102086 Designing Teaching and Learning

Assignment One (1)

It is recognised that effective teaching involves planning. When we plan a lesson as

teachers, we decide what to teach and how to teach it.

Australian teachers need to plan ahead what and how to teach in order to provide quality and
equitable education to their students. The process of determining what and how to teach
specific knowledge and/or skills, in the most effective way to students, is called planning.
Furthermore, the decisions that teachers make in planning the teaching should be inspired and
motivated by their commitment to accomplish the following goals:
Goal 1: To promote equity and excellence among Australian students.
Goal 2: To lead the Australian students in becoming successful learners, confident and
creative individuals as well as active and informed citizens.
In this context, teachers when are planning, for instance a lesson plan, they take in
consideration four important factors as they are:
The first factor is the Syllabus, this is presented as a suitable document that provides Teachers
with valuable information related to the learning objectives/outcomes, contents and
assessment as required to accomplish the above referred goals. The Syllabus is obtained from
the Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards (BOSTES) that is responsible for
developing Syllabuses to be taught in New South Wales (NSW) schools from Kindergarten to
year 12. It is pertinent to highlight here that the goals described before have been taken from
the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians (2008) made by all
Australian Education Ministers. And, these educational goals are endorsed by BOSTES.
The second factor is Teachers knowledge of the students learning needs. This factor should
be addressed and attended properly in order to lead the students accomplish the learning
outcomes defined in the respective Syllabus. Teachers, at this point, should assess whether
their students learning needs could be comprising linguistic, cultural, religious, socioeconomic and learning capabilities issues.
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The third factor is Teachers knowledge of previous assessment data, relevant to the intended
teaching and learning lesson. Moreover, this previous assessment data should be performed
on each and all students. For example, Teachers knowledge of previous assessment data
regarding their students level of learning in numeracy and literacy relevant to the intended
lesson. This information will allow Teachers to design the lesson effectively leading the
students to comply with the respective objective(s)/outcome(s) and content(s) stablished in
the Syllabus.
It is important to remark how relevant is the information obtained from preliminary or
previous assessment data. This information could allow Teachers to identify their students
learning disabilities, interest in the lesson and any other learning barriers. Therefore, it is
advisable to design this previous or preliminary assessment properly to address and resolve
the issues described here and through the second factor before.
The fourth factor is The National Professional Standards for Teachers (BOSTES, 2012), these
standards are inter-related with the other three factors described and discussed previously.
These standards also outline what Teachers should know and be able to do, in order to
accomplish the educational goals already stated. Therefore, the National Professional
Standards for Teachers (NPST) determine the decisions made by the Teachers in planning a
lesson.
The National Professional Standards for Teachers comprise seven standards and they are
described and discussed in this assignment to understand the influence that these standards
exert towards Teachers planning a lesson.
The first standard is entitled Know students and how they learn. This standard leads
Teachers to acknowledge the classroom diversity because students diverse linguistic, cultural,
religious, socio-economic backgrounds, physical and/or mental disabilities. Then, the
standard leads Teachers to use suitable strategies that include all students and empower them
to accomplish the learning objectives/outcomes as defined in the lesson plan and respective
Syllabus. It is noticeable, at this point, the interconnection amongst this first standard and the
first and second factors previously discussed.
The second standard is Know the content and how to teach it. Basically, this standard
leads the Teacher to provide students with learning content that is meaningful to them and to
use teaching strategies that engage students in the learning process within an environment of

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respect, inclusiveness, creativity and fair assessment. It is interesting to observe here, the
interconnection among with the three factors previously discussed with this standard.
The third standard is Plan for an implement effective teaching learning, the fourth standard
is Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments and the fifth standard is
Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning. Through these standards Teachers
are led to create and maintain learning environments that are safe, inclusive and challenging
to all students. These standards also demand Teachers to use students assessment data to
diagnose learning barriers and to encourage students to improve their performances and to
provide students with effective and fair feedback and report above their learning. In other
words, these standards demand Teachers to implement effective teaching strategies that lead
students accomplish the learning objectives/outcomes and educational goals overall.
The sixth standard is Engage in professional learning and the seventh is Engage
professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community. Teachers are demanded
through these standards to pursue personal professional development to improve their
capabilities to deliver quality teaching to students. This quality teaching should be the result
of Teachers addressing properly educational issues and stablishing a professional
communication and engagement with students, parents, carers and community abroad.
In summary; all these four factors, including the seven National Professional Standards for
Teachers, are interconnected, interdependent, intersecting, influencing and determining the
Teachers decisions when planning a lesson.
Consequently, the factors determining the appropriate design of a lesson plan according to
quality teaching practices, already studied in this assignment, are applied for the analysis and
discussion of the stage 5, Year 9 lesson plan entitled Year 9 Chemical Sciences-Oxygen,
Oxidation and Combustion Lessons [NASA].
The above introduced lesson plan complies with Australian curriculum contents in Chemical
Sciences: ACSSU179, ACSIS170 and ACSIS174 as stated by the Australian Curriculum
Assessment and reporting Authority (ACARA) but partially complies with the Chemical
World contents: stated in the NSW Syllabus Stage 5 section CW3 of the Board of Studies
Teaching and Educational Standards (BOSTES). In this regard, the lesson plan attends the
contents as follows:
Investigate a range of types of important chemical reactions that occur in non-living systems
and involve energy transfer, including: combustion, corrosion, etc.
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Identify some examples of important chemical reactions that occur in living systems and
involve energy transfer, including respiration and reactions involving acids such as occur
during digestion.
It is believed, in this assignment, that the studied lesson plan could be improved by
addressing the content: CW3 Chemical reactions involve rearranging atoms to form new
substances; during a chemical reaction mass is not created or destroyed. (ACSSU178) by
incorporating a balance and measuring the mass of the candle before and after combustion
instead asking the students what do they think about any change in the mass of the candle?
The studied lesson plan considers differentiation among the students and recommends that
students with special needs to work with partner or report to the teacher. This
recommendation could be useful considering that less experience students learn better from
more experience students as recognised by Vygotsky (1978) in his theory of cognitive
development. Another relevant improvement to the studied lesson plan is: students
assessment of their literacy and numeracy competencies that are required to achieve the
learning outcomes stablished in the lesson plan as well as the assessment of learning barriers
such as: linguistic, physical, mental, cultural, religious, socio-economic and learning
capabilities.
The Year 9 Chemical Sciences-Oxygen, Oxidation and Combustion Lessons [NASA]
lesson plan recommends to obtain students prior knowledge of the learning subject through a
questionnaire but this questionnaire does not include any question about combustion. Then,
students prior knowledge assessment could be improved by including questions regarding
combustion in the respective questionnaire. Furthermore, students could be asked about
personal interests, experiences and skills related to the subject through direct interviews or
surveys (Clarke & Pittaway, 2014, p. 113).
In relation to the National Professional Standards for Teachers the studied lesson plan is
analysed and discussed as follows:
Regarding the first standard: Know students and how they learn, the lesson plan implies a
standardised student with prior knowledge of elements, molecules, chemical reaction, plants,
gases, etc. But the lesson plan did not consider to invite experienced students, willing to act
as team leaders, and help the less experience students in the learning process though active
group work and therefore the students become less dependant on Teachers for learning.

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In respect to the second standard: Know the content and how to teach it, the lesson plan
provides a coherent learning framework meeting partially the Australian Curriculum and
Syllabus and some recommendations have been when factors one and two were analysed and
discussed.
In relation to the third standard: Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning, the
lesson plan can be improved as for example; by the formation of work groups, inviting
experience students to exercise leadership, enquiring the students regarding their interest and
experience in the learning subject and using more learning material such as balances to
encourage students activity and scientific observation and recording of data.
With respect to the fourth standard: Create and maintain supportive and safe learning
environments, the lesson plan as is encouraging and advising the implementation and
practice safety protocols and the use of personal protection equipment but it is not sufficient
according to this standard for that reason it has been recommended the implementation of
activities with

peer support allowing an inclusive interaction among more experience

students and less experience students through team and group work.
Regarding the fifth standard: Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning, the
lesson plan does provide means to assess knowledge but does not provide means to assess
skills and ways of providing feedback to students performance. In this point, the lesson plan
could be improved by inviting every student to perform specific activities such for example
weighing and giving them a feedback.
In relation to the sixth standard: Engage in professional learning, and seventh standard:
Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community, the studied
lesson plan does not provide any statement or recommendation. I strongly believe that
Australian Teachers need to pursue personal professional development in education to deliver
quality teaching in Australian schools.
In conclusion, Australian Teachers in the matter of deciding what to teach and how to teach
High School students; they need to consider professionally the four factors and National
Professional Standards in order to comply with the Australian National Curriculum, as it is
described by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), and
the respective NSW Syllabus, as it is described by the Board of Studies Teaching and
Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). This assignment has demonstrated not only the need
and also the importance to do so. Furthermore, the Melbourne Declaration on Educational
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Goals for Young Australians (2008) challenges Australian Teachers to deliver Quality
Education for all students in Australian schools.
References

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). NSW
Syllabus for the Australian curriculum: Science K-10 (incorporating Science and Technology
K-6) Syllabus.
Retrieved from www.syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Aim, Years 7 10.
http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/science/science-k10/aim/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Stage 5, Chemical World, outcomes and content.
Retrieved from http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/science/science-k10/content/990/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Stage 5, Planning for effective learning and assessment.
Retrieved from http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/support-materials/planning-programming/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Science and Technology, stage 5, assessment.
Retrieved from http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/science/science-k10/syllabus-assessment/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Years 7 10 assessment strategies.

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Retrieved

from

http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/support-materials/7-10-assessment-

strategies/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Years 7 10 life skills outcomes.
Retrieved from http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/science/science-k10/years-710-life-skillsoutcomes/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: Effective feedback.
Retrieved from http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/support-materials/effective-feedback/

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2013). New NSW
Syllabuses: recording evidence.
Retrieved from http://syllabus.bostes.nsw.edu.au/support-materials/recording-evidence/

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA). (2015). The

Australian Curriculum, Science Year 9, Version 8.1.
Retrieved from www.australiancurriculum.edu.au

Board of Studies Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES). (2012). Australian
Professional Standards for Teachers.
Retrieved from www.nswteachers.nsw.edu.au

Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs. (2008).

Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians.
Retrieved from www.artsedge.dca.wa.gov.au>Arts.Edge>Curriculum

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National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). (2013). Year 9 Chemical Sciences
Oxygen, Oxidation and Combustion Lessons.
Retrieved from http://www.australiancurriculumlessons.com.au/2013/04/05/year-9-chemicalsciences-oxygen-oxidation-and-combustion-nasa/
Enclosed a hard copy (pp. 115 136).

Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes.
Harvard University Press.

Clarke, M., & Pittaway, S. (2014). The Australian Curriculum. Marshs becoming a Teacher
(pp. 74 88). Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson.

Clarke, M., & Pittaway, S. (2014). Exploring and contesting curriculum. Marshs becoming a
Teacher (pp. 89 100). Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson.

Clarke, M., & Pittaway, S. (2014). Planning and preparing for teaching. Marshs becoming a
Teacher (pp. 101 128). Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson.

Clarke, M., & Pittaway, S. (2014). Organising classroom structures and routines. Marshs
becoming a Teacher (pp. 129 148). Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson.

Clarke, M., & Pittaway, S. (2014). Planning to achieve goals, aims, objectives, outcomes and
standards. Marshs becoming a Teacher (pp. 149 165). Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson.

Clarke, M., & Pittaway, S. (2014). Teacher standards. Marshs becoming a Teacher (pp. 400
417). Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson.
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