We are learning to:
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I am reflecting on my Y10 Health programme which ran over Terms 1 and 2 this year. It was the first time we had offered this as a course in this structure so I feel it’s important to get some ideas down on how things went and what we need to look at to improve on things if it is to continue in this structure in 2026.
The course comprised of the following units:
- Ko wai au
- Vaping and Energy Drinks
- Bullying Prevention
- Sexuality Education
How well did learners meet the intended learning outcomes?
Majority achieving between the Achieved/Merit criteria on the unit assessments. Some outstanding and consistently in the Excellence bracket. This could largely be down to student comfort with difficult/vulnerable topics. There were instances as well where students obvious interest in/lack of interest dictated their level of engagement as well (students who have had experience being bullied were more engaged in the bullying inquiry project then those who are more likely to have been bullies/not experienced significant bullying in the past).
How well did the learning design meet the intended learning outcomes?
Learning design was by far more engaging in the Bullying unit compared to Ko wai au, Vaping/Energy Drinks and Sexuality education as this was more student led and also meaningful to students and the direction they chose to take this project.
Part of this was because of the Ko wai au, Vaping/Energy Drink and Sexuality topics we were covering mahi that comes from already developed resources and I didn’t feel comfortable deviating too far from the source material, whereas in the Bullying unit we finished the established content early and as a culminating activity I developed a inquiry task which required students to ‘Do something about Bullying’. This provided them with a tangible and meaningful task to work towards that they could then be held accountable for and could be completed in a way that suited them, their strengths and interests.
What parts of the learning design worked well, what can be improved?
As mentioned above, the Bullying unit was really supported by the inquiry aspect of it. I think finding a way to do the same with the other course topics would greatly enhance student engagement and overall quality of the mahi that was produced in this space.
As the sexuality unit is the majority of a terms work, this would definitely be the best place to incorporate something big picture.