaching and learning in Geography looks like. (AITSL STANDARDS 2.1,3.1)	Key concepts, skills, attitudes and values in Geography 1. Discussion on what distinguishes Geography from other disciplines and what value is there for students in studying Geography. 2. What is the key knowledge that students should definitely acquire? What skills attitudes and values in Geography should students take with them into their lives? What are some of the ways that these things can be learnt/taught?
Week 2	Strategies that can be used in Geography teaching and learning (AITSL Standards-1.3,1.5,1.6, 3.3,3.4, 4.1, 4.2)	1. De Bono’s 6 Thinking Hats 2. Utilizing Blooms Taxonomy in Geography 3. Identifying and planning learning using Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences 4. Use of the Question Matrix 5. Thinking skill strategies of David Leat
Week 3	Developing conceptual understanding in Geography ( AITSL Standards-3.2,3.4,3.5,4.1,4.2,4.4,4.5,5.1,5.2)	Methodology to support conceptual development
Week 4	Teaching a concept exercise (AITSL Standards-3.2,3.4,3.5,4.1,4.2,4.4,4.5,5.1,5.2) Teacher presentations	Students are allocated a concept that the must teach to the tutorial group. Decide on the strategies that you will use. Prepare a lesson plan Prepare resources to use What assumptions will you make about the learner? Undertake the teaching How will you know if learning has occurred? Evaluate and reflect on the experience
Week 5	No Class Good Friday
Week 6	Teaching a concept exercise (AITSL Standards-3.2,3.4,3.5,4.1,4.2,4.4,4.5,5.1,5.2) Teacher presentations continue
Week 7	Australian Geography Curriculum Years 8-10 (AITSL Standards: 2.2,2.5,3.2,3.3,3.4,5.1,5.2,5.3)	· Learning outcomes · Planning learning activities · Criteria based assessment · Examples of units of work · Useful strategies for assisting student learning
Week 8	Unit and lesson planning (AITSL Standards-3.1,3.2,3.3,3.4)	· Writing lesson plans · Writing unit plans
Week 9-13	Teaching Practicum weeks 9-13.

Specific Course Requirements

As indicated in the detailed course outline, some sessions will be held off campus. Some sessions may extend 20 minutes beyond the scheduled time for this tutorial. This will be negotiated with students prior to the relevant tutorial.

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessment Task	Task Type	Due	Weighting	Course Learning Outcomes
Teaching a concept to the tutorial group	Summative	Friday 17th April at 5.00pm	50%	1. Demonstrate deep knowledge and understanding of the complexity of the discipline and the teaching strategies of the learning area. 3. Assemble a range of subject-appropriate resources, including online, that engage a diversity of students in their learning. 4 Integrate relevant research and theory to develop a broad repertoire of subject-appropriate teaching and learning strategies, including use of ICT. 7. Demonstrate communication skills to present a clear and coherent exposition of knowledge and ideas to a diverse range of students
Writing a unit plan for a 4 week geography unit for Year 8-10	Summative	Monday 15th June at 5.00pm	50%	4 Integrate relevant research and theory to develop a broad repertoire of subject-appropriate teaching and learning strategies, including use of ICT. 2 Design and sequence unit and lesson plans based on essential content of the subject area, curriculum, including effective assessment principles.

Assessment Related Requirements

It is expected that students in this course will attend regularly and a minimum of 80% of sessions. Please contact Rita Shepherd if you are unable to attend a session.

Assessment Detail

Assessment Component 1 – Teaching a concept to the tutorial group

Task:
You will be allocated a geographical concept that you will teach to the tutorial group. You must decide on the strategy/ies you will use. You will also be making some assumptions about the learner such as their age, level of literacy, geographical background. Make sure you have considered these assumptions prior to your planning. Prepare your ‘mini lesson’ including
a lesson plan any resources you will use. Make sure to incorporate one of the strategies covered in week 2.
Your lesson should be no longer than 20 minutes. Once you have presented your lesson, you are required to write a personal reflection of 500-800 words evaluating your ‘mini lesson’.

Due Date:                     Presentations will be in class on Friday 278 March and Friday 10 April.
Submission details:     The written reflection is due to be submitted by email by Friday 17 April to rshepherd@stdominics.sa.edu.au
                                    All supporting resources used for the lesson should be submitted as well as a lesson plan.

1.3.1. Assessment Criteria/Rubrics
Assessment Component 1 – Teaching a Geographical Concept

Performance in this assessment component will be judged by the following criteria:

	85% + High Distinction	75-84% Distinction	65-74% Credit	50-64% Pass	Less than 50% Fail
Preparation and planning -30% of the total mark	An outstanding level of research in planning and preparing resources	A high level of research in planning and preparing resources	Evidence of sound research in planning and preparing resources	An adequate level of research in planning and preparing resources	Little evidence of prior preparation and planning
Presentation of the concept to the small group – 30% of the total mark	Highly skilled presentation, Learning outcome clearly reached	Skilled presentation, Learning outcome reached	Concept communicated successfully and learning outcome reached.	Satisfactory communication of the concept but learning outcome may have only been partially achieved.	Presentation unclear and lacking in logical sequence. Learning outcome not achieved.
In corporation of thinking skills into the lesson – 10% of the total mark	Thinking skill/s identified and a high level of skill demonstrated in incorporation into teaching strategy	Thinking skill/s identified and well incorporated into teaching strategy	Thinking skill/s identified and soundly incorporated into teaching strategy	Thinking skill/s mentioned and some integrated	No incorporation of thinking skills into the lesson plan
Personal reflection on the teaching and learning process- 30% of the total mark	Lesson critically evaluated and outstanding level of reflection and introspection of the learning process	Lesson critically evaluated and high level of reflection and introspection of the learning process	Lesson evaluated examined and sound level of reflection and introspection of the learning process	Some critical evaluation, reflection and introspection of the learning process	Very limited critical evaluation, reflection and introspection of the learning process.

Assessment Component 2 – Developing a unit plan
Task:
Plan a unit of work for a class of Geography students in Year 8, 9 or 10. It may vary from 3-4 weeks in duration. A plan for a longer unit should be negotiated with the tutor. The unit plan may use one of the formats that will be shown to students in the tutorial or be developed by the student themself. The choice of the topic is up to you but should relate to The SACSA SOSE Curriculum or the Australian Geography Curriculum. The topic may be one that you are teaching in your first
practicum.

It should include details of learning outcomes to be addressed, resources that have been researched (eg include URLs, books, games, videos) and at least one summative assessment task. There is no need to submit the assessment task sheet but the detail on the plan should be sufficient to make it clear what the students will be expected to do.

Due Date: Monday 15 June 5.00pm
Submission details: Please email your unit plan with an assessment cover sheet attached to: rshepherd@stdominics.sa.edu.au.
Please include a return postal address as your assignments will be sent back to you.

Assessment Component 2 – Developing a Unit plan
Performance in this assessment component will be judged by the following criteria:

	85% +High Distinction	75-84%Distinction	65-74%Credit	50-64%Pass	Less than 50%Fail
Unit plan relates to a recognized Geography curriculum framework 10%	An outstanding level of research and use of SACSA or Australian Curriculum draft documents	A high level of research and use of SACSA or Australian Curriculum draft documents	Evidence of sound research and use of SACSA or Australian Curriculum draft documents	An adequate level of research into SACSA or Australian Curriculum requirements	Little evidence of links to SACSA or Australian Curriculum
Scope and sequence of lessons Content and skills Included 40%	Very high level of planning of scope and sequence of lessons appropriate to the year level of students Content very well selected and skills clearly identified	High level of planning of scope and sequence Clear links to learning outcome. Content well selected and skills clearly identified	Scope and sequence successfully planned to allow and learning outcome/s to be reached. Content and skills appropriate for students	Satisfactory planning of the unit. Scope and sequence may have some omissions or require some re-organizing. Content mainly appropriate. Some skills identified	Plan unclear and lacking in logical sequence. Content sketchy and skills not identified
Selection of resources to support teaching and learning 20%	Resources are current, there is great variety in type, evidence of thorough research of details and availability.	Several different types of resources are included. Details such as title, URL’s, You-tube titles, chapter names in books are cited	Sound variety in the type of resources to be utilized. Most details of resources are included	Limited variety in the type of resources to be Utilized. Details may be lacking	No resources identified in the unit plan
Summative assessment 10%	Summative task is well timed, links clearly with outcomes and allows students with different abilities and learning styles to meet the outcome/s at a variety of levels.	Summmative assessment task Is appropriately timed and links clearly to learning outcome/s and allows most students to meet the outcomes.	Summative assessment task appropriate to the unit.	Summative assessment task included but may only partly link to unit outcomes.	No summative assessment task included in plan
Methodology 20%	More than three different and appropriate methodologies included that cater for different learning styles.	Three different and appropriate methodologies included.	Two different and appropriate methodologies included	One type of methodology identified	No reference to methodology on unit plan

Submission

PRESENTATION AND SUBMISSION OF ASSIGNMENTS
Assessment Task 1: Please hand up your reflection, lesson plan and any resources you
produced (eg worksheet, power point) at the tutorial on on the day you present your mini-leson. the reflection should be emailed to rshepherd@stdominics.sa.edu.au

Assessment Task 2: Please submit the unit plan by email to rshepherd@stdominics.sa.edu.au
Please include an address for assignments to be posted back to you.

1.     Students must retain a copy of all assignments submitted.
2.    All individual assignments must be attached to an Assignment Cover Sheet which must be signed and dated by the student before submission. Lecturers will withhold student’s results until such time as the student has signed the Assignment Cover Sheet.
3. Late submission of work: requests for extensions will be considered only if they are made three days before the due date for which the extension is being sought. In the interests of fairness to all students, in this subject work submitted without an extension approved, will attract a penalty for each day it is late as follows:
5% of the total mark possible will be deducted for every 24 hours or part thereof that it is late, including each day on a weekend. For example, an essay that is submitted after the due
date and time but within the first 24 hour period, and that has been graded at 63%, will have 5% deducted, for a final grade of 58%. An essay that is more than 24 hours late will lose 10%, etc. Hard copy submissions made after 5.00pm on a Friday will be assumed to have been submitted on the next business day and will be penalised 5% per day for every day including weekend days and public holidays. This penalty may be increased where the assignment is to be completed in a period of less than a week.
4.     Students who do not receive a pass grade may negotiate with the lecturer to resubmit the assessment task.

Extensions may be negotiated by contacting Rita Shepherd at the email above or by phone:
8267 3818 (w), 8269 6029 (h) or 0422 438 309 (m). This should occur at least 3 days prior to the due date unless there are extenuating circumstances.

RETURN OF ASSIGNMENTS AND FEEDBACK

Assignments will be returned to students
within 4 weeks of the due date with written feedback. Assignments will be posted back to students.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator