Literacy and Numeracy Intervention

This subject is not offered in 2016.

170 hours

Admission to the Master of Teaching (Secondary)

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject introduces teacher candidates to forms of literacy and numeracy intervention designed to meet the learning needs of Year 7 and 8 students who experience difficulties. Teacher candidates will work in schools analysing school students’ needs, and studying teaching interventions and their effectiveness. Topics include: policy imperatives that support literacy and numeracy intervention; research data on the factors that impact on school students’ learning; screening tests and assessment data to identify school students’ needs; types of intervention, structures and programs for intervention in schools and an evaluation of these. The literacy component of the subject will address literacy development in the lower secondary school. It will introduce teacher candidates to literacy intervention programs and examine the features of language and literacy targeted in these interventions. Teacher candidates will institute designated aspects of one of these programs in their schools and collect data on the intervention’s impact. The numeracy component of the subject will cover assessment and teaching of mathematical topics that are foundations for secondary schooling. These include place value, decimals, fractions, mental computation, number sense, and number operations. Teacher candidates will examine key progression points, common misconceptions, how to assess school students’ learning needs, and appropriate teaching strategies and resources.

The aim of this subject is to introduce teacher candidates to the policy, research and processes that support interventions for school students experiencing difficulty in literacy and numeracy in Years 7 and 8 of the secondary school. Teacher candidates will be able to:

• Review education policies and research studies that highlight the difficulties some students in secondary schools experience in literacy and numeracy;
• Review and evaluate forms of literacy and numeracy intervention designed to target secondary students’ learning needs;
• Gather, analyse and interpret assessment and diagnostic data to make informed judgements about secondary students’ learning needs;
• Diagnose individual needs and implement appropriate interventions
• Identify resources for intervention;
• Examine the effectiveness of interventions;
• Report on the outcomes of diagnosis and intervention strategies.

There are 2 assessment tasks:

• A case study of a literacy intervention (2000 words) due mid semester (50%);
• A report (2000 words) due end of semester (50%).

This subject has a minimum hurdle requirement of 80% attendance at all tutorials, seminars and workshops.

Collection of readings

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

On completion of this subject, teacher candidates will have the knowledge, skills and understanding to enable them to:

• Be skilled communicators who can effectively articulate and justify their practices as knowledgeable agents of change;
• Understand the significance of developing their practice on the basis of research evidence;
• Work in teams with skills in cooperation, communication and negotiation
• Have a conscious personal and social values base.