Required texts

There is no required textbook for this unit. 

Weekly readings and other stimulus material for this unit will be provided on the unit's Canvas site. Pre-service teachers are expected to utilise these and other resources when preparing for workshops, learning activities and planning assessment tasks. 

Highly recommended text:

Gallaghan, P. & Gordon, P. (2014), Iridescence finding your colours and living your stories, MoshPit Publishing, Hazelbrook, NSW, Australia.

This text can be purchased from ,   or directly from the publisher at The 

It is also available at UC Library

Submission of assessment items

Extensions & Late submissions

Approval of extenuating circumstances will be dependent upon the production of supporting documentation and at the discretion of the unit convener.

All assessment items required to be submitted online must be submitted via the appropriate Canvas drop box. It is the student's responsibility to upload the correct and corresponding draft or assessment item to the right submission section. Assignments must be submitted in a format accessible to the assessor(s), as stated on the relevant canvas site. If the unit convener and/or tutor are unable to access a submission, or if no submission has been made by the due date and time, a standard late penalty of 10% of the total marks possible for the task may be applied per day, for three days, after which the submission will receive a score of ‘0' in keeping with UC's Assessment Policy.

Special assessment requirements

Submission of all assessment items and an aggregate of 50% is required to pass the unit.

Provision of valid documentation

Please note that the University takes student conduct very seriously. All documentation provided to University staff must be valid and the provision of fraudulent documentation carries with it potentially serious consequences, including suspension and/or exclusion from the University. Note that all allegations of student misconduct will be referred to the Associate Dean for Education (ADE) as a prescribed authority for investigation.

Students must apply academic integrity in their learning and research activities at UC. This includes submitting authentic and original work for assessments and properly acknowledging any sources used.

Academic integrity involves the ethical, honest and responsible use, creation and sharing of information. It is critical to the quality of higher education. Our academic integrity values are honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility and courage.

UC students have to complete the annually to learn about academic integrity and to understand the consequences of academic integrity breaches (or academic misconduct).

UC uses various strategies and systems, including detection software, to identify potential breaches of academic integrity. Suspected breaches may be investigated, and action can be taken when misconduct is found to have occurred.

Information is provided in the Academic Integrity Policy, Academic Integrity Procedure, and ÎåÔÂÌìÊÓƵ (Student Conduct) Rules 2023. For further advice, visit Study Skills.

Learner engagement

Indicative breakdown of workload:

Reading and private study: 50 hours

Workshop and online participation: 50 hours

Assessment tasks: 50 hours

Participation requirements

Active engagement in all online modules enhances your learning and is strongly advised. Unless specifically stated in the unit outline, there is no mandatory attendance requirement. However, you may elect to attend timetabled activities, as they allow you to ask 'real time' questions to develop your understanding for the relevant assessment tasks.

There is a strong correlation between participation and success in higher education. Your participation in online tutorials and engagement with the online activities will enhance your understanding of this unit's content and therefore the quality of your assessment responses. Lack of participation may result in your inability to satisfactorily pass assessment items.

Required IT skills

Students will need to be competent users of Canvas learning management system.

Artificial intelligence services must not to be used for assessment or assessment preparation by students unless explicitly allowed in the assessment instructions for an assessment task published with the assessment task and/or in the unit outline. That is, an artificial intelligence services may only be used if:

• its use is authorised by the unit convener as part of a specified
  assessment task, and
• it is used in the way allowed in the assessment instructions and/or unit outline, and
• its use is appropriately referenced, meaning that students must reference the use of AI in their assessment in the same way as they reference other source material.

Work placement, internships or practicums

Learning in this unit will be integrally linked to experiences in professional contexts.

Additional information

This unit involves research-led education. There are active researchers delivering this unit who are able to engage students in deep and active learning and transmit to students their passion for the research they are carrying out.

The Health Education theoretical foundation of this unit is based on the following. Together, these pedagogical frameworks form the foundations for how 'Holistic Health' Education is taught in this unit to equip pre-service teachers with the necessary skills to deliver quality, contemporary Health Education in Primary and/or Secondary school settings and promoting a holistic approach to health and well-being for the whole school community. 

• Evidence-based programs which take a strengths-based, human-rights, and whole-school approach to health topics that is informed by the Australian Curriculum for Health Education Version 9.0. 
• The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

This unit is also in its fifth iteration of addressing two of the University's Reconciliation Action Plan priorities in Indigenising the Curriculum Framework:

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Pedagogies — Enrich the University's curriculum by further embedding perspectives and pedagogies that demonstrate respect for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories, cultures and contributions. 
• Respecting the Ngunnawal People and their Culture — Strengthen further the University's commitment for respectful engagement with and guidance by the Traditional Owners of our region.

In addressing these two priorities, the unit not only aims to enact the University's key goal to provide pre-service teachers with the leadership, knowledge and independence to make a change towards reconciliation, it also offers multiple opportunities for pre-service teachers to develop their ways of knowing, being and doing to deliver the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority's Cross-curriculum Priority: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Histories and Cultures in the context of the Australian Curriculum: Health and Physical Education.

Communication from Teaching Staff:

• Notifications will be made through the Canvas 'Announcements' or the Canvas 'Discussion' forums to the unit cohort.
• It is the responsibility of pre-service teachers to ensure they check for announcements on the unit's Canvas site.
• Note: these Canvas forums also prompt an individual message to pre-service teachers UC student email. Pre-service teachers should therefore ensure they check their UC student email regularly. 

General questions about unit content and assessment content to Teaching Staff:

• Please direct enquiries to the 'Discussion' forum on the unit's Canvas site.
• The rationale for this is to ensure transparent communication around the unit's requirements and expectations between the unit's teaching team and students.

Specific enquires, including attendance, and assessment extensions to Teaching Staff:

• Please direct enquiries to your direct tutor by email with the Unit Convener copied in. 

When to expect an email reply from Teaching Staff:

• The Unit Convener and Teaching Team will check and respond to 'Discussion' forum and email enquires at certain timepoints across the work week (Monday to Friday). 
• Students should expect a reply within 2-3 business days (this excludes weekends). 
• If you do not receive a response in 2-3 business days please politely follow up your enquiry with the Unit Convener and/or Teaching Team member. 

Use of Student Email Account:

• The University Email Policy states that "students wishing to contact the University via email regarding administrative or academic matters need to send the email from the University account for identity verification purposes".
• Therefore, all unit enquiries should be emailed using your UC student university email account.
• Pre-service teachers should contact servicedesk@canberra.edu.au if they have any issues accessing their university email account.

Email Etiquette to Teaching Staff:

When using your UC student email to communicate with the unit's Teaching Team, you should always make sure that your message contains the following:

1. A subject clearly outlining the nature of your query or request, including the unit code.
   • The Unit Convener and Teaching Team receive a high volume of email each day, and they also teach more than one (1) unit across the semester.
   • If your email does not contain the unit code it makes your enquiry difficult to put in context.
   • If the subject does not indicate the nature of the message, it may well remain unanswered.
2. Change the default setting on your email program to include previous messages in replies, and make sure that any previous communication are included in an ongoing exchange.
   • The Unit Convener and Teaching Team manage a high volume of student enquiries. Having a copy of the previous exchanges included in your current email will expedite a response.
3. Professionally address your Unit Convener or Teaching Team member by their name. 
4. State your question or request clearly and concisely.
5. Insert a signature at the end of your email that contains:
   • Your first and last name/family name.
   • Your UC student number.

Failure to follow these guidelines may result in your email not receiving a timely reply.

• Semester 2, 2024, Online, UC - Canberra, Bruce (222731)
• Semester 2, 2024, On-campus, UC - Canberra, Bruce (222516)