ADFD458 - Catering for Diversity in the Classroom

10 cp
Prerequisites Nil
Teaching Organisation

An ongoing challenge for schools is how to meet the educational needs of every student. This unit brings together the learning and teaching of all curriculum areas, highlighting mathematics and literacy and the diverse backgrounds and needs of students in the early childhood and primary classroom. The aim of this unit is to develop preservice teachers’ knowledge, understandings and skills in creating inclusive classrooms to effectively meet the educational needs of all students. Preservice teachers will explore teaching practices designed specifically to take account of a range of factors that impinge on children’s learning such as cultural backgrounds, learning difficulties, attitudes and abilities. Preservice teachers will investigate theoretical perspectives and best practice to develop their knowledge of strategies for addressing the needs of a diverse range of students: Indigenous Australian students, students with special educational needs, students from language backgrounds other than English, students with challenging behaviours, and gifted and talented students. Individual states will place particular emphasis on one or more of these areas to reflect employment requirements.

Preservice teachers will extend their studies of a variety of methods and teaching strategies to accommodate learning differences based on a social justice paradigm of equal educational opportunity for all students within the regular early childhood setting or classroom.