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Reflecting on Approaches to Teaching

Communication and Language

Module Guide 2021/22

Level 7

Semester 1

30 Credits

Module Leader: Ms Kath Brandsby Module code: 77-706253-AF

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Table of Contents

Reflecting on Approaches to Teaching 1

2020/21 1

SHU Attendance Statement 3

Outline of the Module 4

Module Learning Outcomes 4

Learning and Teaching on the Module 4

Responsibilities 5

Module Sessions 6

Independent Learning 7

Appendices 8

Appendix A - Assessment Overview and Detail 8

Appendix B - Feedback Rubric 17

Appendix C - Reassessment 21

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SHU Attendance Statement

The University is committed to supporting student achievement and facilitating full student

engagement with their studies. The University's approach to learning places high value on the

active engagement of all students with their peers, teaching staff and other

external/professional experts. The University recognises that a high level of attendance

contributes significantly to academic achievement, retention, progression, and the successful

completion of the course. It also contributes to the enhancement of the quality of the learning

experience and the development of core skills such as teamwork and professional

communication and behaviour.

It is therefore essential that all students take responsibility for their learning by engaging

fully with their course and that as a minimum students should:

• attend punctually all scheduled and timetabled learning and teaching activities and

sessions unless unable to do so for reasons of illness or other extenuating circumstances

• engage with and participate in all learning activities

• submit all assessments by scheduled hand-in dates

• attend all scheduled assessments (for example, in class tests or presentations)

• reflect on and act on feedback on assessed work

• undertake independent learning in support of teaching delivery as directed by academic

staff.

If you have a circumstance which means your attendance is being adversely affected, please discuss this with your module tutor and/or the Student Support Team (via Hallam Help on the ground floor of Charles Street). More support information is also available on Blackboard and/or from staff at Helpdesk.

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How does this module form an integral part of your course.

By engaging successfully with this module you will learn how to:

How the teaching and learning is delivered and how it will support you:

Outline of the Module

The aim of the module is to support the development of advanced professional skills alongside underpinning theoretical and academic knowledge of young children's language and communication development. You will be introduced to some key aspects of children's language and communication development, focusing on ways adults can support and enhance learning within this prime area. The assessment for this module will require you to analyse instances of talk and reflect on ways in which your practice can be enhanced to meet the language and communication needs of the children you work with.

Module Learning Outcomes

• Identify and explain in sufficient detail for purpose key concepts, theories and models relating to young children’s development, well-being and learning, including some at the forefront of current thinking.

• Critically evaluate and make judgments about early years learning environments to inform the development of effective practice.

• Exercise personal initiative to identify, justify and use methods of analysis and enquiry to investigate aspects of early years professional practice.

• Identify, access, use and critically review relevant aspects of current research, and academic and professional publications from the field of early childhood education and care.

Learning and Teaching on the Module

You will participate in tutor led sessions where key issues relating to language and communication development will be introduced and addressed. All sessions will be led by SHU tutors and/or expert teachers. You will be required to participate in self - directed learning which may take several forms including guided reading followed by discussion and regular reflections on your practice. Undertaking audits relating to your settings provision and sharing and discussing these to complete a group presentation. You will also engage in gathering examples of your interactions with children in your placement, school or setting, and reflecting on these. Where this is not possible you will be given video recordings to observe and comment on. Collaborative approaches to teaching and learning will form an integral part of our approach.

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In the case of lectures not being delivered in University (face to face) lectures will be delivered via zoom or BB collaborate. Self -directed learning materials will also be made available through Blackboard in the ( Support Resources folder). These will relate to topics generally related to the Module content as well as more specifically associated with the focused area of study for the week. You can also use the Library Gateway and the Resource List online to follow up your own specific areas of interest.

Responsibilities

In relation to this module TUTORS have a responsibility to:

• Provide and deliver relevant and up-to-date teaching and learning materials.

• Provide direction and engagement of discussion, debate, analysis, and exploration of ideas.

• Provide formative feedback that will enable students to understand how to improve their performance and develop academic skills.

• In workshops and tutorials, provide students with support and guidance in the

research and preparation of their assessed work.

• Make summative feedback available to students in line with University's feedback policy.

In relation to this module STUDENTS have a responsibility to:

• Engage with the required reading and/or preparation prior to each week's lectures and workshops.

• Engage with and complete formative tasks including pre and post session

activities.

• Actively participate in the workshops.

• Check submission arrangements including in relation to ethical review (available on the assessment diary) and submit accordingly.

• Participate in module evaluation at the end of the academic year.

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Module Sessions- see weekly plan for more detailed guidance

Week and date

Session title

16/9/21

Overview of Module 1 and Level 7 ness.

In this session we will focus on what it means to undertake post graduate

study at Level 7 and you will assess the skills you already have and decide

which skills you need to develop.

17/9/21 In this workshop you will be given detailed advice and guidance about

using the Assessment rubrics to help guide and plan your approach.

24/9/21

Assessment workshop 1 We will discuss ethical research and support you to complete your ethics

application form and discuss the steps you need to take in your setting.

30/9/21 Assessment workshop 2

In this workshop we will focus on the adult role in supporting language

and communication development. We will consider approaches and skills

such as Sustained Shared Thinking as well as the role of relationships

and emotions.

1/10/21 Assessment workshop 3

We will consider our role in supporting children who have English as an

additional language develop their communication and language skills.

Tutorial 1

Assessment workshop 4

Curriculum design and building comprehension

Tutorial 2

15/10/21 Assessment workshop 5

Supporting literacy development and the role of communication. Tutorial 3

12/11/21 Assessment workshop 6

In this workshop we will consider ways in which we can support babies

and very young childrens language and communication development. We

will return to the TS ( EY) and consider how to use these as a tool to

reflect on our practice.

Tutorial 4- Feedback on draft literature review

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The statement below clarifies how you are expected to prepare for the lectures

and seminars/ workshops:

Tutorials Date Tutorial Focus

1 1/10/21 Academic literacy skills i.e.

searching and retrieving appropriate literature. Progress with ethics form

2 8/10/21 Assessment check in, key dates re draft. Literature review

3 15/10/21 Discussion of approach

and check in re ethical approval requirements

4 12/11/21 Data Analysis- review a transcript

Independent Learning

Successful engagement with this module will require that you actively reflect. Each week you will be expected to complete some self -directed study work. This

is outlined in the "Learning Materials" section of the Blackboard site, in order for you to better plan your study schedules.

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The information below outlines in detail the assessment task associated with this module. (Appendix A). The Feedback rubric will support you to understand how this task will be marked ( Appendix B). The task for re-assessment is detailed in Appendix C.

Appendices

The three appendices together make up the Assessment Brief for this module. You can find them on the module's Blackboard site in the 'Assessment' section.

In this section we have collected together all the important information relating to how your learning will be assessed on this module. We begin with an overview of the

assessment, and then discuss the assessment and feedback timeline before exploring each assessment task in more detail. Finally, we outline some important points to note and the process of online submission.

Appendix A - Assessment Overview and Detail

(a) Assessment Overview

Assessment Tasks at a glance…

The assignment for this module consists of 1 task in 3 sections which makes up a

single module mark with an overall module pass mark of 50%.

Assessment Tasks [Task Length]

% weighting of overall module mark

Submission Point*

1.Written essay [5000 words

equivalent, max 5500 ] plus appendices

100%

End of module

* For specific submission deadlines, please consult your Assessment Diary online.

You can access your Assessment Statement via the ‘Assessment Statement/final results’ link in the Assessment essentials module or visiting My Student Record . Go to the ‘My Assessments’ page and then select ‘Assessment Statement’

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Assessment workshops1- 6: Each assessment workshop you will be given information that will be useful to your assessment. Ensure that you complete any set reading, individual or group tasks identif ied during the sessions.

Tutorials 1-4 will provide an opportunity to discuss key aspects of your assessment with your ULT

There will be an opportunity to submit a draft of up to 1500 words on for feedback on 14/10/21

Task 1 Feedback: …… Less than 50%?……………………………..………

(b) Assessment and Feedback Timeline

In-Module Retrieval Opportunity: or resubmission later in the summer ……………………………………………….

Task 1 Assessment Deadline: check your online Assessment Diary for the actual date of the hand in - …

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Task 1 (100%) A valid attempt in this task will be:

(c) Assessment in Detail

Don't forget to illustrate your work with examples from your practice. Make sure there is adequate academic literature about your chosen challenges to support and develop your ideas.

Assessment Criteria

In this task you will be judged on: The extent to which key concepts, theories and models which relate to children's development, learning and well-being have been identified and critically evaluated

The extent to which a method of analysis has been identified, justified and analyzed in order to investigate early years professional practice.

The extent to which appropriate academic literature has been identified, accessed and critically reviewed.

The extent to which early years environments have been critically reviewed in relation to effective practice.

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Assignment Brief The assessment for this module asks you to write an essay in the form of a reflective account. This should be submitted on the pro- forma which is available in the Assessment folder on this modules BB site. The following assessment brief gives a comprehensive outline of the assessment task and the steps you should go through to complete the task.

Specific guidance for this assessment

This assessment comprises of four parts, in order to complete these sections you will have to 1) Gain ethical consent to undertake this research in the setting 2) engage in data collection in your setting or placement 3) Attend online and face to face lectures 4) Engage in self -directed reading (see the Reading List online and also the peer reviewed journal articles in the

assessment folder) 5) Engage in reflection in conjunction with reviewing the Teaching Standards (Early Years).

Stage 1

In order to gain ethical approval you will need to 1) complete a UREC 3 form which will need to be signed by the setting gatekeeper and your ULT 2) Produce an Information sheet and a parents consent form 3)

Stage 2

Select 3-4 children who you will communicate with in class or continuous provision and record your ‘talk’ with (NB you are really investigating how you talk to children and assessing the extent to which your talk has the desired impact). You will need to use a digital recording devise and then transcribe these instances of talk into a word document when you have completed this

task. If you are unable to complete this face-to-face data collection you will be advised on how to proceed.

Stage 3

A short literature review which relates to the topic of language and communication development. detailed information will be given in the taught session and will also be available online to illustrate what a literature review

is.

Stage 4

You will need to use the academic literature to support you to write about the approach you took to undertaking this research ensuring that it was conducted ethically.

Stage 5

You will review your instances of talk and appraise them in line with accepted guidance of good practice. In previous years trainees have used the SSTEW

scales; ECAT and Julie Fisher i.e., Chapter 6 ‘Wait, Watch, Wonder’ to help them do this.

PART 6 You will reflect on your learning throughout this module in relation to a selection of appropriately chosen Teacher Standards (EY’s). This summary will show how you

have made links between your reading and practice. You will identify key principles/ideas/themes explored in your reading and which emerged from your

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reflections on practice. You will find it useful to write in the first person when referring to your setting experience. Throughout these reflections identify any relevant DfE Teacher's Standards (Early Years) (DfE 2013) that you demonstrated or that could be relevant to the situation. These should be noted in brackets e.g.

[TS(EY) 2.5.]

You should consider:

• Your role as a part of the learning environment in supporting children's language and communication.

• Any adaptations / improvements you have made to the environment to ensure that it supports language and communication.

• The standards you have addressed in completing this assignment

• The impact completing this assignment has had on enabling you to address these standards

• Areas for your professional learning and development.

• This assignment should be 5000 words in total (+/- 500 words)

• You must put your transcribed and annotated instances of talk in as appendices (these do not contribute to the word length)

• You should refer to the following guide http://libguides.shu.ac.uk/referencing to help ensure that your reference list is produced in accordance with SHU agreed conventions.

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You will submit your no later than the date/time stated in your assessment diary. You should ensure a complete reference list (using SHU APA academic conventions) is included in your presentation. You will present your presentation and in doing this you must:

• give reasons for your choice of issue by making reference to your professional

experience.

• identify and explore relevant issues or questions.

• attempt to draw some conclusions, appraising and evaluating the impact of relevant

leadership/ quality improvement initiatives.

General advice

• You will demonstrate high levels of professionalism and maintain confidentiality and anonymity when producing this work.

• Your presentation must be legible and include your name, student ID number, module title and module code.

• Please note that when referencing in your work and when compiling a reading list, you must use the SHU APA system. Links to information about referencing can be found on the Learning Centre’s web page. The gateway or portal which gives to access to this information can be found at: https://libguides.shu.ac.uk/referencing

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If you have a circumstance which means that you cannot complete the work on time and

submit it by the stated deadline you must discuss this with your module tutor / Student Experience Team (via Helpdesk) at least 24 hours before the deadline for submission. If

your reasons are acceptable under the regulations you will be advised accordingly.

More information is available on Blackboard and/or from staff at Helpdesk.

Important Points to Notes

1. Students with learning contracts are encouraged to speak to their module tutor or module leader if they have any questions/queries/concerns about either task.

2. Please note that due to the nature of the assessment (i.e. a presentation delivered to an audience), this module is exempt from extension request.

3. All submissions on this module will be done online via the module's BB site. Further guidance about online submission can be found at the end of this document. This task is included in the University's late submission policy. You are able to submit the task within one working day (i.e. 24 hours) of the deadline, your marks will be capped at the minimum pass mark. For this module, this is 50%. · Any work submitted after this point will receive a zero mark.

24 hours is defined as the same time as the original submission deadline on the next University working day. Weekends and other days the University is not open are not counted as working days.

4. By submitting your work, you certify that it is your own work, and that the work of other people is duly referenced and acknowledged in accordance with the University's Academic Misconduct Policy ▪ By submitting a draft of your work to Turnitin, you can identify matching sources of

text against a database of academic sources, student papers and websites. We will be giving you access to this tool in the 'Assessment' section of the module's BB site. It enables you to identify the level of matching words, poor citation and copying and to assess the originality of the writing. You can use the information in the report to help identify /avoid. If you want to explore Turnitin further, click here.

5. The presentation will be assessed using assessment criteria and a feedback rubric (see Appendix 2) by one of the module team.

6. In the initial stage of marking, a process called standardisation takes place through which we ensure that marking undertaken by each marker is reviewed and assessment criteria are being fairly and consistently applied. This will mean that some students will have their work marked by two academic members of staff, the module leader and the module tutor.

7. Following the completion of all marking, a representative sample of assessments will be internally moderated. This is a further cross-checking process to ensure consistency and equity of marking across the module.

8. Following First-Sit assessment, In-Module Retrieval will be offered to students who receive below 50% for the assessment task. This is when you can resubmit a reworked version of your

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assignment, following feedback in order to achieve a pass grade - the maximum mark available is 50%

9. If you opt to participate in In-Module Retrieval for the assignment, you will need to: ▪ look out for an email from your Module Leader (to your SHU email address) shortly

after the marks have been released. This will give you more details and tell you what you need to do next.

▪ refer to your Assessment Diary for the in-module retrieval submission date.

10. If you are referred or deferred in your assessment task, you will need to: ▪ consult the relevant Reassessment on this Module document (section 10), which will

be available on Blackboard following the official publication of your results. ▪ check your Assessment Diary online for the submission date.

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Remember: Sheffield Hallam University subscribes to Microsoft Office 365 which provides Microsoft Office to all staff and students free of charge.

You also have access to a range of IT facilities (including laptop loans) on campus and can find your nearest available PC anywhere on campus using SHUgo.

If you have any difficulties uploading your assignment, please contact the Charles

Street Hallam Help Point on 0114 225 2222 and ensure you leave yourself enough time to solve potential (technical) problems prior to the deadline time stated in your

Assessment Diary.

(d) Online Submission

It is your responsibility to ensure that your work is successfully submitted. Always check your email receipt and the submission point again following each submission.

You are required to submit your presentation through Blackboard before the assessment day when you deliver your presentation. The last submitted version of your presentation will be the one we will mark and provide feedback on. If you want to familiarise yourself with this process, click here if you are reading an e version of the module guide, or go to https://academic.shu.ac.uk/assessment4students/submitting-work-sitting-exams/submitting- work/

if you are reading a hard copy of the guide!

Remember, you are also required to ensure your files are: ▪ not password protected ▪ have filenames which use only letters, numbers, hyphens and underscores and are

less than 72 characters in length. ▪ in a format which enables us to provide online comments and feedback. For this

module, please ensure your files ends in .doc or .docx (for word documents) or .ppt or .pptx (for PowerPoint documents).

Not doing so may result in your work being awarded 0 for non-submission.

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Appendix B - Feedback Rubric

On the following pages you will f ind the feedback rubrics which will be used to provide feedback on your submitted presentation. They are in the form of differentiated descriptions of the assessment criteria (by classification). These offer a brief description of what you must demonstrate in order to achieve a particular grade against each assessment criterion.

• In this module, we will take a holistic approach to assessing your work. This means, within each task, each criterion works together with others and contributes to the overall judgement. Therefore, assessment criteria and feedback rubrics provide clear, but not exact indicators for assessing.

• Summative feedback has two main purposes: to provide feedback directly related to the assessment task and to identify points for ongoing self-development. Feedback will contribute to the personal and professional development process that is an integral part of the student experience on this course.

Learning Outcomes Refer (<50%) Pass (50-59%) Merit (60-69%) Distinction (70%+)

Identify and explain in sufficient detail for purpose key concepts, theories and models relating to young children’s development, well-being and learning, including some at the forefront of current thinking AC The extent to which key concepts, theories and models which relate to children's development, learning and well-being have been identified and critically evaluated

No relevant aspects of children's development, wellbeing and learning (0-3 or 3-5 years) are selected or explained.

Concepts, theories and models are irrelevant, absent or covered in insufficient detail.

Some relevant aspects of children's development, wellbeing and learning (0-3 or 3-5 years years) are selected and explained.

Some relevant concepts, theories and models relating to communication and language are identified and explained.

A range of aspects of children's development, wellbeing and learning (0-3 or 3-5 years) are selected and explained.

A range of relevant concepts, theories and models relating to communication and language are identified and explained in detail.

A range of aspects of children's development, wellbeing and learning (0-3 or 3-5 years) are selected and explained in a detailed way.

A range of current and relevant concepts, theories and models relating to communication and language are identified, fully explained and integrated into a coherent account.

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Learning Outcomes Refer (<50%) Pass (50-59%) Merit (60-69%) Distinction (70%+)

Exercise personal initiative to identify, justify and use methods of analysis and enquiry to investigate aspects of early years professional practice AC: The extent to which a method of analysis has been identified,justified and analysed in order to investigate early years professional practice.

No justification and/or inappropriate method of enquiry used to investigate early years professional practice in relation to communication and language.

No explanation and / or inappropriate positives and limitations of a method of enquiry used to early years professional practice.

Justifies a relevant method of enquiry used to investigate early years professional practice in relation to communication and language

Explain some relevant positives and limitations of a method of enquiry used to early years professional practice and generate new understanding

Justifies a relevant method of enquiry used to investigate early years practice in relation to communication and language and generate new understanding

Explain the key positives and limitations of a method of enquiry used to early years professional practice and generate new understanding

Justifies a relevant method of enquiry used to investigate early years practice in relation to communication and language in a systematic way and to generate new understanding

Explain in a comprehensive way the positives and limitations of a method of enquiry used to early years professional practice and generate new understanding

Identify, access, use and critically review relevant aspects of current research, and academic and professional publications from the field of early childhood education and care AC The extent to which appropriate academic literature has been identified, accessed and critically reviewed.

Insuf f icient links are made to appropriate research, academic and professional literature.

Some relevant links are made to some appropriate research, academic and professional literature and demonstrates some criticality.

A range of relevant links are made to key relevant research, academic and professional literature and these are critically reviewed.

A wide range of relevant links are made to key relevant research, academic and professional literature including recent developments. The literature is critically reviewed.

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Learning Outcomes Refer (<50%) Pass (50-59%) Merit (60-69%) Distinction (70%+)

Critically evaluate and make judgements about early years learning environments to inform the development of effective practice AC The extent to which early years environments have been critically reviewed in relation to effective practice.

No / inappropriate information used to evaluate the learning environment for communication and language.

No / inappropriate links between the evaluation of the environment and personal progress in ef fective practice against the Teacher Standards (Early Years)

Information used to evaluate the environment for communication and language is relevant.

Appropriate links are made between the evaluation of the environment and personal progress in effective practice against the Teacher Standards (Early Years)

Information used to evaluate the learning environment for communication and language is f rom a number of relevant sources and is synthesised

Several clear links are made between the evaluation of the environment and personal progress in effective practice against the Teacher Standards (Early Years)

Information used to evaluate the learning environment for communication and language is from a range of relevant sources is synthesised

Comprehensive and clear links are made between the evaluation of the environment and personal progress in ef fective practice against the Teacher Standards (Early Years)

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Appendix C - Reassessment

Following First-Sit assessment, In-Module Retrieval (IMR) will be offered to students achieving below 50% for their assessment tasks. This is when you can resubmit a reworked version of your presentation, soon after receiving feedback, in order to achieve a pass grade - the maximum mark available is 50%. In-module retrieval cannot be given

if you do not attempt the assessment task because the purpose of in-module retrieval is to allow you to rework the same piece of work with the benefit of feedback.

If you opt to participate in In-Module Retrieval for any assessment, you will need to look out for an email from your Module Leader (to your SHU email address) shortly after the marks have been released. This will give you more details and tell you what you need to do next. Refer to your Assessment Diary for the in-module retrieval submission date If you decide not to take up In Module Retrieval then you will be able to resubmit your work in the summer and your work will be capped at 50%. If you do not pass the IMR assessment then you will have another chance to re work your resubmission in the summer providing of course that it is the same task as the first assessment.

Note: You must make a valid attempt at your work for it to carry a mark, this is where you demonstrate engagement with the assessment task set for the module, for example:

A valid attempt at coursework:

• demonstrates that some or all of the assessment criteria and learning outcomes are partially or fully met and

• is capable of carrying a mark.

If you do not make a valid attempt in any of the assessment tasks in the module you will fail the module.

All the details of the assessment and reassessment are to be found on the BB site -

assessment tab.

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This section is to be read in conjunction with Appendix A and B. It details the requirements for reassessment on this module. If you are referred or deferred in this assessment, you will be given the opportunity for reassessment and are required to complete the task as outlined here, please note for referrals, this is a DIFFERENT task to the first sit task:

MODULE TITLE CODE:

77-706253-AF Reflecting on approaches to teaching

TASK:

Essay (first sit)

NOTES:

Please refer to first sit guidance

CONTACT IN CASE OF QUERY:

Ms Sarah Procter sarah.procter@shu.ac.uk 01142256254

Dr Lynne Truelove l.truelove@shu.ac.uk 01142254747

If you would like a 'reassessment tutorial' please contact your ULT.

SUBMISSION DATE:

Please consult your Assessment Statement online.

SUBMISSION DETAILS: Online - see Section (e) in Appendix 1

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