Science

A period of public consultation, with the opportunity to provide feedback on the draft Australian Curriculum in English, Mathematics, Science and History, will occur from: 1 March until 23 May schools across Australia will be trialling the new curriculum over the next three months.

ACARA: Board of Studies: Department of Education and Training: n.htm

This consultation process provides the opportunity to ensure that the Australian Curriculum: Science  Is a quality Curriculum  Is clearly understood and can be implemented by teachers at all stages of their career

The purpose of the Department’s consultation process is to initially:  Brief DET teachers about the draft Australian Curriculum: Science K -10  Seek feedback from DET teachers about the draft Australian Curriculum  Identify issues for implementation of the Australian Curriculum

Online Consultation forums have been established so that you can have a say

Feedback will be collected via forums. To enrol in the online forums for the Australian Curriculum DET follow this link to the self enrolment page. Complete the form and a password will be ed to you at your DET account.

Take some time to explore the Draft Australian Science Curriculum

Students develop:  an interest in science and a curiosity and willingness to explore the world they live in  an ability to investigate questions about the world using scientific inquiry methods, drawing critical, evidence-based conclusions  an ability to communicate their scientific understandings and findings to a range of audiences  an ability to solve problems and make informed, evidence-based decisions  an understanding of historical and cultural aspects of science as well as contemporary science issues and activities and an understanding of the diversity of careers related to science

Science curriculum strands Science Understandings refers to facts, concepts, principles, laws, theories and models that have been established by scientists over time. Science inquiry skills involve posing questions, planning, conducting and critiquing investigations, collecting, analysing and interpreting evidence and communicating findings. Science as a human endeavour highlights the need for informed, evidence-based decision making about current and future applications of science. It acknowledges, moral, ethical and social implications of science practice.

Curriculum focus: K-2 awareness of self and the local world  Exploration:  Observation:  Order:  Change:  Questioning and speculation: Curriculum focus: 3-6 recognising questions that can be investigated scientifically and investigating them  Patterns  Systems  Relationships  Evidence and explanations

 Literacy  Numeracy  ICT  thinking skills  Creativity  self management  Teamwork  intercultural understanding  ethical behaviour  social competence.

 Indigenous perspectives, opportunity to learn about, acknowledge and respect the history and culture of Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islanders  sustainable patterns of living  skills, knowledge and understandings related to Asia and Australia’s engagement with Asia.

Content organiserContent descriptionContent elaborationAchievement standardResources Content description specify what teachers are expected to teach. They include the knowledge, skills and understanding for each learning area at each year level. Achievement Standard describes the quality of learning (the depth of understanding, extent of knowledge and sophistication of skill) expected of students at each year level.

 2. Interactions of living things  Interactions between living things in a habitat, including simple food chains in local environments (S4SU2)  exploring ways that living things interact with their environment and each other  investigating living things (organisms) in a habitat and the functions they serve (producers, consumers, decomposers)  exploring the ways that living things (organisms) can cause changes (beneficial and detrimental) to the environments in which they live  using food chains to show feeding relationships in a habitat  recognising that most food chains start with a green plant Content organiser Content description Content elaboration

 Choose a year  Look at the strands, content descriptions, content elaboration and achievement standards.  Are they in line with your expectations of this stage of development?  Choose a strand and then look across year levels. Is there continuity?

Examples that illustrate each content description can be found in content elaborations. These are available for those teachers and others who may require assistance to better understand the content description. Australian Curriculum FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS March 2010 Page 1

 students are able to, with guidance, collaboratively plan and carry out single stage investigations based on their own and others’ questions.  They demonstrate some awareness of fairness in testing and understand the difference between sorting and classifying.  They safely use appropriate tools to support investigation, using formal units of measurement most of the time and record information and data using simple tables and graphs, including using ICT.  They communicate ideas and explanations using a variety of conventional modes (eg diagrams, physical models, reports), and describe positive and negative aspects of their investigations.  They begin to realise that scientists work in particular ways and that discoveries made by scientists impact on our lives every day.  They recognise observable patterns (eg classification of living things) and simple relationships in their living environment, (eg food chains) and cause-and-effect relationships in their physical environment (eg effects of forces on motion, changes to the Earth’s surface).  They identify how science helps us make choices and how it influences both personal and community decisions (eg use of materials and protecting animal habitats).

Teachers will use the Australian Curriculum to identify the most appropriate content (possibly from across several year levels) to teach individual and/ or groups of students. This will take account of the fact that in each class there will be a range of prior achievement (below, at and above the year level expectations) and that teachers will plan to build on current learning. Australian Curriculum FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS March 2010 page 3

 Is the draft Australian science curriculum useful for and useable by experienced and less experienced teachers as the basis of planning, teaching and assessment of school science?  Does the draft Australian Science Curriculum identify an appropriate range of key concepts and skills for learning for primary students?  Does the draft Australian Science Curriculum allow students to develop a depth of knowledge, skills and understandings about science?  Does the draft Australian Science Curriculum allow enough flexibility for local contexts to be explored?

3. Form and properties of materials  Some materials are composed of observable structure or parts (such as fibres, crystals, layers or grains) and structure or smaller parts can influence the overall properties of materials (S5SU3)

3. Form and properties of materials  Some materials are composed of observable structure or parts (such as fibres, crystals, layers or grains) and structure or smaller parts can influence the overall properties of materials (S5SU3) Content Elaboration observing that materials are composed of parts, some of which may not be visible with the naked eye but may be visible with a magnifying glass (eg hair, wool, paper, minerals) describing the observable parts and structure of common materials in grouping them testing materials composed of different parts and drawing conclusions about the influence of the smaller parts or structure on the overall properties of a material investigating materials chosen for certain properties and examining them to see if those materials have similar structure or smaller parts

 Outcomes  Unprescribed  Foundation statements (2 years)  Knowledge content strands (2 years)  Process strand (2 years)  No outcomes  Prescriptive  Achievement standards (1 year)  Content organisers  3 strands  Science inquiry  Science understanding  Human endeavour  Unifying ideas  Students samples

Broad feedback on the curriculum is sought in relation to:  Content coverage  Content clarity  Content placement and sequence  Manageability for teachers  The digital format and layout

More specific feedback on the curriculum is sought in relation to:  Content descriptions  Content elaborations  Achievement standards  Structure of the curriculum  General capabilities  Cross-curriculum dimensions

existing and proposed Primary Connections units implemented in many Australian primary schools currently align with the content of the draft Australian Curriculum for science. Australian Curriculum I N F O R M A T I O N S H E E T March 2010

 Regularly check the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority website for news:  Register for alerts, especially for opportunities to comment on documents  Participate in the ongoing consultation as the Australian curriculum develops Make the time to comment and be heard