English 2: Online Exam PDF

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Online English 2: Reading & Viewing Exam. Including questions and answers. ...

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Online Exam

Section A Question 1. 1. alphabetic principle The alphabetic principle is the idea underpinning alphabetic writing methods that refers to each phoneme or sound in speech or language requiring its own individual graphic symbol. For example; the sound ‘c’ has a graphic symbol ‘c’.

2. concepts of print Concepts of print refers to the knowledge and understandings about print and what it signifies. It is also the knowledge of how print works. For example; Knowledge of book conventions, page and book layout, front and back cover, spaces between words, directionality (left to right and top to bottom).

3. graphophonic knowledge Graphophonic knowledge refers to the sounds of language and how they relate to the printed words. For example; it allows readers to use their phonological knowledge of the way sounds of language are represented too recognise words and decode unknown words.

4. language experience procedure Language experience procedure is a reading procedure founded around the knowledge and awareness that an experience can be had through reading. This experience can then be shared, talked about, written down or read and re-read. For example; students can use reading journals.

5. modelled reading procedure The modelled reading procedure is usually done in a whole class or shared situation and involves students in structured demonstrations of what effective readers know and do. For example; The teacher explicitly demonstrates a reading of a book and the thinking, knowledge and skills needed to interpret the text.

6. phonological awareness Phonological awareness is the ability to identify, acknowledge combine and work different sound units. For example; phonological knowledge can be used to investigate sounds of language and how they are represented to help them recognise words and decode unknown words.

7. high-frequency words Sight vocabulary includes the recognition and knowledge of high-frequency words, which can be found and occur very frequently in language, written and verbal. For example; and, the, as, it or in.

8. semantic cues Semantic cues are part of the linguistic cueing system and forms the basis of information that can provide readers with the knowledge to help them discover the meaning of the overall text. For example; topic information and vocabulary which enables the reader to link the read text to other information they know about the topic.

9. decoding Decoding is a strategy that can be used in reading to recognise an unknown word or words. For example; using the linguistic cueing system can help by pronouncing the sound represented by the symbols, referring back to the overall meaning of the text or using grammatical knowledge.

10. syntactic cues Syntactic knowledge is information that helps readers link information in sentences and being familiar with the language and how it works. For example; readers can use their grammatical knowledge to also help them use prediction when reading.

Section B

Question 2. The National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy in Australia states that "direct systematic instruction in phonics during the early years of schooling is an essential foundation for teaching children to read" (DEST, 2015, p. 11). Discuss this comment making reference to the importance of a balanced approach to teaching English which incorporates the use of graphophonic, semantic, syntactic and visual cues for making meaning from texts.

Reading and viewing are often a silent, motionless and personal acts involving social and cognitive processes. Teachers must have a balanced approach to teaching reading and viewing in classrooms to provide the highest quality of teaching to students. Literacy is the ability to read, view and use written information and to write in a range of contexts appropriately. In early schooling years, an essential foundation for teaching reading is the direct systematic instruction in phonics. This fundamental content must be taught in a balanced approach with the use of graphophonic, semantic, syntactic and visual cues to help students make meaning of a text and enhance their reading. The reading process is an interactive process involving the context of the reading or viewing event, the knowledge within the cues and the use of reading strategies and should be taught equally when teaching reading and viewing.

A balanced approach to teaching reading and viewing in classrooms can be comprised of a range of essential features. Meaning is at the core of all reading (Winch, et al., 2020). A balanced approach must recognise the interaction between reading and writing and the importance of code and context within reading. Teachers must place an equal emphasis on the development of semantic, syntactic, graphophonic and visual knowledge and recognise the importance of developing effective strategies for processing texts. This approach must have a range of instruction across text types, fictional and factual and must be based on effective assessment of student's needs. Teachers and schools must promote a balance of modelled, shared, guided and independent reading opportunities in the classroom. The Australian Curriculum also adopts a balanced approach to reading and viewing. This can be done through investigating the content descriptions, content elaborations and achievement standards. Each year level within the curriculum provides an achievement standard that contains the balance required for an effective reading program (School Curriculum and

Standards Authority, Government of Western Australia, 2014). Reading and viewing approaches that are planned by individual teachers and schools generally demonstrate a balanced position.

A balanced approach to teaching reading also relates to the reading process or the linguistic cueing system. This system begins with understanding the context of the reading or viewing event, determined by its purpose, situation or subject topic. It then focuses heavily on the knowledge within the cues and finally, the use of reading strategies. The knowledge we need to read includes semantic, syntactic or grammatical, graphophonic or phonological knowledge and visual cues for understanding texts. Direct systematic instruction in phonics is an essential foundation of learning to read and must be developed along with these cues to allow students the skills and knowledge to further their reading levels. Semantic knowledge refers to knowledge about meanings in a text, including topic information and vocabulary. It enables the reader to link the read text to other information they know about the topic. Grammatical or syntactic knowledge is information that helps readers link information in sentences and being familiar with language and how it works. Readers can use their grammatical knowledge to also help them use prediction as a reading strategy when reading. Graphophonic knowledge should also a part of the reading process as this knowledge refers to the sounds of language and how they relate to the printed words. It allows readers to use their phonological knowledge of the way sounds of language are represented to recognise words and decode unknown words. This instruction in phonics should be developed in the early years of school as an important foundation of reading. Finally, visual cues for understanding texts develops knowledge about images that provide or support meaning in a text and how readers can combine information from text elements to create meaning. Reading aims to understand written text which can also be done by viewing images, for example. It is important students develop a balanced understanding of semantic, grammatical, graphophonic and visual knowledge and build knowledge within these cues to become successful readers and viewers.

As stated by The National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy in Australia, “direct systematic instruction in phonics during the early years of schooling is an essential foundation for teaching children to read” (DEST, 2015, p. 11). This refers to the importance of teachers to

help strengthen and build students’ knowledge of the linguistic cueing system and their knowledge within the cues. By the time students reach the primary years of years 3 to 6, they should have developed knowledge about what words mean, the way words go together, the relationship between sound and print and the relationship between print and images. This knowledge of the semantic, grammatical, graphophonical and visual cues, should be taught in a balanced approach to broaden students’ knowledge in reading and strategies to help them decode words, meanings or messages the texts they are reading.

Section C Question 3. Making reference to the Western Australian Curriculum: English, discuss the role of children’s literature in the teaching of reading and viewing.

Children's literature plays a major part in the beginning and early stages of a children's journey to learn to read. Reading is known as a process of forming and creating meaning from a text, whether it be written, graphic, paper-based or digital. Children's literature refers to books, mainly with visual pictures as well as verbal texts. They are created to be read to, by or with children from children who are young to young adults. Children’s books are a form of ‘literature’ and they are an important part of the reading process. Children's literature is used in classrooms as motivational strategies, engaging resources, relatable content and activity-based books to entertain and excite students to learn to read. They can emphasise the importance of students learning and the different ways in which literature is significant and can relate to everyday life.

Children’s literature plays an important role in students learning to read. It is an important part in the development of the story, language and knowing readers. Children's literature is much more than pedagogy and support, it is a very complex form of literature (Winch, et al., 2020). The development of the story is an essential part of an artistic continuum and needs distinctively literary approaches. It invites children into a shared story and offers them opportunities to dive into deep stories of living. This can include stories about change, failure, success, morality, and ideas of immorality and emotions associated with these topics. The study of children’s literature also helps to develop students into knowing readers

by the time they reach the completion of their primary school education. Readers who are ‘in the know’ have a wide range of literacy skills that help them read, allowing them to read with the knowledge and expectation of how texts can be perceived, the different reading experiences, the variety of texts, personal rewards and reading challenges. They also develop the motivation and skills to engage in exploring the texts in-depth, its contexts, knowing how texts work, the significant rewards of reading experiences and the value of persevering difficult texts. Children's literature also helps students develop into knowing writers, speakers, and listeners. Literature not only develops knowing readers, but it also helps create knowing writers by giving students opportunities to access a range of purposeful forms of literature in both traditional and digital forms. It develops knowing speakers from experiencing the speaking of others beyond their immediate lives and the book discussions of responses to literature that take place in the classroom. Finally, literature helps to create knowing listeners, that listen with both ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ ears, in a personal sense. Children’s literature plays an important role in developing students into knowing and successful readers, as well as engaged, motivated and entertained readers.

The Western Australian Curriculum is also in support of the use of children’s literature in learning to read. It plays a major role in the reading and viewing program, particularly the literature strand and is important in the teaching and learning process. The literature strand in the curriculum states that literature is made up of a wide range of different forms of literature, such as novels, poetry, short stories, plays, fiction for young adults and children, multimodal texts such as film, and a variety of non-fiction (School Curriculum and Standards Authority, Government of Western Australia, 2014). The forms of literature used in the classroom aim to motivate students to get excited about reading. They are used as entertainment as they are an engaging, relatable and age-appropriate material that students are excited to challenge themselves to read. The curriculums main purpose is to encourage students in all year levels to utilise children’s literature and to engage students in examining, evaluating, and discussing texts in a literary way.

Children’s literature plays a major role in the development of students reading abilities. It emphasises the importance of student learning, the development of knowing readers, writers and speakers and the successful growth in reading skills. This complex form of

literature can be used in classrooms in a range of purposeful ways such as motivational strategies, engaging resources, relatable content and activity-based books. Children’s literature aims to entertain and excite students to learn to read and plays a very important role in the teaching process of learning reading and viewing.

Question 4. Assessment is the process of identifying, gathering and interpreting information about students’ learning. Discuss why teachers assess, and citing examples of authentic assessment, describe the role assessment plays in the systematic teaching of reading and viewing.

Assessment is also known as the process of recognising, collecting and interpreting the information gathered about student learning progress and is an essential part of the teaching process. It is used to determine students' current level of knowledge and skills and gives opportunities for purposeful feedback (Winch, et al., 2020). Effective teachers gather and record information constantly in a range of ways, through observation of student success and conversation. Assessment helps to identify a starting point for teaching at the beginning of the school year and helps to plan for on-going reading and viewing teaching. It helps when placing students in reading groups as common learning needs or students who require extra support or extensions can be identified. Teachers are also able to evaluate the effectiveness of their teaching programs and whole-school teaching programs and also encourages parent and school accountability. Assessment is most commonly referred to as the process of judging achievement standards on set tasks, based on a clear success criteria and plays a very important role in the systematic teaching of reading and viewing in English classrooms.

The assessment process in reading and viewing includes gathering evidence and data displaying student achievement through a range of assessment techniques. This information can be analysed to conclude judgements based on students’ achievements in relation to expected outcomes. This known information can then be used to plan, program and systematically teach to promote further learning to each student based on their individual needs. Assessment in English reading and viewing can be conducted in a range of ways

including diagnostic and formative assessments such as outcomes-based assessment, authentic assessment, checklists, profiles and cumulative assessment files, portfolios and informal reading inventories, written tests, standardised tests, read and retell. As stated in the First Steps Reading Map of Development (1989), collecting reading information done in three aspects. First is focused observation, which refers to formal and informal observation. The next is reading products, referring to self-assessment, think-aloud statements, work samples, retells, surveys and questionaries, the cloze procedure, tests and oral reading. Last, is in conversations, such as conferences and interviews. Teachers can record assessment information by taking anecdotal notes, writing checklists, rubrics, annotations or referring to the First Steps Reading Map of Development (1989). When selecting assessment strategies, it is important teachers select strategies that inform their teaching and collect information that will assist in making key decisions about their teaching. Teachers must choose assessment strategies that provide the specific information you need to make informed decisions, link directly to your teaching program, mirror classroom learning experiences that students are familiar with and provide opportunities for students to show what they know and can do (Winch, et al., 2020). Assessment must be comprehensive, balanced, varied, fair and give all students equal opportunities for students to demonstrate their achievements. Assessment is crucial as it authentically assesses clearly defined aspects of student achievement and is an important tool for monitoring the ongoing reading development of students.

Effective teachers have a clear purpose in an ongoing range of authentic assessment. This provides diagnostic information about the learning of each student in order for systematic programs and teaching practices to be designed accordingly. A range of tools and methods and a collaborative approach to assessment can be beneficial in aim to record and manage data and analyse and evaluate information collected. Authentic assessment is a selective collection of student work and can be used for teacher observation and assessment to show learning progress in relation to a specific achievement standard. This type of assessment relates to competencies that can be applied in everyday life, for example asking a student to complete a task by following written instructions or to research a topic and provide a summary. Assessment strategies that use literacy or authentic tasks and real-life classroom procedures to gain a general understanding of student achievement. All assessment taken in

the classroom should be educative and inform the learner as well as the teacher and be based on an explicit criteria (Winch, et al., 2020). The teaching and learning cycle shows the place of assessment in teacher's decision making, as the fourth step of the procedure. Teachers can know when they have reached lesson outcomes, as they assess what students have learnt and what they can do concerning the curriculum content. Teachers can gather the data and information, analyse the information, make informed judgements regarding students’ progress and finally use assessment information to make systematic decisions about learning experiences for students.

Assessment is known as the way teachers identify the learning achievements of their students and forms the basis of planning and also the teaching and learning process. Assessment criteria should be explicit so students know what is expected from them and a comprehensive range of reading assessments should be used to gain a fair and overall picture of the learner and their progress. It can be used to guide and inform teacher's teaching practices, identify and meet student's needs and improves on delivering individual assistance to students and create systematic teaching practices for reading and viewing. All assessments must be educative and aim to inform the learner as well as the teacher....