Effective design and teaching is the incorporation of different teaching strategies to engage

students, and educational content that will benefit students in the classroom environment. As
educators, different factors and approaches are essential to ensure students are receiving
valuable teaching and learning experiences. These include professionalism, curriculum,
pedagogy and assessment. The world debates whether teaching is a profession, because it is
viewed that if an individual is good at their chosen field, they would put it into practice
professionally. The quote by George Bernard Shaw “He who can, does; he who cannot,
teaches” immensely undermines the role and responsibilities of a teacher. Teachers must do
more than just teach; they need to be engaging, resourceful, and take on more roles and
responsibilities than imagined. Teachers are greatly discredited, however this essay will
explore how imperative valuable teachers are to our society, as they are ultimately the
individuals who ignite a spark into our hopeful students.

Teaching as a profession is widely debated because it is seen that those who are not
successful professionally simply become teachers to teach the theory of their field. What
often goes unnoticed, is the complexity of becoming knowledgeable in different fields, and
teaching different ideas to students who are at a different pace than others. Teachers must
learn to not only teach, but to engage their students, and create meaningful experiences that
enrich their learning experience. In Australia, the Australian Professional Standards for
Teachers (APST) is a set of standards focusing on improving teacher practice and improving
student learning (Davis & Lloyd, 2018, p. 93). These include knowing students and their
different intellectual capabilities, different strategies for teaching Aboriginal/Torres Strait
Islander students, and catering for ethic, sexual and religious diversity (AITSL, 2017).
However, before even meeting these standards, teachers must first become accredited through
NESA. Accreditation safeguards the “quality of the teaching profession, supports teachers’
continuous development and contributes to student achievement and wellbeing” (NESA,
2017). Essentially, there is a continuous emphasis on improving standards, and initially, there
are many mandatory standards to become a teacher. This is to ensure that Australian teachers
are highly trained and qualified individuals who have a wide set of skills and knowledge that
they can positively bring to the classroom. As professionals, “The teacher needs to know and
understand the connections between the foundation concepts, and have a deep and principled
knowledge regarding the evaluation of student data to understand progress and to inform
teacher planning and action” (Bahr & Mellor, 2016, p. 35).
Curriculum is an important foundation concept, as the curriculum is what is developed by the
government, then taught to students by teachers. Author Egan simply writes that “curriculum
is the study of any and all educational phenomena” (1978). The Australian curriculum “sets
the expectations for what all young Australians should be taught, regardless of where they
live in Australia or their background” (ACARA, 2016). Curriculum is fundamental in the
learning process for students, however leaves little autonomy for teachers; the curriculum is
developed and published by the government, and teachers must teach it in a way that is
effective and engaging. In an effort to positively incorporate Aboriginal studies on the
Australian Curriculum website, under senior secondary curriculum there is representation of
cross-curriculum priorities, highlighting that there needs to be recognition of Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander histories and cultures within the classroom setting. Intercultural
understanding is also an integral aspect of the Australian curriculum, which “involves
students learning to value and view critically their own cultural perspectives and practices
and those of others through their interactions with people, texts and contexts across the
curriculum” (ACARA, 2016). The Australian curriculum puts emphasis on these different
aspects of formal curriculum, however what often goes unnoticed is the hidden curriculum
within schools that impact the daily lives of teachers. Hidden curriculum occurs daily within
schools, and is the relationship between teachers and students. Teachers must navigate
different boundaries effectively and must take accountability for dealing with emotions that
come part with negotiating student relationships. There are institutional demands placed on
teachers to teach the formal curriculum, however what is overlooked is emotion within the
school which is part of the hidden curriculum (Gallant, 2013, p. 165). Formal curriculum and
hidden curriculum reveal the nature of the teaching profession; it takes its own set of skills to
engage in mandatory curriculum to students who are at a different pace than others, and to
deal with different emotions within the school environment and navigate them accordingly.

“He who can, does; he who cannot, teaches” is a quote that greatly undermines and discredits
the efforts and challenges faced by teachers everyday. Teaching has always been scrutinised
because it is deemed to be the ‘job’ that people choose when they don’t know what else to do.
Teaching requires its own set of skills, expertise in different fields, and social and cognitive
wellbeing to ensure students are not just being taught, but are being inspired, guided and
supported. Pedagogy is essential in teaching as it ensures that “quality education is being
provided throughout the school and as a means of providing staff with a platform for critical
reflection and analysis of current teaching practice” (DET, 2008). Pedagogy, which is the
practice of effective teaching, requires teachers to constantly reflect on how to establish better
quality teaching, how to engage students further, and how to make them become critical
thinkers. Teachers cannot force students to become passionate or critical thinkers, however
effective pedagogy allows these concepts to be instilled in students, one way or another.
Through pedagogy, teachers are encouraged to “take an interdisciplinary approach to
curriculum, design, teaching and learning, supporting ‘constructivist’ learning” (Fisher, 2007,
p. 56). Through constructivist learning, students have the liberty of learner engagement over
teacher instruction, and can participate in collaborative group activities. The Quality
Teaching Model has 2 major components to improve student and teaching outcomes: “a
model of pedagogy with clearly identified principles to guide classroom and assessment
practice, and a set of resources designed to engage teachers in reflection and dialogue in the
process of refining classroom and assessment practice” (Gore, 2007, p. 16). Teachers take on
the responsibility of familiarising themselves with student’s different preferred learning
styles, and need to incorporate them within the classroom to ensure all student’s gain the best
learning experience (Bahr & Mellor, 2016, p. 31). Learning cannot just be understood as an
outcome of being in school and progressing through the requirements of a syllabus (Bahr &
Mellor, 2016, p. 29). Teachers must take accountability for their engagement with the Quality
Teaching Model to ensure that students experience different types of learning strategies that
will further enhance their learning experience, and provide reflection for teachers.

Teaching as a profession requires effective pedagogy and a deep understanding of curriculum

to engage students in content knowledge. These foundation concepts are all intertwined with
assessment, as it is formal and informal assessment that allows teachers to reflect on student’s
knowledge and skills, and how they as teachers can improve their skills. The National
Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy is an annual standardised test for years 3,5,7
and 9, that measures skills and capabilities of these years groups. The National Assessment
Program writes that “it tests the types of skills that are essential for every child to progress
through school and life” (NAP, 2016). NAPLAN puts extra pressure on teachers who have to
deal with complying with mandatory curriculum, while practicing for the NAPLAN test,
which also puts strain on students from low socio-economic backgrounds or rural areas. With
social disengagement and lower school completion rates being most high in rural areas
(Fogarty, 2013), standardised testing only brings additional stress on teachers and students,
and further highlights inequality throughout the nation. Many schools consider NAPLAN as
the be-all and end-all. “The preparation for the tests has been a distraction from the regular
curriculum based teaching programs of schools, with many associated teacher complaints
about teaching to the test” (Bahr & Mellor, 2016, p.15). The government has put emphasis on
“national educational goals make specific mention of closing the gap, especially between
indigenous and non-indigenous students” (Ford, 2012, p. 87). However, enforcing NAPLAN
assessment only maintains the gap, and furthermore disengages disadvantaged students. The
data results from NAPLAN are published onto MySchools for the public to see, linking data
to teacher performance and makes schools accountable for the improvement of student
achievement, or lack thereof (Bahr & Mellor, 2016). Essentially, effective teachers need to
not only focus on formal assessment, but also assess students everyday by reflecting on their
progress, discussing their understanding of the curriculum and planning different activities to
ensure children are not only engaged, but developing and strengthening their learning.

For gifted and talented students, teachers need to utilise these foundation concepts
appropriately to ensure this group of students are receiving the best quality education. Gifted
and talented students “vary in abilities and aptitudes – they may demonstrate gifts and talents
in a single area or across a variety of domains” (ACARA, 2016). For gifted and talented
students, teachers are required to take on more in-depth preparation to adjust the curriculum,
and have relevant pedagogical knowledge and skills for these students. However, in regular
classroom, regular teachers have limited skills to teach gifted and talented students. Not all
teachers receive training for teaching strategies to meet the needs of the gifted and talented
population. However, teachers must take accountability for navigating different learning
styles and diverse ability levels within the classroom (Scott, 2008). Differentiated instruction
is vital as it ensures all students’ individual learning needs are met. Teachers need to
recognise that gifted and talented students often require liberty to navigate their own learning;
this can be through allowing them to decide when they have practiced enough of something.
Teachers can encourage gifted and talented students to elaborate on ideas through questioning
from the teacher, discuss the useless of new found knowledge, and how new ideas and
knowledge have increased their curiosity. Teachers should emphasis on “working in groups,
cooperative learning, individual student work and the opportunity for individual students to
select and pursue their own areas and interests” (Chessor, Craven, Marsh & Roche, 1995, p.
304). Gifted and talented students should not be overworked with extra homework,
assessments or in class activities, as this stifles their motivation. Teachers should stimulate
gifted and talented minds by deepening their interest or understanding in a particular topic,
and relating it to the real-world to ignite a higher order level of thinking in students. Gifted
and talented students require an extension of curriculum, to continue stimulating students’
minds while sticking to curriculum. This can be achieved through introducing books or topics
that are not usually in the curriculum, adopting a problem solving approach to different
scenarios and carrying out different types of research (Goodhew, 2009). What negatively
impacts creative and critical thinking of gifted and talented students is exam structures that
dominate pedagogy. In the classroom, teachers must avoid creating a competitive
environment through assessment, and should rather develop assessment tasks that encourage
students to pursue project topics that interest them (Chessor, Craven, Marsh & Roche, 1995),
further allowing them to explore their interests and enhancing their knowledge. It is evident
that although not all teachers receive training for developing their skills with gifted and
talented students, teachers still foster different activities and strategies to ensure gifted and
talented students are not left out in the classroom because of the knowledge they already
have. On a daily basis, teachers make efforts to create an inviting environment for all
students, and activities that benefit all students.

Australian Curriculum. (2016). Gifted and Talented Students. Retrieved from

https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/resources/student-diversity/gifted-and-talented-
students/.

Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Authority. (2016). Retrieved from

https://www.acara.edu.au/.
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for Educational Research.

Chessor, D., Craven, R., Marsh, H. & Roche, R. (1995). The Effects of Gifted and Talented

Programs on Academic Self-Concept: The Big Fish Strikes Again. American

Educational Research Journal, Vol 32, No. 2, pp. 285-319.

Egan, K. (1978). What is curriculum? Curriculum Inquiry, p. 65-72.

Fisher, K. (2007). Pedagogy and Architecture. Architecture Australia, Vol 96, No. 5

Fogarty, M. (2013). Teaching NAPLAN Fails Students. Education, Vol 94, No. 12.

Ford, M. (2013). Achievement gaps in Australia: What NAPLAN reveals about education

inequality in Australia. Race and Ethnicity Education, Vol 16, No 1, p. 80-102.

Gallant, A., Newberry, M., Pinnegar, S. & Riley, P. (2013). Emotion in Schools

Understanding How the Hidden Curriculum Influences Relationships,

Leadership, Teaching, and Learning (Advances in Research on Teaching).

Bradford: Emerald Group Publishing Group.

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Needs).

Gore, J. (2007). Improving pedagogy: The challenges of moving teachers toward higher
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of quality teaching. Sense Publishers, p. 15-33.

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NSW Education Standards Authority. (2017). Retrieved from

http://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/wps/portal/nesa/teacher-accreditation/how-
accreditation-works/guide-to-accreditation.

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