Sarah

Hassan 18416682

Assessment 1 – Essay on The Foundation of Teaching and Learning

“Not just anyone can teach. I Know from personal experience that many people have given it
a go, but frankly, they just can’t do it. Teaching is a vocation and a profession. Through the
Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, teachers and leaders in Australia have set
very high standards about what someone needs to achieve to teach in an Australian
classroom”

“Teaching is a vocation and a profession (Rogers, 2017). This statement may seem
contradictory, however they are non-exclusive. Nuttall’s dictionary refers to a profession as a
“vocation, occupation or calling from distinct trade and such as implies a measure of
learning”, while a vocation is defined as “designation or destination to a particular state or
profession” (Hansburg, 1963, Page 22). These definitions draw the conclusion that a vocation
and a profession intersect and hence, they may accompany one another. In this essay, the
notion of teaching as both a vocation and a profession will be highlighted by emphasising on
key areas such as, Teacher professionalism, Curriculum, pedagogy and assessment.

The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) was brought to light by the Federal
Government in 2011, which was also incorporated by Australia’s state and territory
authorities for their teacher registration sand promotion process (Adoniou and Gallagher,
2017, 110). The APST highlights three areas of teaching. These include; Professional
Knowledge, Professional Practice and Professional Engagement. These three combined, are
crucial for inspiring professional learning and the developmental growth of a teacher. It is also
a framework which supplies professional learning goals, and inhibits teachers to assess
whether their teaching is successful. This in turn allows for self-reflection and self-assessment
(AISTL, 2012, p.2).
Self-reflection and self-assessment are techniques used to influence teachers to recognise,
understand and modify their work (Airasian and Gullickson, 1994, p.195). Adoniou and
Gallagher realised that the standards used to monitor teachers, may be a concern as it
encourages teachers to focus more on proving their work against the standard, which leads
to less time being allocated to creative and responsive lesson planning. Despite this, recent
studies seem to highlight their strong support towards the contributors, which the APST
worked towards the enhancement and upholding of teacher professionalism. Some teachers
felt as though the standards were about focusing majorly on the aspects of teaching and self-
reflection, as opposed to utilising their time to collate more work (Adoniou and Gallagher,
2017, 116).
The three areas highlighted in the APST, outlines seven different standards which correlate
with the foundational ideas of teaching, with its goal being to maintain quality teaching and
professionalism. They include; Teacher Professionalism as previously mentioned, Curriculum,
pedagogy and assessment. “Know the content and how to teach it” is the idea that can be
observed in these the Curriculum, “plan foe and implement effective teaching and learning”
and “create and maintain supportive and safe learning environment” which is associated with
pedagogy, and “Assess, provide feedback, and report on student learning” is coincided with
Assessment. These three links exhibit the notion that the standards highlight all areas
considered to be crucial in order to become a teacher in an Australian classroom. This has
been proven to be highly valued and in turn have set expectations for teachers, allowing them
to develop on their professional skills and knowledge.

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The Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) has used a thorough
and communal approach to the development of the Australian National Curriculum. The
Australian National Curriculum is a useful tool used by teachers, parents and students which
provides outlines on what the students are learning, despite their location or the schooling
system they belong to (ACARA, 2016). The main factors that constitute the Australian
National Curriculum are; General capabilities, cross-curriculum priorities and stage
implementation. The goal is to certify that all students are supplied with the necessary skills
and knowledge and practicality as a means required for success and developmental learning.
Therefore, this allows for teachers to understand what to teach, what knowledge the students
need to acquire and the standard/expectations required from the student (ACARA, 2010).
Following the curriculum is crucial in ensuring that all students are receiving equality as they
have access to the same education.
Berger (2019) describes the Curriculum as the “what, how and when to teach”. Understanding
the course content and how to transfer this knowledge to students qualifies as quality
teaching (Phillips, 2013). The knowledge of the curriculum which needs to be taught, is
derived from the teachers knowledge acquired from the subjects which they studied for their
profession. Cambourne (2013, p.11) states that there is “a strong community expectation
that todays graduates should be more knowledgeable, more adept at accessing information
and more capable of higher-level thinking and reasoning.” Therefore, substantial knowledge
of the teachers specialised subject enables them to be conscious of the Curriculum and what
is to be taught.
Another key element the Curriculum highlights, is how to teach the content. However, the
way in which the content is taught to the students and the teachers success, heavily depends
on the teachers attitude. A study by Berghe et al. (2014), has proven that successful teachers
are usually those who are strongly motivated and enthusiastic about their job. The students
of these types of teachers generally have greater results in learning. In saying this, there are
three key elements to successful teaching and they include’ teacher motivation, teaching
quality and enthusiasm. These three elements combined is the outcome of the teachers
vocation as a teacher, as well as their professionalism in their field (Inchausti, 2000, p.36). A
teachers motivation and willingness to teach is usually a reflection on the quality of their
teaching and is demonstrated through a wide scope of behaviours. These behaviours include
enthusiasm of the content, as well as the teachers creativity to ensure students are learning.
These behaviours have been proven to ensure a higher rate of successful student learning.
This ties in with the next topic to be discussed, which is pedagogy.


Pedagogy is defined as the art or science of teaching and educational methods (Holmes and
Abington-Cooper, 2000, p.50). Another definition by Berger (2019) describes pedagogy as
the method and practice of teaching. There are three key components of pedagogy. These
include intellectual quality, quality learning environment and significance (NSW department
of Education, 2006). These components have a sole focus on a deeper understanding of
knowledge which requires the students participation in what they are being taught.
Therefore, it constitutes a high and specific standard, while also creative a positive learning
environment and student-teacher relationships. This will also develop a more meaningful
learning outcome for the students.
The curriculum has a strong influence on pedagogy, as it is said to assist in the development
of analytical skills and an open mind to new ideas (Slattery & Carlson, 2005). This is important

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to consider when acquiring teaching strategies to teach the curriculum content. Studies have
suggested that practices within the classroom should be joyful, social, inclusive, engaging,
visionary, academically diligent, critical and culturally sensitive. This is because every student
should have the right to feel included and looked after (Bohorquez, 2012). Furthermore, a
students academic performance is a reflection on the efficacy of the teachers pedagogy in
which they chose to use in the classroom. Successful and efficient strategies are those which
ensure student and teacher knowledge is consolidated in order to enable the initiation of a
lesson that caters for student needs, as well as creates positive environments in the
classroom. This allows for the teacher to be able to monitor, assess and understand the
students capabilities, as well as ensure their rights to being respected and cared for in the
classroom are being met (Berger, 2019). Being able to grasp the ability to identify the students
competence is a crucial skill required for a successful teacher, as it ensures the teacher is able
to use their knowledge to enhance the students learning abilities.
Expository and constructive pedagogies are the two types most commonly practiced amongst
teachers. Expository pedagogy is majorly focused on the teacher, and how they are the
primary source of information (Borich, 2017). Constructive pedagogy on the other hand, is
based on problem solving learning, where students learn to construct new ideas or build on
the knowledge they already have (Peterman, 2012). Studies have found that both pedagogical
methods were successful, however, the outcomes depend on the students potential. The
study consisted of two groups, with students ranging from low, average and high abilities.
One group was exposed to the expository approach, while the constructive method was used
on the other group. The results illustrated a greater outcome for the constructive group for
the average students, however there was a great outcome for the low and high ability
students with the expository method (Ferguson, 1993). Therefore, this study outlined the
significance of assessment for reflection and assistance, in order to use the most appropriate
approach for each group, to enable a successful learning outcome. The role of a teacher is not
only to teach, but also to observe and assess each student, in order to identify which teaching
method is most suited to them, to enhance their knowledge and learning.

The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers, and The Australian National Curriculum
both commonly refer to the idea of assessment. This is the use of activities given by the
teacher to the student, in order to obtain information about the students knowledge, their
skills as well as their attitudes towards learning. Teachers are often presenting the students
with both formal and informal methods of assessments, which supplies data beneficial to the
student and the teacher. This data can be diagnostic, formative or summative. Ultimately, it
is used as a means of assistance for the teacher as it provides insight on the students
knowledge and skills (Berger, 2019). The use of assessments allows the teachers to
acknowledge the specific needs of the student, hence, improving the learning outcome of
both the teacher and student (AITSL, 2012). As a requirement by the APST, this also acts as a
means of self-assessment to focus on the areas which need adjusting.
A prime example of student assessments is the National Assessments Program – Literacy and
Numeracy (NAPLAN). This is an assessment which is to be conducted by students in grades
3,5,7 and 9 across Australia. Primarily, this assessment is conducted to enhance the
accountability of the schools and their systems, in order to improve student learning
outcomes (Thompson and Harbaugh, 2013). Despite this, studies have found that the
NAPLAN tests showed no significant increase in the students test results. A factor could be

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because there is a delay between the time the test is taken and the time the results are
released.
This in turn leaves a small window of time for the results to be interpreted and use adequately
to improve the students academic performance (Independent Education Union, 2013). The
data gathered from the NAPLAN tests could be used as a means to identify significant trends
and issues to address within schools. However, the negative side of this is that these test
results are used to generalise the school as a whole, rather than individual students.
Professionalism is the concept of enthusiasm to participate in research for the purpose of
assessment, which all teachers should be involved with. It allows for reflection on their work,
and enables them to plan their lessons using analysis and objectivism to increase student
learning (Waring and Evans, 2014). Showing a willingness to engage in self-assessment,
demonstrates a strong sense of dedication to their role as a teacher (Bergman, 2012).
Another benefit of assessments is that it allows for the teachers to analyse the efficiency of
their pedagogy, and identify areas that need improvement, while enhancing their skills.

To conclude, teacher professionalism, curriculum, pedagogy and assessment are all key
elements of teaching which were discussed in this essay. These elements are vital in becoming
a professional teacher. Teacher professionalism motivates the concept of professional
learning, which can strongly conclude that teaching is a professional occupation. The
curriculum has a strong focus on the professional knowledge of a teacher and on the way the
content is being taught to students, which also has a strong link to pedagogy. The dedication,
encouragement and creativity in the way a teacher presents the content, is generally a strong
indication on their role as a teacher, as well as their professionalism which is used to teach
the content. Assessment on the other hand, enables the teacher to diagnose, interpret and
dissect the students test results and identify issues which need to be addressed. These issues
could stem from the student, or the way the teacher present the content. Therefore,
assessment strongly encourages self-assessment and reflection on the way they teach, which
plays a major role as a professional. All in all, being a teacher requires a combination of these
elements, which in turn results in a teacher becoming professional in their role. Therefore,
teaching is a professional role as it presents aspects professional aspect which were
thoroughly discussed in this essay.

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References

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) - Development of the
Australian Curriculum.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority, A. (2010). Shape of the
Australian Curriculum. Presentation, Melbourne.

Adoniou, M., & Gallagher, M. (2017). Professional standards for teachers—what are they
good for?, Oxford Review of Education, 43:1, 110-116.

Airasian, P., & Gullickson, A. (1994). Examination of teacher self-assessment. Journal Of
Personnel Evaluation In Education, 8(2), 195.

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership Limited. (2011). Australian
Professional Standards for Teachers, South Victoria: Education Services Australia, 2-5.

Berger, N. (2019). Lecture 2: Curriculum. Presentation, Western Sydney University.

Berger, N. (2019). Lecture 3: Pedagogy. Presentation, Western Sydney University.

Berger, N. (2019). Lecture 4: Assessment. Presentation, Western Sydney University.

Berghe, L., Soenens, B., Aelterman, N., Cardon, G., Tallir, I., & Haerens, L. (2014). Within-
person profiles of teachers' motivation to teach: Associations with need satisfaction at work,
need-supportive teaching, and burnout. Psychology Of Sport And Exercise, 15(4), 410.

Berman, R. (2012). Teaching as Vocation. PMLA, 127(3), 456.

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Colombian Journal for Teachers of English, p. 197.

Borich, G. (2017). Effective Teaching Methods, 4, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 336.

Cambourne, B. (2013). 'Covering Content' and 'Teaching Thinking': The Issue facing middle
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Ferguson, V. (1993). Integer Conceptions of Preservice Teachers - An Expository Approach
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Conceptual, Skill And Pedagogical Differences, 69.

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Hansbury, J. (1963). Technical Teaching — Vocation or Profession?. Education + Training,

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Holmes, G., & Abington-Cooper, M. (2000). Pedagogy vs. Andragogy: A False Dichotomy?.
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Waring, M., & Evans, C. (2014). Understanding pedagogy: Developing a critical approach
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