Unit of Work Explanation

Central Focus of Unit

This unit of study was devised for a heterogeneous group of Year 3 students to study the
identity and diversity of their local community. Lessons are situated for the units investigation of
How and why our community has changed. The eight lessons explore the heritage (continuity
and change) the local area including the importance of Country/Place to Aboriginal people and
explore the continuity and changes of their community (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and
Reporting Authority [ACARA], 2016a). Inclusion of an excursion to Muru Mittigar provides an
Aboriginal perspective for how and why their community has changed and develops student
empathy for circumstances faced by Dharug people as well as their motivations, values and
attitudes. Lessons are designed to initiate the framing of History inquiry questions and develop
skills of collaboration to investigate, organise and synthesise relevant information (Reynolds,
2014, p. 53). Strategies for teaching inquiry skills are a major focus of this module to enable
students to evaluate, synthesise, state conclusions and reflect on outcomes in following lessons
of this unit as well as providing differentiation for diverse learners. Lessons also introduce
vocabulary relevant to historic inquiry and promote the use when posing inquiry questions.
Content Descriptors and Achievement Standards
The content descriptors and achievement standards that this unit of work focuses on are from
the Year 3, Humanities and Social Science from the Australian Curriculum Assessment and
Reporting Authority [ACARA]. The focus of achievement standards are as follows:

Students identify and describe aspects of their community that have changed and
remained the same over time.

They identify connections between people and the characteristics of places.

They explain how and why people participate in and contribute to their communities.

Students pose questions and locate and collect information from sources, including
observations, to answer these questions.

They sequence information about events and the lives of individuals in chronological
order.

They record and represent data in different formats,

They reflect on their learning to suggest individual action in response to an issue or

challenge.

Students communicate their ideas, findings and conclusions in oral, visual and written
forms using simple discipline-specific terms (ACARA, 2016)

The content descriptors were derived from the assessment standards as a result of Backward
Designing the unit of work. The content descriptors are as follows:

ACHASSK063-How the community has changed and remained the same over time.

ACHASSI052- Pose questions to investigate people and places.

ACHASSI055 - Sequence information

ACHASSI056 Examine information to identify different points of view and distinguish

facts from opinions

ACHASSI057 - Interpret data and information displayed in different formats, to identify

and describe distributions and simple patterns

ACHASSI059 - Interact with others with respect to share points of view (ACARA, 2016)

Understanding By Design/Backward Design

The Backward Design approach, is an approach to planning learning by initially identifying the
long-term desired results through a three-stage design process ( McTighe & Wiggins, 2011, p.
4). This design helps the educator define the achievement standard for the learning and then
plan outcomes and then develop learning activities to achieve the success criteria. The
Backward Design approach is similar to a constructive alignment approach because both
approaches view learning as constructive, allowing students to build their own knowledge and
understanding due to clear outlining of goals and outcomes (Readman & Allen, 2013). Using
this design helps the educator avoid learning that is content driven or over reliant on activities.

When developing the standards and outcomes of achievement for a Backward Design approach
for it to be applicable to all learners the principals of assessment need to be adhered to.
Readman & Allen, 2013, p. 65) suggest following a principals approach while using a Backward
Design allow the educator to make decisions and provisions of assessment for learning, as
learning and of learning. When planning the above Unit of Learning by using the Backward
Design approach, enabled me to plan not only the summative success criteria but also
opportunities and activities for formative assessment in my plan. This aspect satisfied the
assessment principle that assessment has greater value if it is continuous during learning. The
backward design considers learning outcomes after achievement standards have been set
because its ethos is to move learning toward the desired outcomes.

When initiating the Backward Design, Educators need to consider the Six Facets of Learning in
order to make judgments on whether the learning or understanding is being transferred by the
learner. McTighe and Wiggins (2011, p. 93) suggest that students that can transfer learning
understand learning because; they can understand, interpret, apply and adjust; they have
perspective, show empathy and have self-knowledge. When using the Backward Design
Approach it is advised to use most if not all of the facets in planning.

Using different assessment types and recording formats.

Using different assessment types such as success criteria and a variety of formative tools such
as questioning, observation, sharing learning goals engages students in high-quality
assessment and learning (Readman & Allen, 2011, p. 79). In my plan I varied the formative
assessment tools to suit the learning. To engage students in self-reflection and help them
transfer their learning I used the Jig-Saw approach and KWL charts. To keep students focused
on their learning I used prepared questioning and the success criteria. I kept worksheets to a
minimum but decided that students would be able to track their learning through them to
demonstrate the inquiry skill of gathering and organising information and use them as research
for their inquiry question.

Summative assessment as an authentic connection to real world.

The success criteria I prepared as a summative assessment enabled me to plan activities to
develop social capabilities, intercultural understandings and empathy. Providing an outcome to
research and demonstrate two connections and characteristics of their community and
demonstrate an understanding of their perspectives provided students with authentic application
to understanding other people in their perspective. This aspect of the assessment could also
encourage critical and creative thinking for a plan of action to improve community connections.

Feedback to support student learning.

In the unit of work provision was made to supply students with feedback to support the students
future learning. Sharing the learning goals with success criteria helps students reach their
learning targets because the targets or outcomes remain the same for a period in time (Stiggins,
2004, as cited in Readman & Allen, 2013, p. 89). This feedback can be given when students
are not moving forward with their learning to help them re-focus on the outcomes and to remind
them of what they have already achieved. Reminding students of what has been achieved can
increase their motivation to complete tasks.

Alignment between learning tasks and achievement standards.

Alignment between the learning tasks and achievement standards in my plan help students to
develop conceptual understanding through observing continuity and change. I have
constructively aligned my assessment success criteria with visual resources of old and new
aspects of the local community and providing rich research papers for students to gain a
conceptual understanding of different perspectives. As the unit of work has an inquiry approach
I aligned Blooms taxonomy as the basis for task design to assess the levels of doing
(Readman & Allen, 2013, p. 71).

Students built knowledge by posing questions and then

gathered and organised information and then applied the knowledge to complete tasks such as
developing a timeline. Students analysed information through the Jig-saw approach and then
evaluated information to create artefacts that were aligned with the success criteria.
Reporting Justification

Using artefacts from ongoing formative assessment and organising them into a portfolio of
learning will support the criteria for reporting to parents about their childs learning. Headington
(2013, p.90) suggests the criteria for effective reporting to parents entails that the child should
be visible in the report, written comments should be clear and straightforward and finally
comments should demonstrate respect for the parents and not patronise them. The use of a
developed portfolio containing demonstrations of students efforts to achieve formative
assessment tasks would alleviate the problem of the invisible child in report writing. Having this
body of assessment gives the parent confidence that I have noticed their child because I can
comment on actual application and demonstrations of learning. This style of record keeping and
reporting will also be effective when entering into oral reporting at parent meetings.