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INTRODUCTION
EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA
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I N T R O D U C I N G T H E UNIT C U R R I C U L U M
T h e B e a z l e y a n d M c G a w R e p o r t s i n t r o d u c e d a b r o a d a g e n d a f o r educational change in Western Australia.
A m o n g the most i m p o r t a n t c h a n g e s to s e c o n d a r y e d u c a t i o n are t h o s e that c o n c e r n the c u r r i c u l u m .
Many of the new c u r r i c u l u m , assessment a n d certification p a t t e r n s have already been successfully introduced in Years 11 a n d 12. Similar c h a n g e s will soon begin in Y e a r s 8, 9 a n d 10.
T h e first step will be the i n t r o d u c t i o n of a n e w c u r r i c u l u m s t r u c t u r e . T h i s s t r u c t u r e , called t h e U n i t C u r r i c u l u m , will replace t h e A c h i e v e m e n t Certificate.
T h e Unit Curriculum will o p e n the way for s c h o o l s to m a k e c h a n g e s that increase the flexibility of the c u r r i c u l u m , a n d provide students with wider opportunities for c h o i c e in w h a t t h e y learn a n d how.
1
T H E P I L O T P R O G R A M M E Pilot s c h o o l s
A g r o u p of pilot s c h o o l s is p r e p a r i n g to introduce the Unit C u r r i c u l u m in 1987, prior to w i d e s p r e a d i m p l e m e n t a t i o n from t h e b e g i n n i n g of 1988.
Seven schools will implement the Unit Curriculum in Y e a r s 8, 9 and 10 in 1 9 8 7 :
• B a l g a Senior H i g h
• Kent Street Senior High
• M e e k a t h a r r a District H i g h
• St S t e p h e n ' s S c h o o l , D u n c r a i g
• S a c r e d Heart C o l l e g e , S o r r e n t o
• Safety Bay Senior High
• W o o d v a l e High
O t h e r s c h o o l s
In addition to the seven pilot schools, three others are proceeding with more limited implementation:
• A u s t r a l i n d H i g h *
• P a d b u r y H i g h *
• R o c k i n g h a m Senior H i g h
• O p e n i n g in 1987
Year 8 s t u d e n t s in t h e s e s c h o o l s will use the repackaged curriculum units and be graded in the s a m e way as s t u d e n t s in the d e s i g n a t e d pilot schools.
S p e c i a l I s s u e s g r o u p s
T h e pilot p r o g r a m m e is being s u p p o r t e d by several g r o u p s with expertise and e x p e r i e n c e in:
• t i m e t a b l i n g ;
• c o u n s e l l i n g ;
• recording and r e p o r t i n g ;
• pastoral care;
• district high s c h o o l s ; and
• equity issues.
T h e s e g r o u p s will d e v e l o p specialist s u p p o r t for schools as t h e y prepare to begin i m p l e m e n t a t i o n in 1988. Reports from the groups and descriptions of progress in the pilot schools will be p u b l i s h e d d u r i n g 1986 a n d from early 1987. T h e first d i s c u s s i o n d o c u m e n t will be available to s c h o o l s before t h e end of 1986.
T H E C U R R I C U L U M F R A M E W O R K U n i t s
4 0 - h o u r u n i t s
A unit is a set of objectives that will normally be c o m p l e t e d in 40 h o u r s . All s u b j e c t s in Y e a r s 8, 9 a n d 10 have been d i v i d e d into 40-hour units.
How m a n y u n i t s ?
Nearly 300 units have b e e n p r e p a r e d . S o m e are b a s e d o n e x i s t i n g A c h i e v e m e n t C e r t i f i c a t e syllabuses, while others relate to n e w syllabuses prepared especially for the Unit C u r r i c u l u m , s u c h as in Personal a n d V o c a t i o n a l E d u c a t i o n . T h e r e are m a n y m o r e units t h a n any o n e school has t h e resources to offer, or t h a n any one student will t a k e .
Students will have time to complete 12 or 13 units in each semester. If t h e y p r o c e e d at a n o r m a l p a c e , they will c o m p l e t e 72 or m o r e units d u r i n g the first three years of s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l . T h e r e will be c o n s i d e r a b l e flexibility about the n u m b e r of units s t u d e n t s may t a k e . S o m e students may study fewer t h a n 72 units in t h r e e years, and make an early start on Year 11 or Year 12 c o u r s e s . Other s t u d e n t s , m a k i n g slower t h a n average progress or c h a n g i n g their e d u c a t i o n a l p l a n s , may select m o r e t h a n 72 units a n d u n d e r t a k e their lower s e c o n d a r y e d u c a t i o n over a longer p e r i o d .
C O M P O N E N T S
C o m p o n e n t s are g r o u p s of s u b j e c t s . Units are a l l o c a t e d to s e v e n c o m p o n e n t s :
• E n g l i s h , L a n g u a g e s and C o m m u n i c a t i o n
• M a t h e m a t i c s
• Personal and V o c a t i o n a l E d u c a t i o n
• Physical E d u c a t i o n
• Practical a n d C r e a t i v e Arts
• S c i e n c e a n d T e c h n o l o g y
• Social S t u d i e s
A b a l a n c e d e d u c a t i o n
G r o u p i n g of s u b j e c t s in c o m p o n e n t s will help to provide for b a l a n c e in s t u d e n t s ' e d u c a t i o n . S t a t e w i d e , it s e e m s likely that most students will take at least six units in e a c h c o m p o n e n t d u r i n g their first three years of s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l i n g . G u i d e l i n e s for s c h o o l s across the s y s t e m will e m e r g e from t h e pilot p r o g r a m m e . Individual s c h o o l s , in c o n s u l t a t i o n with their c o m m u n i t i e s , may d e v e l o p their o w n policies about h o w many
units should be taken from e a c h c o m p o n e n t to e n s u r e that s t u d e n t s have a b a l a n c e d general e d u c a t i o n . Of c o u r s e , these decisions will have to be m a d e within the f r a m e w o r k e s t a b l i s h e d by the D e p a r t m e n t a l g u i d e l i n e s .
In addition to any r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s about the n u m b e r of units to be t a k e n in e a c h c o m p o n e n t , schools may also wish to r e c o m m e n d that all students take particular units in, for e x a m p l e , a l a n g u a g e other than English, c o m p u t e r literacy or health e d u c a t i o n .
S T A G E S O F P R O G R E S S S t a g e s 1 to 6
Units are allocated to stages of p r o g r e s s , n u m b e r e d from Stage 1 to S t a g e 6, to help i m p r o v e the m a t c h b e t w e e n s t u d e n t s and the units t h e y c h o o s e .
P r o g r e s s t h r o u g h s t a g e s
In g e n e r a l , units at stages w i t h higher n u m b e r s will be t a k e n by s t u d e n t s w h o are:
• older;
• m o r e e x p e r i e n c e d in a subject; or
• m o r e c a p a b l e in a s u b j e c t .
In s o m e s u b j e c t s , units in earlier stages must be t a k e n before units in later stages, but this is not always t h e c a s e .
M a n y s u b j e c t s have a c o m m o n entry point.
S t u d e n t s b e g i n n i n g s e c o n d a r y s c i e n c e , for e x a m p l e , will all b e g i n with T r a n s i t i o n S c i e n c e 1 . 1 . S o m e other s u b j e c t s (for e x a m p l e , English and m a t h e m a t i c s ) have multiple entry points.
As students progress in a subject, they will move on to units at Stages 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
S t u d e n t p r o g r a m m e s
Typically, s t u d e n t s ' p r o g r a m m e s of study will include units in a variety of stages in the s a m e semester. A student with h i g h l y d e v e l o p e d skills in, say, E n g l i s h , m i g h t b e g i n with Stage 3 or 4 units. T h e s a m e student, less well p r e p a r e d for m a t h e m a t i c s , m i g h t b e g i n s e c o n d a r y m a t h e m a t i c s with S t a g e 1 units.
Similarly, s t u d e n t s w h o e x p e r i e n c e s e r i o u s difficulties in a subject might take six or eight units at Stages 1, 2, 3 a n d 4. A l t h o u g h s c h o o l s will probably wish to avoid setting hard and fast rules, units at e a c h s t a g e will normally p r e s u m e successful completion of o n e or m o r e units at the previous stages.
For t e a c h e r s , the unit s y s t e m will p r o v i d e s o m e instructional a d v a n t a g e s . Irrespective of w h e t h e r students t a k i n g a particular unit are in their first, s e c o n d or third year of s e c o n d a r y s c h o o l i n g , teachers c a n expect t h e m to b r i n g similar skills and e x p e r i e n c e s to the unit.
A S S E S S M E N T A N D G R A D I N G S t a n d a r d s
T h e new units will be d e s i g n e d for s t a n d a r d s - referenced assessment. S t u d e n t s ' p e r f o r m a n c e s will be g r a d e d a c c o r d i n g to p r e d e t e r m i n e d s t a n d a r d s of w o r k a n d reported using letter g r a d e s .
This s y s t e m will b e an i m p o r t a n t d e p a r t u r e f r o m the p o p u l a t i o n - r e f e r e n c e d a s s e s s m e n t of t h e A c h i e v e m e n t Certificate. U n d e r the old s y s t e m , s t u d e n t s ' work was c o m p a r e d with the work of all s t u d e n t s in t h e State t a k i n g the s u b j e c t , and the g r a d e a l l o c a t e d s h o w e d h o w t h e s t u d e n t p e r f o r m e d in c o m p a r i s o n with the rest of the p o p u l a t i o n . T h e s e c o m p a r i s o n s w e r e not very e f f e c t i v e in c o m m u n i c a t i n g s t a n d a r d s of achievement to students, parents and employers, a n d did not p r o v i d e s t u d e n t s with incentives to a c h i e v e .
G r a d i n g
The a s s e s s m e n t p r o c e d u r e s teachers have used in t h e past — for e x a m p l e , tests, a s s i g n m e n t s , models and exercises — will continue to be used.
W h a t w i l l c h a n g e , however, is the m e t h o d of a s s i g n i n g g r a d e s at t h e c o m p l e t i o n of units.
O n c o m p l e t i o n of a unit, s t u d e n t s ' p e r f o r m a n c e s will be g r a d e d a c c o r d i n g to p r e d e t e r m i n e d s t a n d a r d s of work and reported u s i n g the letter grades A , B, C, D and F.
T h e s e g r a d e s m a y be interpreted as i n d i c a t i n g : A Excellent a c h i e v e m e n t
B High a c h i e v e m e n t C S o u n d a c h i e v e m e n t D Limited a c h i e v e m e n t F I n a d e q u a t e a c h i e v e m e n t
T h e p r e d e t e r m i n e d s t a n d a r d s will relate directly to the extent to w h i c h unit objectives have b e e n a c h i e v e d .
4 0 - H O U R U N I T S
W h e r e the u n i t s c o m e from
There are t h r e e s o u r c e s for t h e units that will be used in pilot schools in 1987:
• A c h i e v e m e n t Certificate S y l l a b u s e s ;
• n e w s y l l a b u s e s ; or
• school initiatives.
Units d e r i v e d from the A c h i e v e m e n t Certificate courses have b e e n r e p a c k a g e d by C u r r i c u l u m B r a n c h into 40-hour units. They have m u c h t h e s a m e o b j e c t i v e s , content and resources as the previous c o u r s e s .
In s o m e subjects, current Achievement Certificate c o u r s e s have b e e n r e p l a c e d by new syllabuses, d e v e l o p e d specially for the Unit C u r r i c u l u m .
Unit o u t l i n e s
T h e C u r r i c u l u m B r a n c h has p r o d u c e d unit outlines for t h e 40-hour units. T h e s e i n c l u d e unit o b j e c t i v e s , r e s o u r c e s a n d a s s e s s m e n t p r o c e d u r e s . W h e r e a p p r o p r i a t e , t h e y relate the new units to e x i s t i n g syllabuses a n d r e s o u r c e s . Irrespective of w h e t h e r units c o m e f r o m old or new syllabuses, t e a c h e r s using t h e centrally- developed units will n o t be required to undertake further c u r r i c u l u m d e v e l o p m e n t .
They will, however, n e e d to c o n s i d e r h o w t h e objectives of the new 40-hour units relate to their current p r o g r a m m e s , tests and a s s i g n m e n t s . In s o m e cases, it will be necessary for teachers and subject d e p a r t m e n t s to r e a r r a n g e their lesson preparation a n d t e a c h i n g materials to m a t c h t h e new sets of o b j e c t i v e s .
In t h e longer t e r m . . .
T h e Unit C u r r i c u l u m will provide schools with m o r e c o n t r o l over the c u r r i c u l u m , a n d m o r e o p p o r t u n i t i e s to s h a p e it to m a t c h the n e e d s a n d e x p e c t a t i o n s of their s t u d e n t s .
Within the guidelines developed by the Education D e p a r t m e n t , schools a n d their c o m m u n i t i e s will d e c i d e :
• t h e total pool of units available to s t u d e n t s ;
• the c o m b i n a t i o n s in w h i c h they are t a k e n ; and
• t h e o p p o r t u n i t i e s for s t u d e n t s to specialize, c a t c h up or c h a n g e d i r e c t i o n .
In the longer t e r m , t h e Unit C u r r i c u l u m is likely to lead to greater diversity a m o n g s c h o o l s . Schools will offer different sets of units, reflecting t h e n e e d s a n d interests of their s t u d e n t s , and make the units available in different combinations.
Several pilot s c h o o l s are d e v e l o p i n g units to s u p p o r t their current p r o g r a m m e s . T h e s e units, w h i c h include English as a s e c o n d l a n g u a g e , music, technical d r a w i n g and circus skills, reflect t h e u n i q u e n e e d s , interests, skills a n d resources of particular pilot schools.
Other s c h o o l s m a y wish to use t h e additional flexibility of the Unit C u r r i c u l u m to e x p a n d school p r o g r a m m e s for s t u d e n t s with special interests a n d talents in art, m u s i c , sport or l a n g u a g e s .
Support for schools
As s c h o o l s t a k e up their additional authority a n d responsibility for curriculum decision making, they will c o n t i n u e to be s u p p o r t e d by Regional a n d central services.
Units d e v e l o p e d for use in the pilot schools in 1987 will be a p p r o v e d by t h e S e c o n d a r y E d u c a t i o n A u t h o r i t y . P r o c e d u r e s w i l l b e e s t a b l i s h e d to monitor t h e quality of units d e v e l o p e d by s c h o o l s a n d school s y s t e m s , to ensure that students transferring between schools are not d i s a d v a n t a g e d , and to provide for c o m p a r a b i l i t y in g r a d i n g and a s s e s s m e n t .
UNIT M A P S
T h e s e have b e e n p r e p a r e d for e a c h s u b j e c t and c i r c u l a t e d to pilot s c h o o l s . Each unit m a p s h o w s w h i c h units have b e e n allocated to e a c h stage.
The proposed unit map for social studies is shown below:
STAGE 1 STAGE 2 STAGE 3 STAGE 4 STAGE 5 STAGE 6
Earth &
People
Consumer &
the Economy
Australia's
Government Law Australian
Landscapes1 (6)
World Environmental Issues (6)
The Ancient World
West Aust.:
Yest. & Today1
Australian Society1
European Studies
Specialization in t-he Economy (E)
Economic Systems &
Issues (E)
Changing World Technological
World Asian Studies
Internat.
Co-oper.
& Conflict (H)
Aust. in the Internat.
Comm.1 (H) Australia's
Contemporary Society1
Social Issues
This m a p identifies a total of 19 units that have b e e n centrally p r e p a r e d for use in pilot schools.
Most of t h e s e topics are d r a w n from the K-10 s o c i a l s t u d i e s s y l l a b u s a n d u s e f a m i l i a r o b j e c t i v e s , a s s e s s m e n t patterns and resource materials.
A wide variety of individual p r o g r a m m e s in social studies c o u l d be d e v e l o p e d from this unit m a p , d e p e n d i n g o n :
• the n u m b e r of units s t u d e n t s c h o o s e ;
• the topics they believe to be interesting or important; and
• s t u d e n t s ' future work and study p l a n s .
T h e s e units are r e c o m m e n d e d for all s t u d e n t s . T h e y provide a g e n e r a l i n t r o d u c t i o n to social s t u d i e s for all s t u d e n t s , a n d c o n t a i n content regarded as essential knowledge for all Australian c i t i z e n s .
Social studies units marked '1' all relate to Austra- lian topics. B y taking a series of these units, s t u d e n t s c o u l d d e v e l o p a specialist interest within social s t u d i e s .
Similarly, in all s u b j e c t s , t h e sets of units offered by a school c o u l d reflect t h e specialist interests and e x p e r i e n c e of t e a c h e r s .
S t u d e n t s i n t e n d i n g to enrol in social studies subjects in Y e a r s 11 a n d 12 should c h o o s e s o m e units from this g r o u p . Units m a r k e d ' H ' a r e appropriate for s t u d e n t s i n t e n d i n g to study history, a n d units m a r k e d ' E ' a n d ' G ' a r e a p p r o p r i a t e p r e p a r a t i o n for e c o n o m i c s a n d g e o g r a p h y respectively.
51219/11/86-10M-L/4216 W I L L I A M C . B R O W N , G o v e r n m e n t P r i n l o i . W e s t e r n A u s t r a l i a
1
