Outline

Overview

Building on ways of knowing in HSIE K-6, addressed in EDUP1014, this unit of study makes a connection to teaching and learning HSIE through creative pedagogies. Drawing on current research and theories about how children learn, this unit will focus on the pedagogical implications for teaching history and geography within the context of HSIE. This unit provides opportunities for developing competencies for designing effective teaching and learning experiences, resources and assessment tasks.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Education
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	36 credit points of 2000-level EDUP-coded units
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	No

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Jia Ying Neoh, jiaying.neoh@sydney.edu.au

Assessment

The census date for this unit availability is 1 September 2025

Details
Criteria

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length	Use of AI
In-person written or creative task	Making Sense of HSIE: A Literature-Informed Reflection Students will critically analyse and synthesise 5–7 key readings from Weeks 1–3 to reflect on the purpose, content, and relational dimensions of HSIE in primary education to demonstrate an understanding of how these elements shape teaching and learning	30%	Week 04 Due date: 29 Aug 2025 at 15:00 Closing date: 29 Aug 2025	1000 words	AI prohibited
Outcomes assessed:
Experimental design	inquiry Project – Investigating the World Through HSIE You design and conduct a small-scale inquiry project related to a HSIE topic. You collect and analyse data, and present your findings in a presentation to demonstrate your content knowledge and understanding of inquiry-based learning.	40%	Week 09 Due date: 06 Oct 2025 at 23:59 Closing date: 13 Oct 2025	10min video presentation (2000wd equiv)	AI allowed
Outcomes assessed:
Written work	Task 3: HSIE Inquiry Lesson Plan Plan and design a HSIE lesson sequence using inquiry-based learning.	30%	Week 13 Due date: 05 Nov 2025 at 23:59 Closing date: 09 Nov 2025	1500 words	AI allowed
Outcomes assessed:
= hurdle task ? = group assignment ?

Assessment summary

Literature Review:
This task requires you to synthesise 5–7 key readings from Weeks 1–3 to critically reflect on the purpose, content, and relationships in HSIE education.

Inquiry Project Presentation:
In small groups, you will conduct an HSIE inquiry and present your findings to demonstrate content knowledge and inquiry-based learning in action.

Lesson Sequence Plan:
You will design a short HSIE lesson sequence based on the inquiry model, demonstrating your ability to plan, scaffold, and assess student learning.

Assessment criteria

Please see Canvas site for details.

he University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the unit's learning outcomes to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades

For more information see guide to grades.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)

You can use generative AI tools for open assessments. Restrictions on AI use apply to secure, supervised assessments used to confirm if students have met specific learning outcomes.

Refer to the assessment table above to see if AI is allowed, for assessments in this unit and check Canvas for full instructions on assessment tasks and AI use.

If you use AI, you must always acknowledge it. Misusing AI may lead to a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy.

Visit the Current Students website for more information on AI in assessments, including details on how to acknowledge its use.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

Late submission In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date: Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date. After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The University expects students to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

Our website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. This includes advice on how to avoid common breaches of academic integrity. Ensure that you have completed the Academic Honesty Education Module (AHEM) which is mandatory for all commencing coursework students

Penalties for serious breaches can significantly impact your studies and your career after graduation. It is important that you speak with your unit coordinator if you need help with completing assessments.

Visit the Current Students website for more information on AI in assessments, including details on how to acknowledge its use.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Support for students

The Support for Students Policy reflects the University’s commitment to supporting students in their academic journey and making the University safe for students. It is important that you read and understand this policy so that you are familiar with the range of support services available to you and understand how to engage with them.

The University uses email as its primary source of communication with students who need support under the Support for Students Policy. Make sure you check your University email regularly and respond to any communications received from the University.

Learning resources and detailed information about weekly assessment and learning activities can be accessed via Canvas. It is essential that you visit your unit of study Canvas site to ensure you are up to date with all of your tasks.

If you are having difficulties completing your studies, or are feeling unsure about your progress, we are here to help. You can access the support services offered by the University at any time:

Support and Services (including health and wellbeing services, financial support and learning support)
Course planning and administration
Meet with an Academic Adviser

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Introduction and overview: The curricular purpose of K-6 HSIE: Pedagogy and active citizenship	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 01	Introduction and overview: The purpose of teaching and learning K-6 HSIE: Pedagogy and active citizenship	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 02	What matters to young people and how does it influence how we teach HSIE?	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 02	What Matters to Young People: Rethinking How We Teach HSIE in primary classrooms	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 03	AI, Ethics, and the Global Citizen: Navigating Social Sciences Education in a Digital Age	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 03	Teaching with Purpose: AI, Global Citizenship, and the Educator’s Responsibility	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 04	Unpacking the HSIE Curriculum: What We Teach and Why It Matters	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 04	Task 1: Examining What We Teach – HSIE’s Purpose, Content and Relationships	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 05	Teaching Sustainability in HSIE: Curriculum Content and Cross-Curriculum Priorities	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 05	Curriculum in Action: Embedding Sustainability in HSIE	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 06	Teaching for Global Connection: Asia, Australia, and the Role of HSIE	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 06	From Policy to Practice: Teaching Asia-Australia Engagement in HSIE	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 07	Learning Through Inquiry: A Pedagogical Approach to HSIE	Lecture (1 hr)
Week 07	From curiosity to Investigation: Doing Inquiry in HSIE	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 08	Building Knowledge Through Inquiry: Designing Your HSIE Investigation	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 09	Sparking Curiosity: Developing Inquiry Questions in HSIE	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 10	Inquiry in Action: Exploring Methods, Data and Meaning	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 11	Seeing Learning Clearly: How Assessment Guides Teaching HSIE	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)
Week 12	Teaching Plans in Action: Peer Dialogue and Professional Learning	Lecture and tutorial (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: The Sydney School of Education and Social Work requires attendance of at least 90 percent of all seminars, workshops or lectures. Where a student is unable to attend at the required rate evidence of illness or misadventure may be required and the student may be required to undertake extra work. Students should discuss the circumstances of their absence(s) with the co-ordinator of the unit of study. Further details are provided in the School canvas site: https://canvas.sydney.edu.au/courses/13426

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. Standard 1: Know students and how they learn: Demonstrate understanding of how primary-aged students learn and implications for teaching Human Society and Its Environment (HSIE) in the primary classrooms
LO2. Standard 2: Know the content and how to teach it Demonstrate understanding of K-6 HSIE syllabus content and how to teach the content through the inquiry approach
LO3. Standard 3: Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning Demonstrate ability to plan for and implement effective teaching and learning in K-6 HSIE
LO4. Standard 4: Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments Demonstrate ability to create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments for learning K-6 HSIE
LO5. Standard 5: Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning Demonstrate ability to assess, provide feedback and report on student learning
LO6. Standard 6: Engage in professional learning Demonstrate engagement in professional learning
LO7. Standard 7: Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community Demonstrate professional engagement with colleagues and the community
LO8. Standard 2: Know the content and how to teach it Demonstrate understanding of content knowlege in HSIE, and be able to draw strong connections with the goal of global citizenship education

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Alignment with Competency standards

Outcomes	Competency standards
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Professional Level – PG and Professional Learning) - 1. Professional Knowledge: Standard 1 - Know students and how they learn 1.1. Physical, social and intellectual development and characteristics of students. 1.2. Understand how students learn. 1.3. Students with diverse linguistic, cultural, religious and socioeconomic backgrounds. 1.4. Strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students. 1.5. Differentiate teaching to meet the specific learning needs of students across the full range of abilities. 1.6. Strategies to support full participation of students with disability.
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Level – UG and MTeach) - 2.1. Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area 2.2. Content selection and organisation 2.3. Curriculum, assessment and reporting 2.4. Understand and respect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to promote reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians 2.5. Literacy and numeracy strategies 2.6. Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Level – UG and MTeach) - 3.1. Establish challenging learning goals 3.2. Plan, structure and sequence learning programs 3.3. Use teaching strategies 3.4. Select and use resources 3.5. Use effective classroom communication 3.6. Evaluate and improve teaching programs 3.7. Engage parents / carers in the educative process
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Level – UG and MTeach) - 4.1. Support student participation 4.2. Manage classroom activities 4.3. Manage challenging behaviour 4.4. Maintain student safety 4.5. Use ICT safely, responsibly and ethically
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Level – UG and MTeach) - 5.1. Assess student learning 5.2. Provide feedback to students on their learning 5.3. Make consistent and comparable judgements 5.4. Interpret student data 5.5. Report on student achievement
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Level – UG and MTeach) - 6.1. Identify and plan professional learning needs 6.2. Engage in professional learning and improve practice 6.3. Engage with colleagues and improve practice 6.4. Apply professional learning and improve student learning
	Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (Graduate Level – UG and MTeach) - 7.1. Meet professional ethics and responsibilities 7.2. Comply with legislative, administrative and organisational requirements 7.3. Engage with the parents/carers 7.4. Engage with professional teaching networks and broader communities

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Following the success of the inquiry-based learning approach as evidenced in the UoS survey in 2023, with students expressing the value of ongoing feedback given to them throughout the weeks, this unit to continue to the inquiry-based learning approach, focusing on providing quality and timely feedback throughout the weeks to support preservice teachers' inquiries.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Alignment with Competency standards

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

EDUP3044: Creative Pedagogies for HSIE K-6

Semester 2, 2025 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI)

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Support for students

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Alignment with Competency standards

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links