18322138 – Quang Huy Do

102086 Designing Teaching and Learning

Assignment 2: Lesson Plan Analysis, Revision & Justification

Student name: Quang Huy Do

Student number: 18322138

In this assignment, I will analyse and modify the Mathematics lesson plan from

vUWS
 1. Lesson plan analysis:
1. Intellectual quality
1.1 Deep knowledge
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: A majority of the content knowledge is deep and exhibits a sustained
focus on core concepts of timetabling and scheduling. However, there was a
vague connection to ideas from the previous lesson.

1.2 Deep understanding

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Most students will be able to demonstrate a high level of
understanding of the key concepts through a synthesis of relationships, problem-
solving and drawing conclusions on the issue of timetables. A deep
understanding is sustained and expanded through the inclusion of the issues of
sustainability in using public transport.

1.3 Problematic knowledge

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Knowledge in the case of timetable is treated as socially constructed
with a multi-perspective representation. These are further enhanced by the final
worksheet activity requiring students to decipher a conflicting piece of information
of the Muggle-stops train leaving the stations late.

1.4 Higher-order thinking

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: There is a higher-order thinking worksheet activity at the end that all
students will be required to complete. For the other activities included in the
lesson plan, students only demonstrate lower to medium-order thinking such as
discussions of public transport and the importance of timetabling.

1.5 Metalanguage
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Terminologies such as ecosystems, carbon emissions are not
explained and discussed in detail except for a superficial attempt asking students
what sustainability means to them. There were no explicit clarifications or
assistance provided in terms of the meaning of those terminologies in the context
of the lesson.

1.6 Substantive communication

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Sustained interactions and discussions throughout the lessons with
the teachers facilitating class discussions and the students are given
opportunities to voice their opinions. A comprehensive and balanced inclusion of
both oral (discussions) and written communications (worksheet and smartboard
activities) that seek to invoke a deep understanding.

2. Quality learning environment

2.1 Explicit quality criteria

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Only general statements regarding the desired outcomes of the
lesson are made and the included activity only requires the students to complete
the task without asking them to explain. This might create confusion as to how
much depth should the students be expected to explore in regards to the issue.

2.2 Engagement
1–2–3–4–5 Comments: Most students are expected to engage in the included activities most
of the times thanks to the varieties of both group and individual tasks. The use
of cultural reference of the Harry Potter series in the worksheet activity increases
engagement.

2.3 High expectations

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: There are no clear expectations and most of the time, students are
given choice to work individually or in pairs without explicit instructions from the
 teachers. The included activities are not labelled according to the different level
of difficulties and may lead students to not be actively encouraged to participate.

2.4 Social support

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: There is strong support given by teachers and they always show
initiatives for listening and offering help. All contributions are valued and
opportunities for discussions are plenty throughout the lesson

2.5 Students’ self-regulation

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: There were attempts to settle down the class, however, no strategies
for intervention should disruptive incidents occur. Included tasks are purposeful
and relevant, making students more motivated in learning the content,
nonetheless, they lack opportunities for students’ self-evaluation of progress.

2.6 Student direction

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Students can control some trivial aspects of the lesson and choice
of working individually or in a pair. However, the pace and level of work are pre-
determined by the teacher.

3. Significance
3.1 Background knowledge
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: The lesson consistently incorporates students’ background
knowledge in the areas of environmental sustainability, public transport,
timetable usage. A significant portion of the lesson relates to the students’
background knowledge and popular culture (Harry Potter activity).

3.2 Cultural knowledge

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Dominant culture discourse is evident with no clear mentions of other
cultures. The worksheet activity, group work and class discussions all focus on
the knowledge of the dominant culture.

3.3 Knowledge integration

1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: Meaningful connections between the topic taught and other subject
areas are frequently made, for example timetable and public transport to
environmental sustainability. The activities often require knowledge and skills
from multiple topics and/or subject areas.

3.4 Inclusivity
1–2–3–4–5 Comments: Students’ participation is encouraged at all times regardless of their
cultural groups and there were no elements in the lesson plan that would limit
the students’ contributions. The lesson is free from negative forms of prejudice
and is highly inclusive of all students because it gives students opportunities to
participate in different roles and activities such as class discussion, group work
and individual task.

3.5 Connectedness
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 Comments: There were attempts to let students recognise and discover
connections between the lesson learnt and real-life applications such as the
issues of sustainability and the use of timetable to schedule one’s day. A more
emphasis on the significance of environmental sustainability would have been
more beneficial.

3.6 Narrative
1–2–3–4–5 Comments: A substantial portion of the lesson makes use of narratives such as
students asking their friends of travel related questions, timetable and the
teachers make students aware of the issue of sustainability through the story of
public transport. The use of the cultural text such as the Harry Potter-inspired
questions in the worksheet activity enhances learning and the significance of the
lesson.
Identifying Areas for Improvement

Identify the four NSW QT model elements you are targeting for improvement.

QT model

1) Student direction 2) Explicit Quality Criteria

3) High Expectations 4) Metalanguage

 2. Modified Lesson Plan
Topic area: Measurement Stage of Learner: 11, Syllabus Pages: pp. 34 38
Subtopics: MS-M2: Standard
Working with time
Date: 23.03.17 Location Booked: Classroom Lesson number: 8
Time: 50 minutes Total Number of students: Printing/preparation:
30 Links to various transport
websites ready. Print
worksheets and
corresponding timetables.
Need access to a Smart
Board. Need access to the
internet, laptop or similar
devices.

Outcomes Assessment Students learn Students learn to

The diagnostic assessment
takes place at the beginning
of the lesson in the class
MS11-3, discussion.
MS11-4,
MS11-9, Formative assessment takes
MS11-10. place throughout the lesson
and via Kahoot quiz.
The teacher walks around
and asks questions, and
ensures that students are
staying on task.
The teacher provides extra
activities for higher ability
students who work ahead of
their peers.
Formative assessment in the
form of takehome homework
and to be handed in for
marking in the next lesson.
about
The interpretation Students review how to
of different interpret timetables and
timetables and how use this to solve
this can be used as problems using a range
a part of life. of different timetables,
including ferries, buses
How public and trains.
transportation can
be used as a Incorporate 12-hour
means of promoting and 24-hour time into
sustainability. understanding
timetables.
The meanings of Justifies a response to
mathematical a proposed problem
terminologies and using appropriate
cross-curriculum mathematical
learning area focus terminology and/or
on the issues of calculations
environmental
sustainability,
ecosystems and
carbon emissions.

Time Teaching and learning actions

Intro Teacher greets students and asks them to sit down in their seats. Students
2.5 mins take out their workbook and stationery required for the lesson. Teacher
outlines what the lesson will entail.

The teacher also provides a breakdown of the contents the class will be
going through in the lesson including opportunities for high-achieving
 students to participate in more challenging tasks at the end as well as a
suite of other activities suitable for all other students with varied abilities.

Teacher communicates to the whole class the expected level of commitment

and appropriate behaviours throughout the lesson.

Revision Revision
2.5 mins
Teacher hands back result from the in-class assessment from lesson 7.
Teacher outlines what was done well overall and what the class will work on
together, to improve students' understanding of content, as a path to achieve
syllabus outcomes.

Teacher highlights the relevance of the content from lesson 7 to today’s

lesson.

Body Class discussion

10 mins
The teacher facilitates discussion among students and asks questions about
when and where you may need to use a transportation timetable. Teacher
shows a transport timetable on the Smartboard and asks:
1. What is the purpose of this timetable?
2. What features does this timetable have?
3. What would happen if this timetable did not exist?
Within this section, the teacher briefly discusses with students about how
using public transport can help with sustainability, by reducing carbon
emissions and what the impact human activity has on ecosystems. Teacher
asks students what sustainability means to them.

The teacher needs to also ask and discuss with the class the concepts of
carbon emissions, ecosystems and overall environmental sustainability and
how today's lesson can help play a part in improving environmental quality
and conserving resources.

Timetabling is a good tool that can be used to optimise travel routes for
travellers in order to travel to the desired location in the shortest amount of
time. Timetabling, if used appropriately, can help reduce the effects of
carbon emissions by reducing the frequency of buses and trains through
areas with less frequent travellers and optimise routes for areas with a
higher usage rate.

5 mins Class activity and Smartboard interaction

This task needs to be labelled as class discussion/easy activity. This helps

students to have a guide on the level of work expected of them.

Students get into pairs and ask each other travel related questions, based
on the ferry timetable that appears on the Smartboard. For example, "What
time do I have to leave Old Cremorne Wharf, if I am to arrive at Circular
Quay, Wharf 2 by 2 pm?" The teacher walks around the room and checks
students are staying on task, asking relevant questions and helping where
 necessary. Teacher ensures that students are helping each other, as a form
of social support.

The teacher also needs to facilitate discussions and gives hints on what
questions the students might ask their friends about. Teacher directs
students at keywords like: "shortest time", "quickest route", "duration of the
journey", "longest time", etc.

The teacher also needs to make clear to students the expected level of
quality of their work by asking appropriate questions and follows the lesson
content closely.

Students are given choice to discuss it with a person next to them about the
timetable given on the smartboard or to find a more complicated timetable
online and ask similar questions.

10 mins
Smartboard interaction/ Kahoot quiz

Teacher turns the class attention to the board to play a Kahoot quiz about
timetable and the schedule of different routes.

Students are asked five questions similar to the ones they have seen
previously in the class discussion. However, this time the whole class will
have the opportunity to register their responses through the use of Kahoot.

The questions will increase in difficulty over time with a very challenging
question as a bonus at the end. The winner(s) will have to explain how they
got the answer to the last question to the whole class and the other students
will be given opportunities to ask questions.

The questions are:

1. What time do I have to leave the house, if it takes me 50 minutes to

get to work and I have to be at work at 8:30 am?
2. If I start cooking at 2:25 pm and finish at 3:40 pm, how many minutes
did I spend cooking?
3. The song One Kiss by Calvin Harris and Dua Lipa lasts 3 minutes
and 35 seconds. Tom listened to the song 3 times, how many
minutes and seconds did he spend listening to the song?
4. If I have to leave home at 3:30 pm to catch a bus to work and the time
is now 2 pm. I want to watch a 100-minute long film before I leave,
will I be able to finish the film?
5. If it takes me 90 seconds to read 100 words in a speech. Will I be
able to finish a 750-word speech in 8.5 minutes?
15 mins Worksheet activity*

Teacher hands out bus timetable worksheet activity. Students have the
option of working on this alone, or with another person.

Teacher reminds students of the expected level of work produced, including

justifications and reasonings for their answer as well as a succinct response,
correct grammar and of a high standard.

The teacher provides on smartboard a model response so students can get

an idea of the expected level of quality in their answer. For e.g.: “The
quickest train from Hogwarts to London Central is the ….. train because the
time taken is the shortest with a journey of ….. minutes.”

The teacher walks around the classroom and makes sure students are
staying on task, asking relevant questions and provides help where
necessary.

The teacher provides students who have completed the worksheet activity
early to participate in an online journey planner as an extra activity for higher
ability students.

Access link: http://www.scootle.edu.au/ec/viewing/L1111/index.html

Conclusion Teacher summarises the key points of the lesson. Discusses what the next
5 mins lesson will entail. Asks students if they have any further questions.

Assign homework to students to further strengthen the skills of reading and

interpreting timetables and applies appropriate knowledge to everyday life.
How am I measuring the outcomes of this lesson?

Learning Outcome Method of measurement and recording

MS11-3 Teacher and student questioning throughout
lesson, timetable worksheet.
Kahoot quiz
MS11-4 MS11-9 Students working in pairs and helping each other
perform calculations based on time.
Kahoot quiz
Extra activity: journey planner
MS11-10 Timetable worksheet.
Students’ explanations and justifications to the
problems

Worksheet activity*

Five trains travel from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to London Central on
the same morning. The Hufflepuff Express leaves Hogwarts station 6 minutes after the
Gryffindor Goods Train, but arrives 14 minutes before the Slytherin All-Stations Train. The
Gryffindor Goods Train takes 46 minutes to reach London Central and arrives at 8:53 am.
The Ravenclaw Express leaves 10 minutes after the Hufflepuff Express and arrives 14
minutes before the Gryffindor Goods Train. The Muggle-stops train is running 6 minutes
late on this particular morning and arrives in London Central at 8:37, after leaving
Hogwarts 4 minutes before the Hufflepuff Express. The Slytherin All-Stations Train takes
33 minutes to travel from Hogwarts to Central London and arrives 46 minutes after the
Hufflepuff Express leaves Hogwarts.

Work out the train timetable for the 5 trains.

Hogwarts London Central

Hufflepuff Express 8:13 am 8:45 am
Slytherin All-Stations 8:26 am 8:59 am
Gryffindor Goods 8:07 am 8:53 am
Train
Ravenclaw Express 8:23 am 8:39 am
Muggle-stops 8:03 am 8:37 am
1. What is the latest time train you could catch from Hogwarts to arrive at London
Central before 8:40 am? What train is this?

2. Explain what would happen if the Ravenclaw Express train was running 7 minutes
late.

3. Hannah misses the Hufflepuff Express train by 2 minutes. She needs to be in

London Central by 8:45 am. What may be a possible solution for her? Justify
reasons for your answer.
3. Academic Justification
The original lesson plan could be modified in the areas of student direction, explicit quality
criteria, high expectations and metalanguage under the NSW Quality Teaching model.
These modifications could be implemented to improve the quality of the lesson, enhance
students’ engagement and to deliver a more effective learning experience through a more
extensive use of information and communications and technology (ICT) resources.

The criteria of student direction seek to provide the students with a high degree of control
over the choice of activities they may undertake, the time spent on activities, the pace of
their studies and a flexible form of assessing criteria (Ladwig, Gore & NSW Department of
Education and Training, 2009). The specific changes to improve student direction include:
increase the number of choices of activities students can undertake with the addition of a
journey planner for those who finish the prescribed task early and time spent on each activity
is flexible as students can progress through the activities at their own pace in the second
half of the lesson after the discussions. According to Ladwig et al. (2009), increased
communications and scaffolding of activities allow students to better understand the
structure of the lesson and these changes were incorporated into the modified lesson plan.
This is evident in more discussions and explanations of key terminologies at various points
throughout the lesson. A majority of the included activities also provide students with
opportunities to address questions in a discussion format so answers are not strictly
prescribed, providing scope for creative thinking.

Giving students a clear direction in successfully completing the required tasks and meeting
the outcomes go hand in hand with making students known what does it mean by good work
by including explicit statements regarding the expected level of work produced (Ladwig et
al. 2009). This was done at various points throughout the lesson by reminding the students
of the expected level of their answer include full sentences with reasonings, supporting
statements, full calculations with appropriate use of mathematical terminologies. The
teacher also gives students model responses so they know the required level of quality to
follow. The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (n.d.) suggested that by
incorporating explicit quality criteria, students can understand what improved performance
looks like and teachers have a basis for tracking and assessing students.
According to Gore (2007), students’ performance varies significantly according to the
expectations teachers place on them. This is derived from the extensively researched
Pygmalion effect where high expectations can result in an improvement in performance
(Mitchell & Daniels, 2003). Therefore, this modified lesson plan seeks to improve students’
performance by trying to incorporate a wide range of activities that are suitable for different
learning levels and always try to encourage students to advance to a more challenging
exercise. This way, students are more engaged and are more inclined towards solving a
harder problem because they can see that they have done something they thought was
above their ability (Ladwig et al., 2009). This is evident in the inclusion of a challenging
Kahoot question, a journey planner activity for students who finished early and the freedom
of accessing a more difficult train timetable to interpret and ask questions compared to those
provided by the teacher. By increasing high expectations, teachers also reinforce positive
psychology within students by saying encouraging statements like: “You can do it!” as
opposed to “Don’t bother trying it! It’s above your current level.”

The last area of improvement is metalanguage. This element seeks to promote the
importance of language and how language not only functions separately on its own but as
a vital part of a spectrum of tools used to develop student understanding (Ladwig et al.,
2009). The original lesson plan only asked students to explain the terms sustainability but
there were other terminologies that were not explained or discussed such as carbon
emissions and ecosystems. This is a priority of the national curriculum in promoting cross-
curriculum learnings and in particular, promoting sustainability. Once a student has an
understanding of the terminologies, they can associate these concepts with what is currently
being taught in class. For example, students can learn how today’s lesson can help play a
part in improving environmental quality and conserving resources through better timetabling
and scheduling. It is often easy to overlook the importance of literacy and the meanings of
words in a Maths problem but Head Teacher of Mathematics from Cabramatta High School
Mr Greg Powers offers a more realistic look on this issue. According to Mr Powers, students
can’t do the mathematics if they didn’t understand what the question is asking for in the first
place so literacy is key (Bolger & Connellan, 2017). Therefore, it is important that students
understand how language functions operate, especially in technical areas like Science or
Mathematics.
 4. References

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership. (n.d.). Learning intentions and
success criteria [Brochure]. Retrieved from https://www.aitsl.edu.au/docs/default-
source/feedback/aitsl-learning-intentions-and-success-criteria-
strategy.pdf?sfvrsn=382dec3c_2

Bolger, R., & Connellan, M. (2017, March 8). Literacy the key to maths success at Sydney
school. SBS News. Retrieved from https://www.sbs.com.au/news/literacy-the-key-
to-maths-success-at-sydney-school

Gore, J. (2007). Improving pedagogy. In Butcher, J., & McDonald, L. (Eds.), Making a
difference: Challenges for teachers, teaching, and teacher education (1st ed., pp. 15-
33). Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense Publishers.

Ladwig, J. G., Gore, J. M., & New South Wales Department of Education and Training (DET).
(2009). Quality teaching in NSW public schools: a classroom practice guide (3rd
edition). Sydney, Department of Education and Training, Professional Learning and
Leadership Development Directorate

Mitchell, T. R., Daniels, D. (2003). Motivation. In Walter, C. B., Daniel, R. I., & Richard, J. K.
Handbook of Psychology, 12, 229. ISBN 0-471-38408-9.

5. eLearning Portfolio Link

https://qhdo.weebly.com