ED3090 - Social and Environmental Education for Early Childhood

Credit points:	03
Year:	2011
Student Contribution Band:	Band 1
Administered by:	School of Education

Core subject for BEd(ECE)[36110], and BEd Honours (ECE) [30009] students.

This subject addresses principles and practices related to teaching and learning society and environment education in early childhood settings with reference to relevant state and national curriculum frameworks. The subject develops pre-service teachers' competence in planning, implementing and assessing environmental and social inquiries which position young children as agents for change. The subject builds a repertoire of strategies that promote higher-order thinking capabilities in order for young children to critically engage with evidence, and arrive at well-reasoned conclusions and sustainable courses of action. Particular attention will be given to developments in the national curriculum, including the cross-curriculum dimensions of Indigenous perspectives, Asian perspectives and sustainability. The subject will consolidate pre-service teachers' own knowledge and understanding of biophysical, social systems and evidence-based decision-making processes with a view to inspire them to educate for local and global social and environmental sustainability.

Learning Outcomes

• pre-service teachers understand the importance of social and environmental education as a key learning area in light of environmental sustainability and human development imperatives;
• pre-service teachers understand theoretical orientations, sources of knowledge, and pedagogical and curriculum principles which inform environmental and social education;
• pre-service teachers identify opportunities to consider indigenous and diverse perspectives, and strategies to cater for a variety of learner characteristics and needs;
• pre-service teachers utilise curriculum, inquiry learning and assessment frameworks in order to plan intellectually challenging and worthwhile environmental and social inquiries, including historical and geographic inquiries;
• pre-service teachers employ strategies which explicitly and purposefully promote students' literacy, numeracy, ICT and critical thinking capabilities within investigative and participatory contexts.

Graduate Qualities

• The ability to adapt knowledge to new situations;
• The ability to define and to solve problems in at least one discipline area;
• The ability to think critically, to analyse and evaluate claims, evidence and arguments, and to reason and deploy evidence clearly and logically;
• The ability to deploy critically evaluated information to practical ends;
• The ability to find and access information using appropriate media and technologies;
• The acquisition of coherent and disciplined sets of skills, knowledge, values and professional ethics from at least one discipline area;
• The ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences;
• The ability to lead, manage and contribute effectively to teams.

Prerequisites:	6 credit points of level 1 ED subjects
Inadmissible Subject Combinations:	ED3001 and ED3101

Availabilities
Townsville, Internal, Study Period 2
Census Date 25-Aug-2011
Coord/Lect:	Ms Helen McDonald.
Contact hours:	24 hours lectures 12 hours workshops/Seminars
Assessment:	in-class exam (1 hour) (25%); part a: unit plan (30%); presentation (15%); part b: unit plan (partly invigilated as assignment includes a resource presentation) (30%).
External, Study Period 2
Census Date 25-Aug-2011
Coord/Lect:	Ms Helen McDonald.
Assessment:	discussion board (25%); part a: unit plan (30%); presentation (15%); part b: unit plan (partly invigilated as assignment includes a resource presentation) (30%).
Cairns, Internal, Study Period 2
Census Date 25-Aug-2011
Coordinator:	Ms Helen McDonald
Contact hours:	24 hours lectures 12 hours tutorials - or Workshops
Assessment:	in-class exam (1 hour) (25%); part a: unit plan (30%); presentation (15%); part b: unit plan (partly invigilated as assignment includes a resource presentation) (30%).

Note: Minor variations might occur due to the continuous Subject quality improvement process, and in case of minor variation(s) in assessment details, the Subject Outline represents the latest official information.