TCHR5010: Theory to Practice: Competency and capability of Preschoolers
Assessment 2 Portfolio

Title:

Portfolio

Due Date

Sunday 10th May by 11:59pm

Length 

1500 words

Weight

50%

Submissions

Word document (not PDF) submitted to Turnitin

Resubmissions

Assessment resubmissions are not permitted in this unit.

Task Description

This Portfolio is comprised of two tasks submitted as one Word document.

Write in full paragraphs with no bullet points/numbered lists

Task 1: Professional Philosophy (approximately 500 words)

Write your professional philosophy statement for working with Preschool age children. Include four (4) important aspects of preschoolers’ learning and development that we have been focusing on in the unit from the following: Diversity and inclusion Relationships Quality Transition to school Supporting pro-social competencies Links to relevant theoretical perspectives must be made.

Task 2: Goals and Critical reflection (approximately 1000 words)

Set 4 personal goals that you want to achieve on your forthcoming professional experience with Preschoolers. Critically reflect on these goals and consider 1 challenge that could prevent you from achieving each goal (4 challenges in total). Discuss how you will overcome each challenge. Make links to the unit text, the NQS and EYLF in your discussions.

Referencing and Formatting

• APA Referencing style is required to be used for this task

• Include one reference list for all responses on a new page at the end of task

• A minimum of 8 (eight) academic sources are to be included in the reference list

• At a minimum, your sources for this task will include the EYLF v2.0 (AGDE, 2022), NQS (ACECQA, 2018), the unit text, and a range of broader authoritative literature. Broader literature may include contemporary textbooks, peer reviewed articles, and other authoritative sources

Formatting: Use APA 7 formatting throughout (this includes indented paragraphs, double-lined spacing). No contents page is needed for this task.

Referencing Style Resource About APA 7th - APA 7th Referencing Guide - Library guides at Southern Cross University (scu.edu.au)

Supporting Resources

Academic Integrity – SCU guidelines

Academic Integrity Module - mandatory module for first year students

Learning Zone – workshops, Quick Guides, student appointments

Submision

You must include and complete in full the provided SCU coversheet as part of your submission (this can be found in the Assessment task folder on the TCHR5010 unit Blackboard site).

Submission of your assessment is via TURNITIN. The submission link can be found in the Assessment Tasks and Submission Tab in the TCHR5010 Blackboard site.

Please note:

• It is YOUR responsibility to ensure that you have submitted the correct file andthe FINAL version of your assessment for marking BEFORE the due date/time.

• After you have followed the TurnItin submission it is essential you download the Digital Receipt.

• If you have any difficulty submitting your assignment, please contact Technology Services and make sure that you log a job with them so you have evidence of your attempted submission. To avoid any last-minute problems, make sure you submit well before 11:59pm on the due date.

Late

Submission/Extension

Please refer to the Special Consideration section of Policy https://policies.scu.edu.au/document/view-current.php?id=140

Students wishing to request special consideration to extend the due date of an assessment task must submit a Request for Special Consideration form via their My Enrolment page as early as possible and prior to the original due date for that assessment task, along with any accompanying documents, such as medical certificates.

Late Submissions & Penalties Please refer to the Late Submission & Penalties section of Policy https://policies.scu.edu.au/view.current.php?id=00255

Academic Integrity

At Southern Cross University academic integrity means behaving with the values of honesty, fairness, trustworthiness, courage, responsibility and respect in relation to academic work.

The Southern Cross University Academic Integrity Framework aims to develop a holistic, systematic and consistent approach to addressing academic integrity across the entire University. For more information see the SCU Academic Integrity Framework.

For this task: Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools, such as Grammarly Premium, may be used ethically for this Assessment Task. However, you must write in your own words and provide appropriate references (APA 7). Then, to further refine your assessment you are allowed to use AI tools such as Grammarly and Copilot to check your grammar, spelling and punctuation.

You must acknowledge any GenAI usage, identify what has been used and how, and provide relevant evidence (e.g., screen shots) in an appendix.

If you use GenAI tools without acknowledgment it may result in an academic integrity breach against you as described in the Student Academic and Non-Academic Misconduct Rules, Section 3

For example: You may use Grammarly Premium to provide feedback and suggestions on your writing for academic tone, written expression, grammar, Australian English spelling, and punctuation. You must not use GenAI to generate ideas for this assessment task. If you choose to use these tools, you must include an appendix to demonstrate your work prior to using GenAI. Grades and Feedback

NOTE: Academic Integrity breaches include poor referencing, not identifying direct quotations correctly, close paraphrasing, plagiarism, recycling, misrepresentation, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, fabricating information.

Grades and Feedback

Assessments that have been submitted by the due date will receive an SCU grade. Grades and feedback will be posted to the ‘Grades and Feedback’ section on the Blackboard unit site. Please allow 10 days following submission for marks to be available.

Marking Criteria and % allocation

High Distinction (85-100%)

Distinction (75-84%)

Credit (65 74%)

Pass (50-64%)

Marginal Fail (35 – 49%)

Fail (1-34%)

Absent Fail 0%

Criterion 1 Professional Philosophy Clarity, coherence, and critical engagement with 4 important aspects (e.g., relationships, quality, diversity, inclusion, transition, pro-social development)

Clear, coherent, and critically informed philosophy with excellent integration of unit themes

Well-structured philosophy with good critical thought and integration of key ideas

Sound articulation with some critical engagement; mostly integrates key concepts

Basic articulation with limited depth; concepts addressed but not well developed

Superficial or vague ideas with limited reference to unit content

Philosophy poorly expressed or largely off- topic

Not attempted.

Criterion 2 Goal Setting & Relevance Quality, clarity, and relevance of goals for professional placement; alignment with preschool context

Goals are clear, appropriate, and reflect a strong understanding of professional context

Goals are appropriate and well considered; reflect good understanding of preschool settings

Goals show some relevance and understanding; partially developed

Goals are simplistic or general but meet basic expectations

Goals lack clarity, relevance, or understanding of professional placement

Goals are inappropriate or absent of educational context

Not attempted.

Criterion 3 - Critical Reflection & challenges.

Depth of critical reflection on each goal; identification and analysis of challenges and responses

Thorough reflection and realistic strategies; strong use of references and framework links

Good critical thought and logical responses; appropriate references used

Adequate reflection: challenge resolution lacks some detail; limited reference integration

Some reflection present but minimal depth; weak link to frameworks/literature

Incomplete reflection; minimal understanding of challenges or solutions

Very limited or flawed reflection; no clear resolution strategies

Not attempted.

Criterion 4 Academic Literacy

including correct word count, correct writing conventions, use of professional language and academic referencing (APA 7th style). A minimum of 8 academic references included. (15%)

Accurate academic writing and APA referencing with a strong range of relevant sources. Very minor formatting errors may be present. Word count within +/- 10% of the set word count.

Good academic writing and APA referencing with a range of appropriate sources, though there may be some errors or inconsistencies in formatting. Word count within +/- 10% of the set word count.

Adequate academic writing and referencing with some relevant sources. Some minor and inconsistent errors with formatting. Word count within +/- 10% of the set word count.

Basic academic writing and referencing with limited sources. Some errors and inconsistencies with formatting.

Word count significantly under or over +/- 10% of the set word count for the task

Poor standard of academic writing and referencing with consistent errors in most/all areas Word count significantly under or over +/- 10% of the set word count for the task

Significant improvement needed in academic writing and referencing. Referencing is absent, incorrect, or irrelevant

Not attempted.