Persuasive Essay – 1500 words
Assessment overview
This assessment task requires you to draw upon the learning materials (podcasts, readings, and activities) from the first module of this unit (weeks 1-3), in order to articulate your understanding of language and literacy development as applied to the primary school context. This understanding is foundational for your success in planning, teaching, and evaluating learning in English.
The purpose of this task is for you to work towards achieving the first learning outcome, which is to demonstrate and communicate an understanding of concepts foundational to the teaching of English, including the development of language and literacy throughout the primary years of schooling. In working towards this learning outcome, you will also engage in the analysis of pedagogical approaches in teaching English, which is the second learning outcome for this unit.
Related learning objectives:
This assessment will help you achieve the following learning outcomes:
• demonstrate and communicate an understanding of teaching English, including language acquisition and literacy development
• analyse pedagogical approaches in teaching and learning of English in the Primary classroom.
Assessment details
You are to write a 1500-word persuasive essay addressing the following:
What is the most relevant reading model* for addressing 21st century literacy demands? Illustrate your response with examples of classroom practices consistent with this reading model.
* Please refer to Chapter 4 of the set text for this unit for definitions and descriptions of key reading models relevant to this topic. You only need to argue for ONE model in your essay.
You will need to draw on resources from the weekly materials (podcasts, readings, and activities) in weeks 1-3, and appropriate scholarly literature that you have sourced independently from online education journals accessed, to inform your argument and illustrations of practice. Your essay is to be written in third person.
Your essay will need:
• a clear introduction in which you introduce both the topic and the structure of your essay
• a series of paragraphs making up the body of your essay in which you develop a persuasive argument for the particular model you have selected. The body of the essay will also include examples of classroom practice. This series of paragraphs must build the argument to a logical and reasoned conclusion.
• a conclusion in which you reiterate and sum up your argument. The conclusion must not simply restate the introduction.
Assessment criteria
1 Knowledge of literacy development.
2 Understanding of classroom practices relevant to literacy development.
3 Format and structure of essay, including conventions of academic English and capacity to argue persuasively.
4 Academic research, including APA referencing.
Your work will be assessed using the following marking guide. Please note: if the submission does not reach a satisfactory standard on any criterion it must be awarded a fail.
