Unit Outline

Foundations of English is designed to provoke your curiosity about how language works, ignite your passion for English, and introduce you to the discipline of English as it is articulated in the three strands of the Australian Curriculum English: Language, Literacy, and Literature. This unit explores the ways in which children learn to speak, read, write and communicate in a range of contexts. It has a particular focus on contemporary approaches to the teaching of reading, including close attention to the teaching of phonemic awareness, phonics, word knowledge, and comprehension of a wide range of texts. You will be involved in analysing children's language use (oral language, reading fluency, writing), and in using specific outcomes from the curriculum to plan explicit teaching experiences for language and literacy learning.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1	Apply theoretical knowledge about the English discipline.
2	Analyse and describe written texts.
3	Design a portfolio of lessons / experiences for the teaching of reading, in response to specific outcomes and diverse student needs.
4	Demonstrate academic and information literacy skills using scholarly literature, APA referencing, punctuation, spelling, and grammar.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Concurrent Pre-requisite	EMT502

Alterations as a result of student feedback

- Lecture and Tutorial content has been updated to reflect current best practice in English teaching.

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Quiz	Week 3	20 %	LO2
Assessment Task 2:	Literacy Competency Test	Week 4	0 %
Assessment Task 3:	Lesson Plan: Reading (Early Primary)	Week 6	40 %	LO1, LO3, LO4
Assessment Task 4:	Lesson Plan: Reading (Middle and Upper Primary)	Week 10	40 %	LO1, LO3, LO4

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Quiz

Task Description:

You will complete a quiz in MyLO that requires you to analyse and describe a selection of text excerpts to demonstrate your phonological and graphological knowledge. This quiz will be
based on content presented in Weeks 1, 2 and 3.

Completion of this Assessment Task relates to Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) 2.1

Task Length:

Due Date:

Week 3

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Analyse and describe texts for reading concepts	LO2

Assessment Task 2: Literacy Competency Test

Task Description:

The test will provide immediate feedback on questions answered correctly or incorrectly. This feedback will provide a basis for reflection on specific areas of personal strength or weakness with basic literacy concepts.

For EMT511, it is required that you attempt (but not required that you pass) the literacy competency test, to obtain a passing grade for Assessment Task 2.

The literacy competency test must be completed online in MyLO prior to the end of Week 4.

Please note: The Literacy Competency Test is in addition to the Unit Quiz (AT1). Both are to be completed by the end of Week 4. You can take the test again anytime throughout the year, if needed.

Task Length:

Due Date:

Week 4

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)

Assessment Task 3: Lesson Plan: Reading (Early Primary)

Task Description:

This assessment task will enable you to develop your knowledge of how to teach and assess reading, with a focus on the early years of primary education. Please see MyLO for specific details.

Completion of this Assessment Task relates to Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) 1.2, 1.5, 2.1, 2.3, 2.5.

Task Length:

2000 words

Due Date:

Week 6

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Apply knowledge of the theoretical dimensions which underpin the English curriculum	LO1
2	Develop explicit pedagogical practices based on the English curriculum	LO3
3	Develop an assessment plan	LO3
4	Communicate ideas in appropriate academic writing	LO4

Assessment Task 4: Lesson Plan: Reading (Middle and Upper Primary)

Task Description:

This assessment task will enable you to develop your knowledge of how to teach and assess reading, with a focus on middle and upper primary. Please see MyLO for specific details.

Completion of this Assessment Task relates to Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) 1.2, 1.5, 2.1, 2.3, 2.5.

Task Length:

2000 words

Due Date:

Week 10

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Apply knowledge of the theoretical dimensions which underpin the English curriculum	LO1
2	Develop pedagogical practices based on the English curriculum	LO3
3	Develop an assessment plan	LO3
4	Communicate ideas in appropriate academic writing	LO4

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Academic progress review

The results for this unit may be included in a review of your academic progress. For information about progress reviews and what they mean for all students, see Academic Progress Review in the Student Portal.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

Fellowes, J., & Oakley, G. (2023). Language, literacy and early childhood education (4th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Derewianka, B., & Jones, P. (2016). Teaching language in context (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.
Perrin, R. (2020). Pocket guide to APA style (7th ed.). Cengage Learning*.
*Please note there is no requirement to purchase the Perrin text if you already have the previously required Faigley text.

Reading Lists provide direct access to all material on unit reading lists in one place. This includes eReadings and items in Reserve. You can access the Reading List for this unit from the link in MyLO, or by going to the Reading Lists page on the University Library website.