Course coordinator
Dr Garth Stahl
Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2025 (28/07/2025 - 22/11/2025)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Education School
Literacy and numeracy are key enabling skills for full and effective participation in and beyond school life. Literate and numerate citizens contribute to the functioning of society and hence literacy and numeracy are a fundamental aspect of education. Literacy and numeracy practices are performed in a multitude of diverse contexts. The term `multiliteracies' acknowledges both the socially diverse (i.e., diverse languages, communication styles and socio-cultural contexts) and multimodal (i.e., any combination of these modes: oral, visual, audio, written, spatial, gestural, tactile) nature of literacy and numeracy practices in the twenty first century. Based on international and Australian research and theory, this course explores multiliteracies meaning making across the curricula, whilst embracing the participatory disposition of today's learners, who interpret, understand, use and create multimodal texts that, for example, incorporate images, video clips, sound effects, music, animation or more specialized representations (mathematical formulas, graphs and tables etc.). Research tells us that it is important to understand how various literacies and various cultural traditions combine these different modalities to make meanings that are more than the sum of what each could mean separately. National and international educational policy recognises both literacy and numeracy as essential foundational skills for success in all learning areas. Teaching strategies to build literacy and numeracy competence as general capabilities for personal enablement, civic and economic participation and social equity are the main focus of this course.
This course may not be offered In Person if the enrolment is less than 10 students.
This course explores literacy and numeracy as interdisciplinary skills for meaning making and analysis across all sectors of society. The complexity of social, cultural and political issues pertaining to literacy and numeracy are critically examined and possible pathways forward are mapped that employ up-to-date research and theory on effective pedagogical strategies for literacy and numeracy education.
Course requirements
Restrictions
Restricted to students enrolled in the GCEdSt and MEdSt. In Person offering may be cancelled unless a minimum of 10 students enrol.
Jointly taught details
This course is jointly-taught with:
- Another instance of the same course
This course has Internal and External offerings and will be run in a hybrid environment with simultaneous synchronous in-person and online delivery.
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Dr Garth Stahl
Ms Yating Hu
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Aims and outcomes
- To explore contemporary understandings of issues pertaining to multiliteracies and numeracy across the curriculum
- To provoke critical engagement with up-to-date research and theory on effective pedagogical strategies for the literacy and numeracy teaching across the curriculum
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Presentation | Problem statement for your inquiry | 10% 300 words + Pecha Kucha |
25/08/2025 2:00 pm |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Literature review and plan of actions for inquiry | 25% 2000 words |
22/09/2025 2:00 pm |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Project Inquiry report | 35% 3000 words |
10/11/2025 2:00 pm |
| Participation/ Student contribution |
Reflection on action research scenario
|
30% |
Part 1 Collaborative Group Work (Session A) 8/09/2025 - 10/09/2025 Part 1 Collaborative Group Work (Session B) 22/09/2025 - 24/09/2025 Part 1 Collaborative Group Work (Session C) 13/10/2025 - 15/10/2025 Part 2 Video - 2pm 20/10/2025 - 20/10/2025 |
Assessment details
Problem statement for your inquiry
- Mode
- Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia, Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Presentation
- Weight
- 10% 300 words + Pecha Kucha
- Due date
25/08/2025 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
Action Research Project Overview:
Over Assessment Task 1, 2, 3 and 4, you are to design and reflect on an action research inquiry project related to the areas of literacy and numeracy in an educational context. Reflecting on the strengths and weaknesses of action research is a useful way of improving your understanding of your role as a practitioner and as an educational researcher.
Across the first two weeks of EDUC7113 the contemporary landscape of literacy and numeracy will be mapped and explored. With this understanding you will identify a key literacy and numeracy issue that you will explore across the semester. The components of this inquiry are broken into four separate tasks.
Task 1: Action Research Problem Statement
Part 1 – Written submission (300 words)
Action research in education is a reflective research practice that many experienced teachers engage in. It usually relates to improving teaching practice with a key question asking – “How can I improve what I do in relation to…” (see for instance Getting to Know the Problem, Trying to Find a Solution section in McAteer chapter).
- If you are not currently practicing as a teacher you may look at inquiring into something that you are interested in, perplexed by or want to change by analysing documents (e.g. policies, curricula, websites) to inform your future practice.
- If you are currently a practicing teacher, it is important for the action research to be small scale and manageable.
Your task:
- Define your inquiry by forming a problem statement and key question and sub questions.
- Goal: The purpose of this task 1 (Part A) is to clarify focus of your inquiry. (300 words, written submission).
- For your reference: We have listed some readings at the end of this document. Use p. 15 of Efron and Ravid (2013) as a guide for writing a problem statement and pp. 31-33 for guidance on research questions.
Part 2 – 2-minute Presentation (Pecha Kucha)
Your task:
- Prepare, record and submit a presentation to introduce your research problem, the context and an argument why your inquiry is significant.
- Format: Pecha Kucha – Slideshow with visuals where each slide is roughly 20 seconds (no more than 2 mins total).
- Goal: Pique our interests and demonstrate your professional multimodal communication skills.
For reference: http://www.pechakucha.org/
Submission guidelines
Submissions are accepted via the Blackboard site. Please follow instructions for submission of the text and the video files on the Course Blackboard site, Assessment section.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
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.
Literature review and plan of actions for inquiry
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 25% 2000 words
- Due date
22/09/2025 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
Action Research Project Overview:
Over Assessment Task 1, 2, 3 and 4, you are to design and reflect on an action research inquiry project related to the areas of literacy and numeracy in an educational context. Reflecting on the strengths and weaknesses of action research is a useful way of improving your understanding of your role as a practitioner and as an educational researcher.
Having identified your research problem and written a problem statement in Task 1, your next step is to build a deeper understanding of the issue by reviewing literature and planning your next steps for inquiry.
Task 2: Literature Review and Plan of Action for Inquiry (Up to 2,000 words in total, excluding references)
Part 1 – Literature review (approx.1500 words)
- Conduct a literature review of the issue you identified in Task 1. Gather information from peer-reviewed academic literature, policies, reports, etc. (Read pp. 17-31 on developing a literature review in Efron & Ravid, 2013).
- Consolidate all this information into a literature review demonstrating synthesis, critical analysis, evaluation and identification of key gaps in research to date.
- Discuss how this literature shapes your understanding of the topic and how it helps you justify your inquiry.
Part 2 – Project plan (approx. 500 words)
- Design and describe a plan of action for what you have done and/or will undertake over the next few weeks to understand the phenomena of your inquiry, informed by your review of the issue.
- Explain how each action connects to your inquiry focus and literature.
- List what you will read, what documents you will analyse, and what data you will gather (e.g., personal reflections of practice).
- Provide an estimated timeframe for each action.
Submission guidelines
Submissions are accepted via the Blackboard site. Please follow instructions for submission on the Course Blackboard site, Assessment section.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
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.
Project Inquiry report
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 35% 3000 words
- Due date
10/11/2025 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
Action Research Project Overview:
Over Assessment Task 1, 2, 3 and 4, you are to design and reflect on an action research inquiry project related to the areas of literacy and numeracy in an educational context. Reflecting on the strengths and weaknesses of action research is a useful way of improving your understanding of your role as a practitioner and as an educational researcher.
Building on the deeper understanding you developed in Task 2 through reviewing literature and planning your inquiry, your next step is to develop an Action Research Report.
Note: For students who are not focusing your inquiry within a current teaching context, you will compose Task 3 as a hypothetical scenario demonstrating your knowledge of both educational research and action research.
Task 3: Action Research Report
The report documents the actions that you have taken to understand the literacy and numeracy education issue further, and your reflections and interpretations of these actions. Use Efron and Ravid (2013) as a guide for writing a report. Your task should include:
- Introduction: Describe the research context and your problem statement (from Task 1). Outline the purpose of this report.
- Planned Actions: Explain the actions you undertook or planned in undertake (e.g., what you read, reflected on, or analysed), drawing on your plan from Task 2.
- Analysis: From the documents (e.g., policy documents, websites, reports, teaching reflective journaling, memos, etc) that you gather identify themes and patterns (see Ch. 7 of Efron & Ravid (2013)) OR the data analysis discuss these in relation to the literature.
- Discussion: Discuss what you have learned through designing the action research, how you conducted it or would conduct it (depending on circumstance), how you analysed the data or would have hypothetically analysed the data. Overall, how would your research connect to or challenge the literature you find.
- Conclusions and implications: Write conclusions and implications from your assessment of the issue (see pp. 215-217 Efron & Ravid (2013) for a guide noting the required sections are mapped out on pp. 226-230).
Submission guidelines
Submissions are accepted via the Blackboard site. Please follow instructions for submission on the Course Blackboard site, Assessment section.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
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.
Reflection on action research scenario
- Identity Verified
- Team or group-based
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance, Oral
- Category
- Participation/ Student contribution
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
Part 1 Collaborative Group Work (Session A) 8/09/2025 - 10/09/2025
Part 1 Collaborative Group Work (Session B) 22/09/2025 - 24/09/2025
Part 1 Collaborative Group Work (Session C) 13/10/2025 - 15/10/2025
Part 2 Video - 2pm 20/10/2025 - 20/10/2025
- Other conditions
- Student specific, Time limited.
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
Action Research Project Overview:
Over Assessment Task 1, 2, 3 and 4, you are to design and reflect on an action research inquiry project related to the areas of literacy and numeracy in an educational context. Reflecting on the strengths and weaknesses of action research is a useful way of improving your understanding of your role as a practitioner and as an educational researcher.
To deepen your learning and ensure authentic engagement with the course, Task 4 focuses on you engaging in a productive dialogue about action research where you both lead parts of the discussion and provide feedback to others. This is integral to how we develop ourselves as action researchers. The task is designed to foster deeper reflection and for you to critique and problematize how others approach action research.
Task 4: Collaborative Group Work and Recorded Reflection
This is a secure assessment task that is structured in two parts.
Part 1 – Collaborative Group Work
You will be involved in collaborative group work regarding an action research scenario focused on literacy and numeracy in educational contexts. You will be provided with this scenario 48 hours in advance of each session so you can prepare.
Sessions will occur in Weeks 7, 9 and 11. During these sessions, you will engage in productive dialogues with other people in the class in order to help extend both your own and your peers’ thinking regarding the scenario. Please take detailed notes during these sessions to inform your recorded reflection (Part 2).
- You need to attend a minimum of two sessions out of the three in order to show a change in your thinking over time.
- As the course is conducted in a hybrid format, you can attend these sessions on Zoom or face-to-face.
Part 2 – Recorded Reflection (5 minutes)
Following your participation in the collaborative group work sessions, you will record and upload a short video which is five minutes in duration. In the video:
- You will respond to how participating in multiple discussions developed your thinking in terms of literacy and numeracy in educational contexts and as an action researcher.
- You will cite specific instances from the group sessions (Part 1) to demonstrate authentic reflection.
- You will need to make clear links between the collaborative group work and the weekly readings and podcasts. This is how you will demonstrate evidence of your capacity to make connections and synthesise across different sources.
Submission guidelines
Submission instructions:
Record video or audio through EchoVideo guide
Submit a video assignment with EchoVideo guide
Contact the UQ Library AskUs service if you need further technical help.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
For Part 1 if students require a make-up session, contact the course coordinator directly.
For Part 2, please submit the 5-minute reflection on the due date. For Part 2 if students wish to apply extension to the due date, they must submit an extension request via myUQ.
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.
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: Failed to pass all assignments and did not demonstrate understanding of key concepts of evidence, quality, equity and forms of teacher research. |
| 2 (Fail) |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Failed to pass all assignments and showed very limited understanding of key concepts in the course. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes Course grade description: Passed one of the assignments but failed the other assignments. Showed some understanding of some of the key concepts but did not develop a sufficient level of understanding of the key concepts. |
| 4 (Pass) |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: Demonstrated an understanding of all the key concepts in the course but didn't show a comprehensive or in-depth understanding and application. |
| 5 (Credit) |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The key concepts in the course are understood in some depth and applied appropriately in the two assignments. |
| 6 (Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The key concepts are clearly understood in depth and applied in ways that suggest original contributions and applications to professional contexts. |
| 7 (High Distinction) |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. Course grade description: The assignments demonstrated original insights and deep understanding and application of the key concepts in the course. |
Additional course grading information
Determining final grades
- The final grades are determined by consideration of the weighting of individual assessment items, ﾠthrough the use ofﾠweighting formula and the profile of individual grades across accumulated assessment tasks.ﾠPlease note that the weighting of an assignment refers to the relative significance of the assignment within the assessment program, not to a number for a grade. The use of these multiple sources of information means that your final grade relates to a position within a grade band and not to a percentage.
All assignments in this course will be provided a grade out of 7. The final grade will be calculated using the weighting and individual grades as follows:
Example: A student receives the following grades - ﾠAssignment 1 (A1): grade 7ﾠat 15% weighting, Assignment 2 (A2) grade 5 at 40% weighting and Assignment 3 (A3) grade 6 at 45% weighting. The final grade for this student taking into account the weighting of each assignment would be: A1 (0.15ﾠx 7) + A2 (0.40 x 5) + A3 (0.45ﾠx 6) = 5.75
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. 6.49 would become 6).
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
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (28 Jul - 03 Aug) |
Workshop |
Literacy and numeracy definitions Learning outcomes: L01, L02 |
Week 2 (04 Aug - 10 Aug) |
Workshop |
Global & national literacy and numeracy landscape Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 3 (11 Aug - 17 Aug) |
Workshop |
Critical literacies / Ekka Holiday Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 4 (18 Aug - 24 Aug) |
Workshop |
History and policy of numeracy Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 5 (25 Aug - 31 Aug) |
Workshop |
Multimodal and artifactual literacies Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 6 (01 Sep - 07 Sep) |
Workshop |
Numeracy today Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 7 (08 Sep - 14 Sep) |
Workshop |
Place-based & community engaged literacies Learning outcomes: L03 |
Week 8 (15 Sep - 21 Sep) |
Workshop |
Numeracy in the school curriculum Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 9 (22 Sep - 28 Sep) |
Workshop |
Literacies pedagogies Learning outcomes: L01, L02 |
Mid Sem break (29 Sep - 05 Oct) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
UQ Mid-term Break |
Week 10 (06 Oct - 12 Oct) |
Workshop |
Embedding numeracy across the curriculum Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 11 (13 Oct - 19 Oct) |
Workshop |
Assessing literacies Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 12 (20 Oct - 26 Oct) |
Workshop |
Assessing numeracy Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 13 (27 Oct - 02 Nov) |
Workshop |
Where to from here: The next Action Research cycle Learning outcomes: L01 |
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 for Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.