Transformation:
Leading Quality
Curriculum
The Conceptual Model
Transformation: Leading Quality
Curriculum
• Day 1:
The conceptual model
The Quality teaching model
Leading quality assessment
• Day 2:
Ways to implement and lead the model:
- Through an environmental project
- Through a term 4 unit of work
- Through a scope & sequence
- Through quality assessment
Planning for Implementation
The Planning
• Small steps
• A stage or faculty leader modelling and leading by
example
• Transforming a current unit of work
• Begin by asking the question ‘What do we want the
students to learn by the end of the unit?’
• Move to examining the scope and sequence
through the conceptual lens asking the same
question and the plan the assessment tasks
(backward mapping)
The Barriers
 Exams – Naplan, HSC, but
wait there’s more…
 Syllabus requirements
 Parental and community
expectations
 Teaching to the exam
requirements rather than
the course requirements
 Time
 Access to technology
 Complacency
Leading Transformation
 Committed leaders
and key players
 A purpose and a
goal
 A plan
 Small steps: Term 4
unit of work; cross
KLA units of work;
an authentic task
“We have to know
where we want to end
up before we start out
– and plan how to get
there …”
(1999, Tomlinson).
Global Demands
Skills Required
for the 21st Century
Workforce:
Critical thinking
Problem solving
Innovation
Collaboration
Creativity
ICT
National Curriculum Goals
 Goal 1:
• Australian schooling promotes equity and excellence:
promote personalised learning that aims to fulfill the
diverse capabilities of each young Australian.
 Goal 2:
• All young Australians become:
successful learners
confident and creative individuals
active and informed citizens
National Curriculum Expectations
 A solid foundation in skills and knowledge on which
further learning and adult life can be built.
 Deep knowledge and skills enabling advanced
learning, ability to create new ideas & translate them
into practical applications.
 General capabilities that underpin flexible thinking, a
capacity to work with others, an ability to move
across subject disciplines
Cross-Disciplinary
 Recognition that new ways
of thinking are borne out
of deep knowledge & its
application across
disciplines
 Students should
participate in learning that
applies specific disciplinebased knowledge and skills
across disciplines to
encourage thinking and
working in new ways.
 Cross-Disciplinary: ICT &
Design, Civics &
Citizenship, Business
The Research
 Coyle and Colvin (1999): The brain is
phenomenally plastic, and that we
construct ourselves through
behaviour – “It’s not who you are, it’s
what you do and where you do it.”
 Hattie (2003) & Dinham (2008): The
significance of deep knowledge, direct
instruction and scaffolding the
learning
 Westwell (2009): Creativity is
connected to what is already known
 QT model based on best practice and
effective research
 Marry
Creativity &
Innovation
 Deep
knowledge &
deep
understanding
 Integrate
problematic
knowledge and
student direction
 Process first
then product
 Create the
environment for
creativity
Quality Teaching
Model
Kaplan et al 2006
“Intellectual work that is
challenging, centred on
significant concepts and
ideas, and requires
substantial cognitive and
academic engagement with
deep knowledge”
Core: Curriculum
addresses the core
concepts, principles,
and skills of a
discipline
Content: concepts &
ideas that are complex
and abstract
Knowledge integration,
Problematic knowledge,
Higher-order thinking,
Background knowledge,
Substantive
communication
Connections: connect
overarching concepts,
principles, and skills within
and across disciplines,
time periods, cultures,
places, and/or events
Process: Higher-order
thinking skills, selfdirected learning
Significance –
Connectedness
Problematic
knowledge
Deep understanding
Practice: The applications of
facts, concepts, principles,
skills, and methods in an
authentic manner & context
Product: authentic tasks
connected to the real world;
evaluation; transformation;
Synthesis
Quality learning
environment,
Student direction
Identity: Developing
students’ interests and
expertise, strengths,
values, and character
Learning environment:
student centred
Maker
The Design Approach
“Intellectual work that is
challenging, centred on
significant concepts and ideas,
and requires substantial cognitive
and academic engagement with
deep knowledge”
Quality teaching Discussion Paper
The Design Approach
“The first thing that teachers will
need to do is select and organise
the essential knowledge,
understandings, skills and values
from the syllabus around central
concepts or ideas…”
Quality teaching in NSW Public Schools
The Design Approach
“Without designing around
provocative questions and big ideas,
teaching easily succumbs into an
activity - or coverage - orientation
without clear priorities.”
Understanding by Design
McTigh and Wiggins ASCD 1999
The Design Approach
 Holistic and conceptual model connecting
learning with syllabus content, knowledge and
skills and the explicit teaching strategies
 Driven by the concepts and key learning ideas
 Integrated assessment of, for and through
learning – backward mapping
 Distillation from concept to key learning ideas
to assessment to explicit teaching and
learning strategies
 Facilitates integration of programs and/or
assessment across KLAs, higher-order thinking
& problematic knowledge
Focus on learning
 What do I want my students to
learn?
 Why does it matter?
 What do they already know?
 How will they demonstrate
learning?
 How will they get there?
The Model
Focus
Topic/Subject/Context/Outcomes
Concept + Key Question or Essential Learning Statement
Overarching idea of the unit
Key Ideas + Question
What students will learn
by the end of the unit
(Deep knowledge)
(Deep knowledge)
Key Ideas
+ Question
Reflect intent of the
outcomes and concept
(Deep knowledge)
Key Ideas + Question
(Deep knowledge)
Outcomes and Assessment
(Deep understanding, Problematic knowledge, Higher-order thinking, Explicit quality criteria)
Demonstration of key learning ideas - Not too many!
Pre-testing/Pre-assessment (Background knowledge - connections to prior learning)
Brainstorming, Graphic organisers – KWL, mind mapping, Y chart, Lotus diagram. Quiz
Teaching Strategies
Learning Activities
Explicit / Systematic
Building the Field
Teaching Strategies
Learning Activities
Explicit Literacy &
Numeracy Strategies
Teaching Strategies
Learning Activities
Connected & Scaffolded
Teaching Strategies
Learning Activities
Integrated ICT
Teaching Strategies
Learning Activities
Scaffolds / Models –
annotated
Resources
What do I want my students to
learn?
Why does it matter?
The Concept and Essential
Learning
The Design
Approach
1. What is a
concept?
2. How do I arrive at
the right
concepts?
3. Why would we
program around
concepts?
The Topic/Focus
 Identify the topic or
focus of the unit of
work such as:
Living Lands
Symbols and
Systems
Shakespeare
Probability
Living things
The Outcomes
 Ask the question what do I
want my students to learn
by the end of the unit and
select the relevant
outcomes
 Not too many!
 Take into account the:
 Continuum of learning
 Timing of the unit of work
 Scope and sequence
The Outcomes
 Interrogate the
outcomes you have
selected and the
learn to and learn
abouts
 Identify the essential
learning of the
outcomes
The Learning
 Re-ask the question
what do I want my
students to learn by
the end of the unit?
 Record the essential
learning goal
 What concept/s
capture the
learning?
The Design
Approach
A Concept:
 A significant notion
that reflects the
core ideas of the
content being
taught and enables
students to
comprehend and
create meaning
The Design
Approach
A Concept:
 Is not a theme or a
topic!
 Has layers and
nuances
 Represents depth
rather than
breadth
The Concept
 Is the concept grounded in the syllabus
or syllabi?
 Does the concept capture the deep
learning that you want students to have
by the end of the unit of work?
 Is the concept appropriate and relevant
for the specified students at that
moment in time?
 Have you considered the concept in
terms of the continuum of learning?
 Does the concept have significance and
endurance?
Deep knowledge
 Knowledge is deep
when it concerns the
central ideas or
concepts of the
KLA/s and when the
knowledge is judged
to be crucial to the
topic or subject
being taught.
Key Learning Ideas
 Now identify from
the outcomes the
key learning ideas
 Two to three
ideas that capture
the learning, skills
and knowledge of
the syllabus
outcomes
The overarching question
or learning statement
 Pose an overarching
key question or
essential learning
statement that
encapsulates what
students need to
learn by the end of
the unit
 Differentiates the
learning
Overarching Concept &
Question




Stage 2 Local
Environments:
Concept: Interaction
Our relationship and
interaction with the
environment: health,
safety, artistic expression
and sustainability
The importance of
sustainable design
Question: Why is it
important that we care for
and respect our local
environments such as our
school?
Stage 4 Technology Mandatory
 Concept: Green Design
 Key Question: What is
the role of design and
emerging technologies
in responding to climate
change and global
warming?
 Key Learning Ideas:
- Application of a range of
graphics tools in the
in the development of
design projects: What are
the most effective graphics
tools for persuasive design
projects?
- Understanding of the factors
influencing design such as
environmental and
resource availability: What
key factors influence
design choices?
The Learning




Stage 5 : Anime
Outcomes: 2, 3, 6 & 10
Concept: Cultural Perspectives
Question: How significant is
cultural context in shaping our
perspectives and our use of
textual features?
 Key Learning Ideas:
 How cultural context shapes
perspectives and ideas in texts
 How filmic techniques in anime
convey cultural perspectives
What do my students
already know?
Connecting the learning to
prior knowledge
What do they already
know?
 Unless new
knowledge becomes
integrated with the
learner's prior
knowledge and
understanding, this
new knowledge
remains isolated,
cannot be used
effectively in new
tasks, and does not
transfer readily to
new situations.
What do they already
know?
 Pre-assessment – Data &
Background knowledge:
This can be informal but it
is important as it informs
teachers what the students
know so that a unit of
work or program can be
differentiated to suit the
learning needs of the
students.
 Look at the end of stage
performance descriptors in
the syllabus for your unit!
How will they demonstrate
learning?
Quality Assessment
Assessment
What do I want the
students to do or
produce to
demonstrate
their learning
and
understanding?
Think of the unit you
are planning, what
task/s would you
use?
Assessment for Deep understanding
“Focus tasks on relating central concepts and
ideas with other concepts, or to particular
contexts. Linking the task to previously
addressed ideas (from either prior class work
or other tasks) or to new, as yet unexplored,
concepts or contexts are two ways to
strengthen the deep knowledge of a task.
Ensure that the task connects and supports
the key concepts being addressed.”
-QT Framework
Deep understanding
• Student direction
• Connectedness authenticity
• Higher-order thinking
• Substantive
communication
• Explicit quality criteria
• Problematic
knowledge
Quality Assessment
 All current research supports
the potent impact of quality
assessment and feedback on
student learning outcomes.
 HSC review identified
engagement and enjoyment
as influential
 Our students need to become
independent thinkers and
learners; flexible and creative
problem solvers; team
players; resilient and
committed citizens!
Assessment for Deep
understanding
 Accurate outcomes
 Key learning ideas
 Nature of the task in
a clear and precise
rubric
 The verbs!
 Explicit quality
criteria
 Marking guidelines
reflecting the
outcomes being
assessed
Biggs [1999], p78 UCLAN
http://www.uclan.ac.uk/ldu/resources/toolkit/lrg_groups/index
.htm
Deep understanding
When students truly understand, they can:
 Explain, make connections, offer good theories:
Make sense of what they experience; show their
work and defend it; provide thorough, supported,
and justifiable accounts of phenomena, facts, and
data
 Interpret: Tell meaningful stories; offer
translations; provide a revealing historical or
personal dimension to ideas and events; make it
personal or accessible through images, anecdotes,
analogies, models
Deep understanding
 Apply and Produce: Effectively use
and adapt what they know in
diverse contexts, and design
effective products.
 Appreciate Other Perspectives:
See multiple points of view, with
critical eyes and ears; see the big
picture.
Deep understanding
 Empathise: Get inside, find value in what
others might find odd, alien, or implausible;
perceive sensitively, enter the mind and heart
of others.
 Self-knowledge: Perceive the personal style,
prejudices, projections, and habits of mind
that shape and impede their own
understanding; are aware of what they do not
understand, and why it is so hard to
understand.
Assessment for Deep
understanding
 First task is teacher
directed
 Introduces the concept
and the key learning
idea/s
 Second task encourages
risk taking:
 Higher-order
 Moving towards
student directed/openended & problematic
knowledge
Quality Assessment: Stage 4 Mathematics
 Concept: Navigating: Understanding your place on
Earth, physically and culturally, through
Mathematics
 Key Question: How do you plan a world tour surfing
competition?
 Key Ideas:
- Using knowledge of fractions and circles to specify
location
- Measuring distance, time and rate
- Interpreting data
Stage 4 Mathematics
 What do you want the
students to learn? How to
measure location, distance,
time and speed.
 Why is it important? Using
mathematics to better
understand the content and
context of everyday
experiences.
 How will you know that
students are learning?
Through discussion,
worksheets and a formal
presentation.
Quality Assessment: Stage 4 Mathematics
 You have been asked to set up a world tour surfing
competition. This will involve selecting locations;
planning a travel itinerary; describing local conditions;
and basic budgeting. Thirty-two top competitors will be
invited to take part. A luxury, ocean going motor launch
has been charted to house staff and competitors and
will sail to ten top surfing spots.
 List your ten sporting spots on worksheet 5.1 along with
their latitude and longitude. Create placemarks in
Google Earth. Plan a route to get around your chosen
locations. Again use Google Earth and measure the
distances, in nautical miles, between each location.
Record this information on worksheet 5.2.
Stage 4 Mathematics
 If the motor launch can
manage an average speed of
15knots, calculate the journey
time between each location.
1knot is 1 nautical mile per
hour. You can assume there is
sufficient sailing staff to keep
moving 24h per day. Round up
your answers to the nearest
day and complete worksheet
5.3.
 Create a spreadsheet that
summarises the items of
income (sponsorships) and
expenditure
Quality Assessment through ICT
“Technology does not directly change
teaching or learning. Rather, the
critical element is how technology is
incorporated into instruction”
(Bracewell and Faferriere (1996)
We can connect with our digital natives
by incorporating technology in
assessment.
Warning!!!
“Students often find it difficult to maintain
balance between the design and technology
aspects of the creative learning process.
Technology can become an obstacle to
learning, especially when a student is first
exposed to a new and/or novel technology.
The student may become too focused on the
technology and neglect the need for
developing creative ideas…creativity drives
technology” (Mohler).
Narratives for the future…
Digital Storytelling
 “Every community has a
memory of itself.
A living memory, an
awareness of a collective
identity woven of a
thousand stories.”
 Craft or artistry
 Construction
 Citizenship
 Heritage or Legacy
 Narrative Voice
 Innovation or Design
 Probability
Digital Text









A digital timeline
A life-story
A podcast
Multiple endings
Alternative
perspectives
A soundscape
A digital poem
A news report
A travel tale: Google
Earth
Concepts: Heritage/Perspectives/Innovation/
Representation
 In HSIE students could interview an elder or a community member
and scan their original photos to tell their story. They could create a
diary entry by a soldier at Gallipoli and add footage from YouTube or
Australian Screen such as an interview with Hazlitt as well as a song
such as ‘The Band Played Waltzing Matilda’
 In a unit of work focused on exploring the concept of how
perspectives are represented in a range of texts, students could
create a digital story of their own perspective of their world.
 In Science or Technology Mandatory students could tell the personal
story of a scientist or a famous designer – they could even download
a podcast from
http://www.mos.org/educators/student_resources/podcasts
 In Mathematics students could develop an imaginative piece based
on representation of data or number lines
The Sites
 http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/audiovideo
/sites/about/pages/howto.shtml
 http://www.digi-tales.org/
 http://www.photobus.co.uk/index.php?i
d=2
 http://www.changinglives.com.au/2008/
04/abrar-autumn-and-i.html
 http://www.dipity.com/ - Digital timeline
Inquiry-based Research
“with access to the
vast amount of
information
acquisition is now no
longer the challenge,
but rather it is the
synthesis of that
information that is
the challenge”
(Hawkes, 2001).
Inquiry-based
Research Tasks
 Research Question:
Open-ended and
contentious so that it
invites debate and
argument
 Webquests: Create
original quests
 Wikis: Class
encyclopaedia
 Faction: Narrative
hyperlinking to facts
Inquiry-based Research Task
 Topic: Shakespeare’s Macbeth
 Concept: Representation
 Task: Pose a research question
that you would like answered
about why Shakespeare
represented Macbeth as a
villain. Present your findings
using the medium of
production that would appeal
to your fellow year 9 students.
Project-based learning
 The concept
 The question
 The research:
locate, evaluate
and synthesise
 Probing questions
 The presentation
 Supposition
Project-based learning
 Concept: Sustainability
 Question: Why do so many
Australians believe that they do
not need to reduce their global
footprint?
 The tools:
- Online survey:
http://www.zoomerang.com/
- Vox pops
- Blog
- Internet
 The Product: Wiki, Ning, Moodle,
short film, digital report…
Enquiry-based
Learning
 Learning is driven by a
process of enquiry
owned by the student
 Starts with an authentic
‘scenario’ and with the
guidance of a facilitator,
students identify their
own issues and
questions
 Develops deeper
understanding of the
subject-matter
Challenging
Possibilities
 Integrated stage 3 & 4
authentic assessment task
 A Middle Years’ ICT project
such as Digital Narratives
 Project-based learning
 Peer tutor Naplan project”
years 5 and 7
 Global Citizenship project
such as SurfAid:
http://schools.surfaidinter
national.org/
How Will they Get There?
Explicit teaching strategies &
Learning tools
How will they get there?
 Identify the literacy
demands of the
outcomes and key
learning ideas you have
selected
 Plan the explicit teaching
strategies to engage and
support the students
 Aim for depth!
 Learning is recursive!
How will they get
there?
 Build the learning!
 Models, annotated
samples, scaffolds
 Metalanguage: the
glossary
 The tools: graphic
organisers; technology
 Resources
Caution: Cape
does not enable
user to fly!