At Goodna State School, we strive to provide an
exciting curriculum that encourages students to develop self-confidence,
creativity and problem solving, leading students to embrace lifelong learning.
Our curriculum adheres to the expectations of the Australian Curriculum for
English, Mathematics, Science, the Arts and Humanities and Social Sciences, and
in accordance with the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority
(ACARA).
All of our decisions around curriculum, teaching and
learning are focused on our students’ needs and abilities, culturally,
intellectually and socially. Our units of
work have a strong focus on developing the knowledge and skills students will
need to participate and shape their social, cultural and economic
futures. The learning opportunities provided by our units enable the
school to produce a culture of high expectations and engaged learning.
Explicit Instruction, “the structured, systematic and
effective methodology for teaching academic skills” as advocated by Anita
Archer and Charles Hughes (2011), is core pedagogy at Goodna State School, and is
central to our goal of supporting students in a positive and respectful
environment enabling their success.
Explicit Instruction focusses on an unambiguous and direct approach to
instructional design and delivery. Every
lesson begins with clearly communicated lesson intent and success criteria,
followed by scaffolded learning experiences using the Gradual Release of
Responsibility (Fisher and Frey, 2008), with modelled “We do”, joint “We do
together”/”You do” and independent practice “I do”.