General Submission Information

Please format assessments using 12-point font and 1.5 spacing.

All assessments must be submitted electronically. Turnitin plagiarism detection software is used to check all written assessments. It is the responsibility of all students to ensure that their submitted work is in a format compatible with Turnitin software for plagiarism checking. Submissions must meet the required file type and formatting specifications outlined in the assessment guidelines. Failure to submit work in an acceptable format may result in delays in processing your submission and potential penalties for non-compliance with assessment requirements. If you are unsure about the file format or have technical difficulties, it is your responsibility to seek assistance before the submission deadline. Students should be careful to check that they submit the correct file for an assessment as no re-submissions will be accepted after the due date and time, including instances where students upload an incorrect file. It is not the responsibility of unit staff to contact students who have failed to submit assessments. If you have any missing items of assessment, it is your responsibility to contact the unit convenor.

Students can use Turnitin’s Originality Report as a learning tool to improve their academic writing if this option is made available in the unit.

Word limits are strictly applied. Work above the word limit will not be marked.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Students should be aware of and apply the University policy on academic integrity (see: https://policies.mq.edu.au/document/view.php?id=3).

Unauthorised use of generative artificial  intelligence

occurs when a student uses material produced by a generative artificial intelligence in an academic exercise, without authorisation and submits it as their own work.

Unauthorised use of generative artificial intelligence may include using generative artificial intelligence to:

• produce or retrieve information and then using that information in an academic exercise;
• paraphrase text;
• increase or enhance the quality of an academic exercise, beyond the purposes permitted within the academic exercise;
• produce an answer for a task or quiz; and/or produce non-text-based work and then using that non-text-based work in an academic exercise.

Any student suspected of using unauthorised AI in an assignment will be referred to the Faculty of Arts Discipline Committee. Penalties can include reduced marks for an assessment, being awarded '0' for a task, failing an entire unit, being excluded from a course of study. Please see each assessment task description/rubric for expectations about AI.

Special Consideration / Late Penalties

Applications for extensions must be made via Service Connect.

Late submission penalty

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day to late submissions, up until the 7th calendar day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue.

Important to note:

• Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs) will be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application.
• Students should not request an informal arrangement from their tutor, lecturer or Unit Convenor (or equivalent).
• Where an application for Special Consideration is approved and the outcome is an extension to the due date of a task, submissions that are received after the new due date will be subject to late penalties that are calculated from the new due date. This only applies where the outcome is an extension to the due date – see the Special Consideration Policy for a schedule of all possible outcomes.

Marking

All assessments are marked using a rubric.

Marking of all assessments is moderated by the Unit Convenor.

University Policy on Grading

Assignments will be awarded grades ranging from HD to F according to guidelines set out in the University's Grading System and University Assessment Policy.

To attain a pass or higher grade in Professional Experience a student must obtain a satisfactory in both the Professional Experience component and a pass or higher grade in the academic component. For Professional Experience units the Professional Experience Evaluation Report is marked as Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory. The Macquarie Teaching Performance Assessment (MQTPA - in final WIL/PEx units) is marked as Not met, Met or Exceeds.

Results

Results shown in iLearn, or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed because they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit Service Connect.

Withdrawing from this unit

If you are considering withdrawing from this unit, please seek academic advice via Service Connect before doing so as this unit may be a co-requisite or prerequisite for units in the following sessions and may impact your course progression.

Unit Structure

The unit structure can be found in the university timetable Creating your timetable - Enrolling | Macquarie University, Sydney (mq.edu.au). In the tutorials students will discuss issues and questions arising from the lectures and prescribed readings. They are expected to base their arguments/discussions on evidence from published research and other relevant material. There will be a supporting iLearn site for the unit providing additional readings, links and materials.  

Student workload and requirements

Before commencing this unit, please ensure that you can meet all requirements, including workload requirements, attendance expectations (if relevant to your mode of enrolment), and assessment submission requirements.

Credit points indicate the approximate hours that a student is expected to spend studying in order to pass a unit. One credit point equals 15 hours; thus, students are expected to spend approximately 10 hours per week (including the two weeks of mid-session recess) studying this unit (i.e. approximately 150hr). Study includes viewing all lectures, participating in tutorials and learning activities, completing set readings and background readings, completing assignments, and using the unit’s iLearn site.

Independent study is strongly encouraged in this unit as is participation in online discussions and the completion of study tasks posted on iLearn.

Please ensure that you have sufficient time to dedicate to your studies before attempting this unit. We are sympathetic that students often have significant domestic and work-related responsibilities. To be fair to our staff and to other students, however, these cannot be used to justify incomplete work or extension requests.

Classes and attendance

This unit includes students enrolled in ECHE8230 and ECHX8230. 

All students are expected to:

• View all lectures in the unit.
• View lectures and complete any online tasks before or during the weeks in which these are scheduled.

• Be familiar with relevant lectures and complete the specified reading preparation before scheduled classes and online activities. 
• Actively contribute to online discussions and scheduled classes.
• Complete and submit all assignments.

Students enrolled in ECHE8230 are expected to attend all scheduled classes relevant to their mode of enrolment. Attendance will be recorded. Classes start in Week 2. 

Activities completed during classes are essential for building the core knowledge and skills required to demonstrate the learning outcomes of this unit and to meet ACECQA requirements.

Required texts

There is one required textbook: 

Fellowes, J. & Oakley, G. (2024). Language, literacy and early childhood education (4^th ed.). Oxford University Press.

There is also one required curriculum document: 

Australian Government Department of Education [AGDE] (2022). Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia (V2.0). Australian Government Department of Education for the Ministerial Council.

NOTE: There are also other required readings that will be available through the library’s website and/or the unit’s iLearn website. 

Access and technical assistance  

Information for students about access to the online component of this unit is available at ilearn.mq.edu.au/login/MQ/. You will need to enter your student username and password. 

Please do NOT contact the Unit Convenor regarding iLearn technical help.  

No extensions will be given for any technical issues. Allow enough time for your submissions.  

Assistance is available from IT Helpdesk ph: 1800 67 4357, or log a request at help.mq.edu.au. OneHelp is the online IT support service for both students and staff. 

This unit requires students to use several ICT and software skills: 

• Internet access: The iLearn site contains materials for this unit; it is also required for the online submission of all Assessment Tasks, and for the use of Turnitin submission for ALL tasks.   

• Word processing, visual representations, and document formatting: You are required to use an appropriate form of software to present your assignments.  

• Uploading of assessment tasks to iLearn. 

Relation between assessment task and learning outcomes

ACECQA Standards

The Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) standards addressed in this unit are:

1. Psychology and child development

  1.1 Learning, development and care

  1.2. Language development

  1.6. Diversity, difference and inclusivity

  1.8. Transitions and continuity of learning (including transition to school).

2. Teaching Pedagogies

  2.1. Alternative pedagogies and curriculum approaches

  2.2. Play-based pedagogies

  2.4. Teaching methods and strategies

  2.5. Children with diverse needs and backgrounds

  2.6. Working with children who speak languages other than, or in addition to, English

  2.7. Contemporary society and pedagogy

3. Education and curriculum studies

  3.1. Early Years Learning Framework

  3.4. Language and literacy

  3.5. English as an additional language

  3.9. Curriculum Planning, programming and evaluation

4. Family and community contexts

  4.1. Developing family and community partnerships

  4.3. ATSI perspectives

  4.4. Socially inclusive practice

  4.5. Culture, diversity and inclusion

6. Early childhood professional practice leadership

  6.4. Advocacy

  6.5. Research

A detailed and dated schedule with weekly readings is provided on iLearn.

Topics covered in this unit:

• What is involved in learning to read?

• Multiliteracies

• Emergent literacy, oral language and shared reading

• Emergent literacy: comprehension-oriented aspects

• Emergent literacy: code-breaking aspects (phonological and phonemic awareness, alphabet knowledge, brief introduction to phonics)

• Emergent writing in the years prior to school

• Learning language: infants and toddlers (1): Language learning in the first three years

• Learning language: infants and toddlers (2): Supporting language development in home vs. group care contexts

• Authentic language and literacy assessment in the early years

• Language, literacy and culture (1): Home and family influences on language and literacy development

• Language, literacy and culture (2): Social positioning, language and literacy

• Language, literacy and bilingualism: Children learning English as an additional language (EAL)

• Australian Indigenous Languages, Aboriginal English, language and literacy