My Designed Resouce & the Quality Teaching Model

Explanation of how the designed resource facilitates quality teaching and learning.

The designed resource – 1950s Decade Study Activities – facilitates quality teaching and learning by covering a broad range of tasks. We have included an introductory video to cover the broad social history with basic information, a note-taking exercise to show technology and its impact, a site study, categorizing activities, timeline activities, aural activities for music, and a music box web quest. The site study is an integral part of the BOS History Syllabus ICT Skills, and is suggested for Stage 5. (NSWDET, 2003) My site study activity fits into the inquiry process that is central to quality history teaching and learning. It provides a project for students to engage with, and enhances their critical thinking skills. Similarly, the categorizing activities about communications and transport help to show the influences on Australian life.

Our designed resource promotes quality teaching and learning through connections to the QTM. Our project satisfies the Dimensions of Intellectual Quality, Quality Learning Environment, and Significance. In particular, it codes high for the elements Knowledge Integration, Student Direction, and Deep Knowledge. The content in the activities is explicitly connected to the Syllabus, and reflects the outcomes for Topic 8, Stage 5. The video created shows the key concepts covered for the topic, and draws the content together to enhance learning. The site study and web quest fulfill the element Student Direction, as it allows students to make choices about the time, pace, and selection of activities available to them. Students are allowed to determine many significant aspects of the activities. Knowledge Integration is evident in the content and type of activities. The aural tasks included rely heavily on Music analysis, as well as the broad range of social history included: housing, transport, entertainment, and communications.

Pedagogical Lens & Effective ICT Use

 Discussion of how a pedagogical lens can assist teachers in making choices that relate to effective ICT use in the classroom.

The teaching approach used for our activities is Project-Based Learning (PBL). This links with the inquiry methodology present in the history syllabus, and allows for a broad range of topics to be included in the activities. The aim of the activities is to learn whilst engaging in the project. Research about PBL shows that the activities should be student-driven, realistic, central to the curriculum, and uses questions that drive students to investigative research. (Thomas, 2000) We felt that this tied closely to History.

PBL is an effective approach because it allows students to improve their critical thinking skills, engage in conceptual questions and applied problems. The large amount of self-directed learning in PBL matched our expectations for the activities, as they are student-centered, but at an individual level.  PBL also promotes general achievement in lower-level cognitive skills, and this allows for lower-order thinking and receiving information.

We used the NSW History Syllabus (2003) to structure our activities. Namely, Stage 5, Topic 8: Australia’s Social and Cultural History in the Post-War Period. This includes the Decade Study of the 1950s.

The inquiry question we focused on was: “What have been the major social and cultural features of a post-war decade?” (NSWDET, 2003, p. 44)

The relevant outcomes were:

5.1 explains social and cultural developments and events and evaluates their impact on Australian life

5.2 assesses the impact of international events and relationships on Australia’s history

5.4 sequences major historical events to show an understanding of continuity, change and causation

The Quality Teaching Model (QTM) is the pedagogical model endorsed by the NSW Department of Education. It is representative of successful teaching and learning practices, which have been broadly defined as Intellectual Quality, Quality Learning Environment, and Significance. Within these dimensions are elements that teachers should aim to cover across a program, topic, and lesson. We used this model to influence our activities.