Course coordinator
Mrs Bec Meale
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 1, 2025 (24/02/2025 - 22/11/2025)
- Study level
- Undergraduate
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 4
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Education School
This course prepares pre-service teachers to teach Drama in the secondary school. Pre-service teachers will beprovided with opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of relevant curriculum documents. The course will engage pre-service teachers in analysis of recent disciplinary developments in scholarship and professional practice in the teaching of Drama. They will be provided with opportunities to develop the knowledge and teaching strategies to effectively deal with literacy and numeracy demands and learning opportunities that exist in Drama. Pre-service teachers will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills to practice through the ability to (i) design, implement and evaluate learning and teaching sequences and discipline specific assessment tasks that draw on curriculum, assessment, reporting, and ICT knowledge; and (ii) identifying and designing discipline specific opportunities for professional engagement and communication within the school context, teaching networks and the broader community.
For Semester 1, 2025, the mid-semester break for this course will be relocated to university week 8. In Semester 2, this course commences 1 week before standard Semester 2 classes.
This course will explore the role of drama in secondary school curriculum. It positions drama as a way of knowing and privileges aesthetic education for the learner. It will introduce students to a variety of skills, techniques and understandings that are important in the drama classroom, and the key concepts of drama pedagogy, curriculum and assessment. As this course is an educational subject, the primary focus will be on drama education rather than the artform of dramaﾠwhile still finding time toﾠhonour our teacher-artistry.
Course requirements
Assumed background
Previous study in a range of dramatic forms and styles, both heritage and contemporary will be assumed for this course. Experience in other skills of performance such as theatre technology, design, dramaturgy, scriptwriting and voice work will also be beneficial as they reflect those required by teacher-artists in schools.
Incompatible
You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:
EDUC6785
Restrictions
Restricted to students who are eligible to undertake Bachelor of Education (Secondary) dual program Professional Year
Course contact
Course staff
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
Students in EDUC4635 and EDUC7635 will attend a joint lecture. Students enrolled in this course in both in person and external offerings will attend a joint workshop offered in hybrid mode.
Aims and outcomes
Our sessions will combine drama techniques, readings, AV material, lectures, practical workshops and group discussions. This course will develop your skills in planning, teaching and assessing drama in junior and senior classes. In addition, this course will provide you with an opportunity to meet with and examine the work of key drama educators, and considerﾠemergent imperatives in drama syllabuses such as ACARA's Australian Curriculum: The Arts. It aims to offer opportunities to become familiar with significant curriculum initiatives and reforms in Queensland education. It will also give you experience in some of the popular forms and styles of drama in schools such as process drama, physical theatre, multimodal drama, Realism, Gothic theatre, applied theatre, Shakespeare, Brecht, Theatre of the Absurd, comedy and Children's theatre.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Demonstrate understanding of relevant content and critical
analysis of recent disciplinary developments in scholarship
and professional practice in the teaching of Drama.
LO2.
Demonstrate ability to apply knowledge and understanding of research into how students learn and knowledge of relevant curriculum documents to the development of appropriate discipline based learning goals and teaching strategies for students of varying abilities.
LO3.
Demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills to practice through the design, implementation and evaluation of effective learning and teaching sequences and discipline specific assessment tasks that draw on relevant curriculum documents, range of effective teaching resources, a full range of assessment and reporting strategies, and ICT knowledge that enables teaching strategies that expands learning.
LO4.
Demonstrate comprehensive and in-depth knowledge and understanding of literacy and numeracy teaching strategies and their application in Drama.
LO5.
Demonstrate application of knowledge and skills to practice through responding to feedback, and identifying and designing discipline specific opportunities for professional learning engagement and communication within the school context, teaching networks and the
broader community and understand the rational for this professional practice in relation to improved student learning.
LO6.
Demonstrate clear, fluent and coherent communication skills in English consistent with personal, professional and academic convention.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay/ Critique | Teaching and Learning Assessment Plan (TLAP) | 40% 3000 words |
31/03/2025 2:00 pm |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation |
Microteaching Demonstration
|
20% 15 minute presentation |
7/04/2025 5:00 pm
Microteaching demonstration will take place during the workshop time, with peers fulfilling the role as student |
| Practical/ Demonstration |
Professional Engagement and Communcation
|
40% 1500 word report |
13/10/2025 5:00 pm
Written report submitted and professional engagement presentation occurs during the allocated workshop time. |
Assessment details
Teaching and Learning Assessment Plan (TLAP)
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 40% 3000 words
- Due date
31/03/2025 2:00 pm
Task description
Due date: Monday, 31st March
Weighting: 40%
Length: approximately 3000 words (guide)
To ensure that the learning intents of the syllabus are delivered effectively, teachers need to plan their learning sequences and ensure that assessment tasks meet the requirements of the instrument specific marking guides.
The Task
You are to individually create a 25 lesson unit of work based on the senior Drama curriculum.
Your submission needs to include the following:
1. Provide a unit overview in a detailed grid format (use detailed grid template on Blackboard) which outlines:
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Microteaching Demonstration
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 20% 15 minute presentation
- Due date
7/04/2025 5:00 pm
Microteaching demonstration will take place during the workshop time, with peers fulfilling the role as student
- Other conditions
- Student specific.
Task description
Due Date: Monday 7th April
Weighting: 20%
Using a lesson prepared for your Senior Drama TLAP, you are to present a lesson segment for the class.
Your presentation should go for no more than 15 minutes and should consist of the following:
- a 5 minute overview which presents your lesson overview and also outlines where and how your segment fits into your lesson (give the group context of how it all fits together)
- a 10 minute simulation of the lesson segment
You are required to submit the following in one document via Blackboard prior to your presentation:
- A brief grid overview that shows where your lesson fits into a possible unit of work
- A full lesson plan that indicates where your segment fits into the lesson (the full lesson should be 60-70 minutes long)
- Any resources used
After your presentation, you are to submit a personal reflection outlining what you did well and what you will need to improve for next time (in both your lesson plan and presentation) and what professional learning you need to complete to improve student learning and a rationale outlining the importance of continued professional learning. This must be submitted to Blackboard within the week following your presentation.
Please note: You are not required to present the full lesson in the workshop, you only present a 10 minute segment of the lesson.
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
For in-class presentations / practical components - the next available workshop time is allocated for granted extensions
Professional Engagement and Communcation
- In-person
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Oral, Written
- Category
- Practical/ Demonstration
- Weight
- 40% 1500 word report
- Due date
13/10/2025 5:00 pm
Written report submitted and professional engagement presentation occurs during the allocated workshop time.
- Other conditions
- Time limited.
Task description
Due date: as negotiated/agreed dates (Final weeks of the course)
Weighting: 40%
After completing your micro teaching task in Semester One and throughout your professional experience placement, you will have reflected on your own personal professional goals in Drama Curriculum Studies to improve your teaching and student outcomes. Throughout Semester Two, we will dedicate one hour of our tutorial to sharing strategies to address professional development needs in a community context. During this time, four people will each facilitate a segment (4 x 10 minutes). Each member of the tutorial is required to facilitate a session that will be graded.
The Task
You are to individually select a personal professional goal based on feedback you have received to date:
Prior to class
* Conduct research into how students learn and the implications for teaching which will help you achieve growth towards your personal professional goal in Drama CS;
Submission guidelines
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
For in-class presentations / practical components - the next available workshop time is allocated for granted extensions
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Attended very few sessions and/or failed to demonstrate most or all of the course requirements. |
| 2 (Fail) |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Fails to provide evidence of understanding or ability to apply teaching and learning principles; no attempt at evaluation. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: Demonstrates superficial understanding of Drama teaching and learning principles and limited ability to apply these principles; or evaluation is unconvincing or inappropriate; or quality of communication is poor. |
| 4 (Pass) |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Demonstrates adequate understanding and application of Drama teaching and learning principles; evaluation of teaching approaches, assessment and resources is sometimes incomplete or inconsistent; communication is largely free of errors and coherent. |
| 5 (Credit) |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Demonstrates substantial understanding and application of Drama teaching and learning principles and policy and practice, and awareness of their implications for teaching approaches. Assessment and resources are appropriately evaluated; communication is clear and coherent with infrequent errors. |
| 6 (Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: As for 5, with explicit evidence of substantial reflection, ability to identify and analyse issues, concise, well-structured and error-free communication with some command and control of techniques and strategies associated with Drama teaching. |
| 7 (High Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: As for 6, with comprehensive and substantial reflection, synthesis of research, theory, policy and practice, ability to identify and critically analyse issues, logical, convincing and well-supported arguments. Communication demonstrates professional control and use of techniques and strategies associated with Drama teaching. |
Additional course grading information
Determining final grades: The final grades are determined by consideration of the weighting of individual assessment items, through the use of weighting formula and the profile of individual grades across accumulated assessment tasks.
All three assignments in the course will be provided a grade out of 7. The final grade will be calculated using the weighting and the individual assignment grades as follows.
Example: A student receives the following three grades
Assignment 1 (A1): grade of 6 at 20% weighting
Assignment 2 (A2): grade of 5 at 40% weighting
Assignment 3 (A3): grade of 6 at 40% weighting
The final grade for this student taking into account the weighting of each assignment would be:
(A1) + (A2) + (A3)
(0.2 x 6) + (0.4ﾠx 5) + (0.4ﾠx 6) = 1.2 + 2ﾠ+ 2.4ﾠ= 5.6
The final grade would be rounded up to the nearest whole number; in this case the grade would be 6.
In the case where the final grade is 0.5 or above, the grade will be rounded up to the nearest whole number (e.g. 5.5 would become 6). In the case where the final grade is 0.49 or below, the grade will be rounded down to the nearest whole number (e.g. 5.49 would become 5).
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
The following applies to all assessments in this course:
Marking criteria and/or marking rubrics are available in the 'Assessment' folder in Blackboard for this course.
Release of assessment item marks and feedback
In addition to the grade awarded, feedback will be provided in a timely manner to enable students to apply the feedback to further tasks within the course or program and/or plan for supplementary assessment, requests for re-mark, or re-enrolment. However, as per UQ Policy and Procedures Library under the Assessment Policy, results for the final assessment item are to be released only after the final grade for the course has been released. Time frames for applications for assessment re-mark are indicated under the Assessment Procedure.
Re-mark policy
After each assessable item, students will be given the opportunity to view their assessment and so satisfy themselves that a marking or administrative error has not occurred. The formal process of querying a course result (requesting a remark on academic grounds) is set out in the UQ Policy and Procedures Library under the Assessment Procedure.
Use of AI/MT to support or inform assessment
This task has been designed to be challenging, authentic and complex. Whilst students may use AI and/or MT technologies, successful completion of assessment in this course will require students to critically engage in specific contexts and tasks for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance.
A failure to reference generative AI or MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
To pass this assessment, students will be required to demonstrate detailed comprehension of their written submission independent of AI and MT tools.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Find the required and recommended resources for this course on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
Drama Queensland Toolkits available on their website
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
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| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (24 Feb - 02 Mar) |
Workshop |
Teaching Drama - Overview Part lecture, part group workshop, we will share our ideas and experiences to explore why we consider drama is important in education. Introduction to main professional associations. Rationales to key Drama syllabuses: drama's strands/dimensions; dramatic languages; dramatic techniques. |
Week 2 (03 Mar - 09 Mar) |
Workshop |
Tools for Teaching Drama What tools and techniques do I use to teach drama? (Practical, Workshop): We will navigate the drama strand of The Australian Curriculum: The Arts V9 and workshop aspects of Making:Devising and look at how we teach drama in the classroom through practical activities |
Week 6 (31 Mar - 06 Apr) |
Workshop |
How do we plan for drama? Students will engage in a process drama demonstrating the key conventions and pedagogy used. We will follow up with an online lecture to consolidate the learning from the practical session using planning skills through use of TLAP mapping. |
Week 7 (07 Apr - 13 Apr) |
Workshop |
Stylistic Focus We will unpack the conventions of Process Drama and move into Verbatim Theatre & Realism. |
Week 8 (14 Apr - 20 Apr) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
Mid-Semester Break |
Multiple weeks From Mid-sem break (first semester) To Week 13 |
Placement |
Break for Professional Experience |
Revision week (first semester) (02 Jun - 08 Jun) |
Workshop |
Drama Pedagogy & Teacher Tooklit This week will cover key elements of the Drama Curriculum, focusing on responding to drama in the classroom. Examples will be available to be viewed and coursework will cover how to teach responding with students through modelling tasks. We will also continue drafting and preparing our Microteaching & TLAP Assessment |
O-Week (second semester) (21 Jul - 27 Jul) |
Workshop |
Teaching, Learning and Assessment Plans We will complete our Microteaching Demonstrations and finalise TLAP assessment. |
Week 15 (04 Aug - 10 Aug) |
Workshop |
Preparing for Prac / Recap of Syllabus Key Senior Drama Syllabus Components (Lecture): We will reflect on the 2025 syllabus and discuss your practical requirements ready for Prac Placements. |
Multiple weeks From Week 16 To Week 21 |
Placement |
Break for Professional Experience |
Mid-sem break (second semester) (29 Sep - 05 Oct) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
Mid-Semester Break |
Week 23 (06 Oct - 12 Oct) |
Workshop |
Introduction to the Australian Curriculum: Drama We will re-group and check in to share prac experiences. |
Week 24 (13 Oct - 19 Oct) |
Workshop |
Drama Curriculum We will explore practical ways to teach drama as well as discuss prac placements and upcoming assessment.This week there will be time to prepare your PPT presentations for Assessment #3 and offer peer feedback through a discussion circle. |
Week 26 (27 Oct - 02 Nov) |
Workshop |
Sharing Knowledge and Pedagogy We will continue our exploration of Senior Drama through practical activities. We will complete the course with the presentation of our Research Projects (Assessment #3) |
Additional learning activity information
Exploring professional engagement and building communities of practice
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.