Doing the fieldwork

In any great adventure, the success at the end is greatly determined by the preparation at the starting line.

Already familiar with the ACARA website and the general layout of the Australian Curriculum (as a result of our Maths implementation) the staff at KPS began our English exploration by completing the first two hour module of training. Some of the knowledge and understandings the training provided us with are as follows;

• knowledge of the aims of the Australian Curriculum,
• understanding of the organisation of the curriculum; into year level statements, content descriptions, elaborations and achievement standards (and the purpose of these)
• and an introduction to the three strands of English. 

To assist staff in comprehending the three strands, Mel shared with us a wonderful analogy which she had heard during her training. The car analogy greatly helped us to understand what is covered within each strand and  demonstrated some of the interconnections between the strands.

Language can be likened to the car itself, the engine and the wheels. In English, this looks like the knowledge of the English language and how it works; punctuation, grammar, spelling, vocabulary...

Literacy can be likened to the physical act of driving, changing gears and indicating. In English, this looks like the ability to produce the English language; listening and speaking, purpose and audience, reading, comprehending, creating texts, editing...  

Literature can be likened to the enjoyment of the journey. In English, this looks like the appreciation and understanding of, response to, and the creation of literary texts.  

As part of the workshop, staff conducted a comparative audit, looking at current content and practice and seeing how this matched the Australian Curriculum. Teachers then completed an action learning task; looking at one 'regular' lesson through the lens of the AC:E to see which aspects of the content were being covered. This gave teachers the opportunity to reflect on the likely changes in knoweldge and pedagogy required for the journey ahead. 

Curriculum car poster