Position Paper Home Economics And The Australian Curriculum Text

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The central focus of home economics education is the wellbeing of people within the context of their personal, family, community and work roles. Home economics education is about becoming independent, connecting with others and taking action towards preferred futures that support individual and family wellbeing. Through home economics education, students become empowered, active and informed members of society. Home economics education has the potential to play a major role in supporting young people to participate effectively in changing social, cultural and economic times. In order to capitalise on this potential, teachers and curriculum leaders must connect with students' worlds, use contemporary educational research as a guide to planning and develop practices that are empowering. The heia resource home economics education ndash making it work outlines some key ideas for home economics education that prepare students to participate effectively in a changing world.

Heia has developed a position paper on home economics and the australian curriculum that provides home economics educators with a comprehensive and contemporary statement on home economics education.

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the australian curriculum: technologies  draws together the distinct but related subjects of design and technologies and digital technologies. It will ensure that all students benefit from learning about and working with traditional, contemporary and emerging technologies that shape the world in which we live.

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In creating solutions, as well as responding to the designed world, students will contribute to sustainable patterns of living for themselves and others.

technologies position paper

the development of the australian curriculum for technologies began with a position paper in relation to key matters, including the definition of technologies, the organisation of the curriculum, the structure of the curriculum and the relationship of technologies to other learning areas and subjects. Twenty five teachers, school leaders, academics and curriculum experts participated in a planning workshop to contribute to the development of the position paper for technologies curriculum in december 2010. Victorian health minister david davis has launched the victorian healthy eating enterprise. An initiative to promote healthy eating and tackle obesity throughout the community. Home economics victoria was announced as one of the partners, responsible for the development and implementation of the new healthy eating and food literacy in secondary schools project . our focus will be on increasing the knowledge and skills of young people in the production, growing, buying and preparation of fresh, nutritious and affordable healthy food.

Announcing a new and unique opportunity to purchase raco, circulon and anolon cookware at fabulous prices. The various packages available are great value and members receive addtional discounts. Please look for the blue flyer in your regular membership mailout, or download it here. Home economics victoria is a proud supporter of the australian year of the farmer 2012. The australian year of the farmer is a celebration of the vital role farmers play in feeding, clothing and sheltering us all. To learn more and view educational links and classroom ideas visit australian year of the farmer home economics victoria has provided a submission paper to the board of the australian curriculum, assessment and reporting authority acara stating our position on home economics as a curriculum entitilement for all students.

The australian council for computers in education released an acce position paper on ict in the australian curriculum , 16 april 2011. The report argues that ict will be required for students to be successful in their studies, as well as citizens and workers. I suggest the report could put the point more strongly that ict is not just an enabling technology. But is also has deep theoretical underpinnings, which deserve academic study and is profoundly changing our view of the world. I urge ict professionals and particularly members of the australian computer society, to support the acce position.

Html is more useful for online distribution as discussed in my anu course on e document management . Also there was a web link missing from the melbourne declaration on educational goals for young australians. This paper was prepared for the australian council for computers in education and represents the views of that council and its affiliates: cegsa, ecawa, ictensw, ictev, iteant, qsite, tasite, and the australian computer society.

Acce would like to thank its member associations: cegact, cegsa, ecawa, ictensw, ictev, iteant, qsite, tasite, and the australian computer society for their contribution to this paper. It also acknowledges the contribution of vitta the victorian information technology teachers’ association. The position represented here is truly a national teachers’ association position on a very important issue. Acce would like to recognise the committee that coordinated the consultation and developed the paper on behalf of acce: dr nicholas reynolds chair , paula christophersen, phil callil and helen otway. The melbourne declaration recognises the importance of ict as being ‘central to australia’s skilled economy requiring crucial pathways to post ­‐school success’ mceetya, 2008. It specifies information and communication technology and design and technology as one of the eight learning areas of the australian curriculum. The melbourne declaration makes particular mention of the role of ict in supporting learning in all curriculum areas.

The australian curriculum as presented by acara acknowledges the interdisciplinary role of ict by defining its role as a general capability gc and its specific role as a discipline by placing information and communication technology into the ict and design and technology learning area. This position paper argues that the current articulation of ict as both a gc and as part of the so called ‘technologies’ learning area does not support the development of digital literacy, does not provide enough rich ict use to develop essential pathways and does not support the creation of a digitally productive, knowledge based society. This paper argues that ict needs to be its own learning area, either within the framework of the ict and design and technology learning area, or as a new area. In that document the term ‘humanities and social sciences including history, geography, economics, business, civics and citizenship ’ is used to define one learning area, yet in the first phase of the australian curriculum, history is presented as a standalone learning area, as is geography, a phase two learning area. As a learning area, work is just beginning on determining ict’s conceptual ‘home’ and its content. In december 2010, a group of experts representing areas ‘contexts’ such as ict, design and technology, systems engineering, primary industries, food and technology and textiles met at acara to discuss what in essence comprises a technologies learning area. One key issue raised at the meeting was the role of the ‘design process framework’ in defining what constitutes technology education.

At that meeting significant emphasis was placed on the technology education network’s 2010 draft position paper ten 2010. The design process framework is the underlying theoretical framework in that document and is now guiding curriculum development for acara in the ict and design and technology learning area. That paper, while recognising that ict is part of a broad learning area, devalues the importance of ict by referring to 1 the learning area as the ‘technologies’ learning area, rather than as information and communication technologies and design and technology. Another area of concern with the so called ‘technologies’ learning area discussion, both in the ten draft proposal and in acara working papers for the december meeting, is the extended use of the term ‘technacy’.

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This term is of little value to the debate and further enshrines the design process framework. The term limits the scope of ict and fails to acknowledge its unique qualities and complexities. Acce is strongly opposed to its use in any attempt to describe desired outcomes in ict learning and application in schools and society. Currently there is no published curriculum documentation for ict competence as a gc. Rather its place in the australian curriculum is recognised within each of the four published learning areas, english, mathematics, science and history through embedding in content descriptions and/or achievement standards and through an introductory paragraph explaining the role of ict in that learning area. There are concerns relating to: the curriculum articulation of ict competence as a gc the developmental pathways of ict as a learning area the relationship between both ict competence and ict as a learning area removal of reference to ict in the technologies learning area – should be information and communication technologies, and design and technology the term ‘competence’ is of interest. The european qualification framework eqf, 2008 defines competence as ‘the proven ability to use knowledge, skills and personal, social and/ or methodological abilities, in work or study situations and in professional and personal development’.

In the same context, knowledge is defined as ‘the outcome of the assimilation of information through learning’ and skill as ‘the ability to apply knowledge and use know ­‐how to complete tasks and solve problems’ p. The understanding of competence in this way demonstrates that ict competence is a significantly more important set of attributes than those articulated within the current general capabilities documentation. It addresses the need for all students to acquire and apply a depth and breadth of ict knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and ethics in order for them to be successful learners, workers and active citizens.

True ict competence will result in a digitally literate, digitally fluent and digitally productive society. This can only be achieved through clearly articulated and developmentally appropriate curriculum and standards. International research is conclusive in stating that the curriculum must be clear about expectations by establishing standards. The conceptual basis on which all general capabilities are built is a continuum − there are no achievement standards, but rather broad statements of learning at varying year intervals. For ict competence this is years 2, 6 and 10, however for literacy and numeracy they are at years 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10.