Inherent requirements for postgraduate teachers and educators in Mental Health

1

Students of ACU are expected to abide by the Student Conduct and Discipline Policy and the Academic Integrity and Misconduct Policy.

2

Student demonstrates knowledge of and engages in behaviour consistent with all relevant standards.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Understanding and applying key ethical and conduct principles are requirements of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. Compliance with ACU's policies on student conduct is required to ensure productive and safe learning environments for all students. Compliance with ACU's Academic Integrity and Misconduct Policy is necessary to ensure the integrity of the learning outcomes and assessment tasks that are part of ACU's initial teacher education courses.

4

Adjustments must ensure the codes and standards are not compromised or result in unethical behaviour. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Demonstrating respect for the diversity of individual, family, and community beliefs, values, and practices in the classroom. Complying with privacy and confidentiality requirements in academic and professional environments.

1

Behavioural stability is required to function and adapt effectively and sensitively in educational settings associated with university study.

2

Student demonstrates: Behavioural stability to work constructively in potentially diverse and challenging academic and educational environments. Consistency in responding appropriately to peers, colleagues, ACU staff, teachers, mentors, learners, and parents/carers in potentially stressful and challenging situations.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Behavioural stability is required to work individually and in teams in changing and unpredictable environments. Students may be exposed to complex and potentially stressful situations and will be required to demonstrate behavioural stability to manage these events objectively and professionally. Graduates of accredited courses must meet the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.

4

Adjustments must support stable, effective, and professional behaviour in educational environments associated with university study. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Consistent, stable responses when dealing with multiple individuals and stimuli at once in the classroom. Remaining calm during unexpected events and disruptions from peers and others.

1

Education courses are bound by specific legislation and regulations to comply with professional accreditation and registration.

2

Student demonstrates compliance with Australian Law, professional regulation requirements, and standards relevant to persons working with children, young people, and their families.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Compliance with these professional regulations and Australian Law ensures that a student is both responsible and accountable for their practice.

4

Adjustments must ensure the legislation and regulations are not compromised. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Demonstrating knowledge of teachers' code of conduct. Adhering to requirements of informed consent, privacy, and confidentiality with organisational, family, and child information in academic and education settings.

1

The ability to effectively communicate in English and to accurately and effectively interpret spoken English is an essential requirement for all courses offered by the School of Education.

2

Student demonstrates: Effective verbal communication with peers, academic, and professional staff. The ability to provide clear instructions and presentation of ideas to individuals and large or small groups relevant to the learning context. The capacity to effectively use verbal language in a range of different social situations with children and adults.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Verbal communication is essential in developing and maintaining effective relationships with all educational stakeholders. Being aware of the subtleties of tone in expression is essential for building understanding between self and others, especially with vulnerable others and during difficult circumstances.

4

Adjustments must enable clear and accurate verbal communication that facilitates effective communication and safety. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Using spoken English to communicate effectively and appropriately with peers, academic, and professional staff. Communicating verbally with a range of stakeholders.

1

The capacity to use, recognise, interpret, and respond appropriately to non-verbal behavioural cues and gestures is a fundamental part of effective communication with a range of stakeholders.

2

Student demonstrates the capacity to recognise, interpret, and respond appropriately to non-verbal behavioural cues and gestures.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Non-verbal behavioural skills are essential in developing and maintaining effective relationships with all educational stakeholders. Displaying consistent and appropriate facial expressions, eye contact, being mindful of personal space, body movements, and gestures, and moderating these for cultural differences; promotes the trust and respect necessary to develop effective professional relationships. Safe and effective teaching requires the capacity to observe, interpret, and respond appropriately to non-verbal communication, particularly in situations where their learners may not be able to verbalise distress, discomfort, or fear.

4

Adjustments must enable the recognition, initiation of, or appropriate response to effective non-verbal communication in a timely and appropriate manner. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Recognising non-verbal cues and responding appropriately in lectures and tutorials. Acknowledging cultural differences and expectations of key non-verbal behaviours, facial expressions, and gestures.

1

The ability to effectively communicate in written English to ensure accuracy, clarity, and capacity to interpret written-based text is an essential requirement for all courses offered by the School of Education.

2

Student demonstrates technical skills of writing proficiency, including the ability to communicate complex information, argument, and exposition.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Written communication is essential in developing and maintaining effective relationships with all educational stakeholders. High-quality written skills are needed to express concepts and to demonstrate the links between concepts.

4

Adjustments must enable clear and accurate written communication that facilitates effective communication, demonstration of knowledge, and safety. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Using written English to communicate effectively and appropriately with peers, academic, and professional staff. Using different genre structures to respond appropriately to assessment task requirements. Editing draft work prior to submission.

1

Appropriate cognitive skills are required in order to locate, process, integrate, reflect on, and implement theoretical knowledge in assessment tasks, lectures, tutorials, and other structured learning activities.

2

Student demonstrates: The capacity to locate appropriate and relevant information. The ability to process information relevant to practice. The ability to integrate, reflect on, and implement theoretical knowledge.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Robust cognitive skills are needed for researching, inquiring, and linking ideas necessary for postgraduate study. Higher-order cognitive skills of evaluation, synthesis, and creativity are desirable for research and for responding to the variety of assessment task styles.

4

Adjustments must support the student's ability to acquire, analyse, and apply knowledge in educational environments. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Conceptualising and using appropriate knowledge in response to academic assessment items. Structuring an argument to articulate an idea from assessed information. Creatively responding to assessment tasks to demonstrate knowledge, understanding, and values.

1

Competent English language and literacy skills are essential for professional communication and effective teaching.

2

Student demonstrates the ability to read, comprehend, and respond to a range of texts in a variety of contexts including lectures, tutorials, assessment tasks, and other learning activities.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: The ability to acquire information and to accurately convey information is fundamental to teaching and learning. The ability to paraphrase another person's articulation demonstrates active listening and requires a competent level of spoken English language and literacy.

4

Adjustments must support students to demonstrate effective literacy skills. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Conveying a spoken message using appropriate vocabulary and conventions of speech. Competently constructing and sharing a range of texts including digital, written, and visual texts in a range of learning environments.

1

Reflective skills are essential to complete some assessment tasks effectively, sensitively, and build relationships in educational settings associated with university study.

2

Student demonstrates the ability to: Think about their role and their relationship with others in a professional and confidential manner. Work effectively, sensitively, and confidentially with children, young people, parents/carers, and community members in small and large groups. Consider the perspective of others with the intention of creating productive working relationships with peers, academics, and professional staff. Consider and demonstrate sensitivity to sociocultural differences in a complex and diverse Australian society.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: The sensitive-nature topics studied involve strong levels of consideration, retrospective analysis, and self-assessment. The topics are concept-laden and require expressions of understanding and an awareness of the affective as well as the cognitive domain.

4

Adjustments must enable appropriate levels of interpersonal engagement and behaviour. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Participating in a respectful and culturally competent manner in tutorial discussion. Demonstrating within assessment tasks that reflective practice has been implemented.

1

Relational skills are essential to work effectively, sensitively, and build relationships in educational settings associated with university study.

2

Student demonstrates: The ability to work effectively, sensitively, and confidentially with children, young people, parents/carers, and community members in small and large groups. The ability to create rapport with peers, academic, and professional staff conducive to effective working relationships. Cultural competence, sensitivity, and willingness to work with individuals and communities in a complex and diverse Australian society.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Postgraduate teachers are engaged in every-day conflict resolution negotiations, work with people from various ethnic, sociocultural, and socioeconomic demographics, and need to be culturally sensitive and culturally responsive.

4

Adjustments must enable appropriate levels of interpersonal engagement and behaviour. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Participating in a respectful and culturally competent manner in tutorial discussion. Interacting with mutual respect, equity, and dignity towards others.

1

Adequate visual abilities are required to provide safe and effective supervision of children and young people in a range of educational and community settings.

2

Student demonstrates: The capacity to absorb visual information and to react immediately and appropriately.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Visual observations, examinations, and assessment are fundamental to safe and effective teaching practice.

4

Adjustments must address the need to perform the required range of tasks involved. Any strategies to address the effects of the vision impairment must be effective, consistent, and not compromise care or safety. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Identification of objects, people's reactions from images, film. Creation of annotated mind maps. Basic editing of written documents. Identification of emotions from observing gesture, facial expression, behaviours.

1

Adequate auditory sensory ability is required to complete the full range of tasks involved in the course.

2

Student demonstrates: Active listening in tutorials and lectures with tutors, lecturers, and peers. The capacity to absorb auditory information and to react immediately with an appropriate response.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Auditory observations, examinations, and assessment are fundamental to safe and effective teaching practice. Listening for differences in tone is needed when conversing with distressed people.

4

Adjustments must address the need to perform the full range of tasks involved in the course. Any strategies to address the effects of a hearing impairment or auditory processing disorder must be consistent and not compromise effective and timely reception of, and response to, auditory inputs. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Active listening in tutorials and lectures. Monitoring people's behaviour, safety, and well-being; within indoor and outdoor settings; at both near and far distances.

1

Competent use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) is required for accessing course content and to support contemporary teaching and leadership practices including data collection and reporting.

2

Student demonstrates the capacity to confidently model ICT knowledge, skills, and dispositions to learners in line with the requirements of the General Capabilities in the Australian Curriculum and the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Students are expected to use ICT to access and engage with course content, learning resources, feedback, results, course advice, and to facilitate administrative tasks such as managing their enrolments.

4

Adjustments must support students to demonstrate effective ICT skills. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Using appropriate ICTs to communicate with peers, academic, and professional staff and to gather information in accomplishing academic tasks.

1

Students require both physical and mental performance at a consistent and sustained level over appropriate time frames to meet the course outcomes.

2

Student demonstrates: Consistent and sustained level of physical energy to complete a specific task in a timely manner. The ability to perform all required activities with a level of concentration that ensures a capacity to focus on the activity until it is completed appropriately. The capacity to maintain a consistent and quality performance in the specified professional experience placement usual time period i.e. whole days.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Sufficient physical and mental endurance is an essential requirement needed to perform multiple tasks in varying periods of time to provide safe and effective participation.

4

Adjustments must ensure that performance is consistent and sustained over a given period. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Participating in tutorials, lectures, and professional experience placements.

1

The course requires the student to perform gross motor skills with a level of strength and mobility to function within educational environments.

2

Student demonstrates the ability to maintain a consistent level of gross motor skills to safely and effectively complete the full range of tasks involved in the course.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Gross motor skills are necessary to access various learning environments, support learner safety and facilitate learner engagement.

4

Adjustments must facilitate functional effectiveness, safety of self and others, and the provision of an effective learning environment. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Demonstrating a range of gross motor skills such as lifting, carrying, pushing, or pulling educational resources in various teaching and learning environments. Participating in activities in both indoor and outdoor environments.

1

The course requires the student to perform fine motor skills to complete the range of tasks associated with the role of an educator.

2

Student demonstrates the ability to maintain a consistent level of fine motor skills to safely and effectively complete the full range of tasks involved in the course.

3

Justification of Inherent Requirement: Fine motor skills are necessary to ensure accurate, safe, and effective performance of tasks related to teaching and learning.

4

Adjustments must facilitate functional effectiveness, safety of self and others, and the provision of an effective learning environment. Adjustments specific to the individual can be discussed with the Campus Disability Advisor.

5

Exemplars: Demonstrating fine motor skills such as writing, drawing, or using technological devices for educational purposes.