This assignment is designed to enable you to analyse and integrate the key philosophical and methodological ideas in the first six weeks of the unit as you create an oral storytelling experience (without the sole use of a printed book) for preschool-aged children. Storytelling is how humans traditionally pass knowledge from generation to generation. It is one of the touchstones described in this unit as an aesthetic-affective process that supports understandings and knowledge of felt and embodied relationships with natural elements.
This assignment supports unit learning outcomes 1 and 2.
You will be planning a storytelling experience for preschool-aged children based on a nature-focused topic of learning, which integrates one philosophy and methodology from the unit. This assignment has three parts.
Part A: Analyse one nature philosophy from the unit (Approximately 600 words)
Choose one nature philosophy described in the unit (i.e. social ecology, ecofeminism, Indigenous perspectives, or posthumanism).
The following questions offer a guide for your analysis (but you are certainly not limited to these):
- What is the worldview (ontology) of this philosophy?
- What are some of the key concepts explored in this philosophy?
- How does it align with nature pedagogies?
- How does this influence your beliefs and actions concerning nature pedagogies?
Part B: Describe one nature methodology from the unit (Approximately 600 words)
Choose one nature methodology described in the unit (i.e. sensing ecologically, ecological narrative inquiry, multispecies ethnography, or material practices).
The following questions offer a guide for your analysis (but you are certainly not limited to these):
- How does this methodology align with your chosen philosophy?
- What are some of the key methods explored in this methodology?
- How does it align with nature pedagogies?
- How will it help you plan your storytelling experience?
Part C: Plan for your storytelling experience (Approximately 800 words)
Now consider how you will integrate the philosophy and methodology you have analysed into a storytelling experience.
Stories support understanding of key ideas that can evoke empathy for another perspective and raise ethical questions about animal welfare, caring for environments, or how species share (or don’t share) resources. Make sure your told story includes intentional teaching about your topic. For example, it may be about teaching children about the concept of water conservation, or extending what children and teachers already know about the life of birds.
Your storytelling experience from a nature-focused topic could:
- be fictional or factual (or a combination of both)
- retell a story idea from a published book or one you create with text and illustrations—remember, this is a ‘telling a story’ task, not a ‘reading a story task’
- adapt the story to make it your own
- include songs, poetry, and props e.g. puppets, small figurines, story stones, or open-ended materials.
Use the following planning guide headings:
- Description of the storytelling experience and choice of topic.
- Describe how you will include the selected philosophy.
- Describe how you will include the selected methodology.
- Storytelling objectives—what do you want the children to do/learn/respond to?
- The ‘told story’. Copy the story, as you would tell it to the children. This will not be included in your final word count.
- Process of telling the story with an introduction, prepared questions, teaching strategies, and conclusion.
Throughout your teaching and learning journey, you will be required to use the nationally approved learning frameworks (the Early Years Learning Framework or the Australian Curriculum) or the approved learning frameworks for your state or territory. To help you further build capability in this area, and to prepare you for placements, at Swinburne Online you may choose to use the nationally approved learning frameworks or the approved learning frameworks for your state or territory in your assignments. For further information specific to your assignments for this specific unit, please seek advice from your eLAs and/or your Unit Coordinator.
Supporting resources
The following resource will assist you with completing this assignment:
· Links to an external site. (Department of Education: State Government of Victoria, 2020).
· Megawombat storytelling – teaching demonstration
- Links to an external site. (State Government of Victoria, n.d.).
Submission details overview
Assignment criteria
Request assignment extension
Assessment declaration
All students must agree to the following declaration when submitting assignment items.
Declaration and Statement of Authorship
- I have not impersonated, or allowed myself to be impersonated by any person for the purposes of this assignment.
- This assignment is my/our original work and no part of it has been copied from any other source except where due acknowledgement is made.
- No part of this assignment has been written for me by any other person except where such collaboration has been authorised by the lecturer/teacher concerned.
- I have not previously submitted this work for this or any other course/unit.
- I give permission for my assignment response to be reproduced, communicated, compared and archived for plagiarism detection, benchmarking or educational purposes.
I understand that:
- Plagiarism is the presentation of another person’s work as though it is your own. It is a form of cheating and is a very serious academic offence that may lead to exclusion from the university.
- Plagiarised material may be drawn from published and unpublished written documents, interpretations, computer software, designs, music, sounds, images, photographs, and ideas or ideological frameworks gained through working with another person or in a group.
- Plagiarised material can be drawn from, and presented in, written, graphic and visual form, including electronic data and oral presentations. Plagiarism occurs when the origin of the material used is not appropriately cited.
I agree and acknowledge that:
- I have read and understood the Declaration and Statement of Authorship above.
- I accept that use of my Swinburne account to electronically submit this assignment constitutes my agreement to the Declaration and Statement of Authorship.
- If I do not agree to the Declaration and Statement of Authorship in this context, the assessment outcome may not be valid for assessment purposes and may not be included in my aggregate score for this unit.
- I am aware that it is not acceptable to resubmit the same piece of work (in part or as whole) for multiple assignments without permission from the Unit Coordinator.
Penalties for plagiarism range from a formal caution to expulsion from the university, and are detailed in the Student Academic Misconduct Regulations 2012.
- Analysis and integration of one nature pedagogy philosophy.
- Description and integration of one nature pedagogy methodology.
- Plan for a storytelling experience.
- English and academic expression.
Your work will be assessed using the following marking guide:
| Assignment 1 marking guide | |
| Grade | Descriptor |
| Pass [P 50–59%] | A Pass level means that all aspects of the task have been completed and the requirements of all criteria met at a satisfactory level. The storytelling experience offers intentional teachings about a nature topic for preschool children. The storytelling expereince is described in a plan that demonstrates an emerging awareness of the following: One philosophy and methodology is outlined. An attempt has been made to integrate these into the plan. The storytelling plan includes a rudimentary structure, and the story is generally coherent. The assignment is supported by some use of relevant academic literature linked to the course materials. The submission displays a developing capacity for academic writing that may require further improvement in the use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, word choice and sentence structure. Attempts to reference using APA style are evident. |
| Credit [C 60–69%] | To be awarded a Credit, the pre-service teacher must fulfil all the requirements of the Pass level, but with greater clarity and depth. The storytelling experience is described in a plan that demonstrates the following key understandings: The chosen philosophy is described coherently and is integrated within the plan. The chosen methodology is described coherently and is integrated within the plan. The story explores a nature topic that is generally well structured, coherent and engaging for young learners. The plan is clearly structured with the required headings. The writing is generally engaging and largely free from grammar, spelling and punctuation errors. APA referencing is mostly correct throughout and includes a reference list. |
| Distinction [D 70–79%] | To be awarded a Distinction for this task, pre-service teachers must meet all the requirements of the Credit level, but with greater depth expressed towards the required learning outcomes. Your storytelling plan highlights an awareness and deeper understanding of the following: The chosen philosophy is analysed with relevant inclusion of the key ideas and concepts. The chosen methodology is described in detail with reference to how it is relevant and integrated within the plan. The folio is philosophically underpinned by well-chosen scholarly references, including links to the essential readings. The story explores a nature topic in a meaningful way that would engage and involve preschool children in the learning exprience. The folio presentation displays some use of creative choice to make it appealing to the reader. Careful proofreading has resulted in a generally professional presentation consistent with academic writing and APA referencing. Any errors that remain in the work do no detract from the overall quality of the report, or of the meaning communicated. |
| High Distinction [HD 80–100%] | To be awarded a High Distinction for this assignment, pre-service teachers must meet all the requirements of the Distinction standard, outlined above, but to a sophisticated, precise, and insightful standard. The storytelling experience is well structured, insightful, would be highly engaging for children, and supports nature learnings. It demonstrates a sophisticated awareness and understanding that is evident by: The choices of philosophy and methodology complement each other and are integrated seamlessly in the plan. The planning process and intentional teaching is deliberate and purposeful with thoughtful consideration for how to integrate nature pedagogies within teaching and learning. The choice of supporting literature is insightful with strong links to the course materials. Exceptional submissions will integrate scholarly sources with original personal inquiry in the analysis and descriptions. The assignment is thoughtfully written, well-articulated, and well-balanced. The story chosen is highly appealing, age appropriate, with particular care taken in the use and selection of supporting storytelling techniques, such as illustrations, and/or props. The writing demonstrates a highly professional quality, including very careful attention to detail in the use of spelling, punctuation, grammar, and sentence structure. Overall, it displays a sophisticated, original, and engaging voice, with a high degree of understanding of appropriate APA referencing conventions. |
References
DET. (2020). Literacy Teaching ToolKit. Storytelling. (2020). Department of Education: State Government of Victoria. https://www.education.vic.gov.au/childhood/professionals/learning/ecliteracy/interactingwithothers/Pages/storytelling.aspx
State Government of Victoria. (n.d.). Megawombat storytelling – teaching demonstration. https://www.vic.gov.au/literacy-teaching-toolkit-early-childhood/videos/megawombat-storytelling