UNIT ONE TITLE:

AUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND CATHOLIC EDUCATION IN THE LASALLIAN TRADITION

UNIT DESCRIPTION:

To be delivered by Doctor Gerard Rummery fsc, Ph.D., MA, M.Ed, B.A., Dip.Ed and Ms Trish Carroll, B.Ed., Grad Dip RE, M.Ed., Grad Dip Frontline Management, Graduate of the Buttimer Institute of Lasallian Studies, California, USA (Certificate IV Workplace Training and Assessment -pending)

This unit deals with the historical understandings of Lasallian pedagogy, which have formed the basis of modern education in most countries in the western world. Students will draw on the writings of De La Salle (patron saint of teachers), in particular The Conduct of Schools, and identify a range of underpinning pedagogies of the Lasallian tradition.

In this unit, the implications for the leadership and management of the Catholic School in a pluralist society will be explored. The relevance and application of Lasallian pedagogies (with a particular focus on Religious Education) in the contemporary Lasallian secondary school will be critically examined, particularly in the context of the religious education classroom, delivery of curriculum, and application of teaching and learning strategies.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

This unit will assist students to:

• Identify the pedagogical underpinnings of the Lasallian tradition;
• Develop awareness and understanding of the historical and social contexts that gave rise to the development of these pedagogies;
• Examine the implications for the application of these pedagogies for the contemporary Catholic school in a pluralist society;
• Critically evaluate traditional Lasallian pedagogies in the light of contemporary educational and curriculum development;
• Reflect on the meaning and application of various traditional Lasallian and contemporary applications to education in the Catholic school;
• Analyse and evaluate an inclusive model of education, based on the Lasallian tradition, encompassing contemporary brain theory, knowledge of learning style, and the development of effective learning centres;
• Apply the meaning and application of a chosen Lasallian pedagogy through an action research project;
• Develop a personal position on appropriate delivery of learning in the context of the Lasallian school within the Catholic tradition.

CONTENT:

• The educational theories, pedagogy and practice implemented by De La Salle, as described in The Conduct of Schools. (Better translated as How Schools Ought To Be Run)
• Historical and social developments since 17th century Europe in Catholic education, with a particular focus on the effects of Vatican 2 and subsequent Papal documents on the Catholic school;
• The changing pluralist nature of the Lasallian (Catholic) school and its impact on the delivery of religious education;
• Theoretical approaches to education and curriculum development and the impact they have made on the Lasallian (Catholic) school with a particular focus on the teaching of Religious Education;
• Examination of contemporary brain theory, learning styles, multiple intelligences and teaching/learning activities and the impact these have made on the contemporary Lasallian (Catholic) school in delivering excellence in education;
• Study and evaluation of a chosen Lasallian pedagogy, and its application to a modern Catholic school.