Planning

It is the responsibility of the school to ensure that a duty of care is exercised in relation to the health and safety of all students when teaching VCE Psychology. Teachers and students should note that this course of study provides an academic overview of psychology and does not have any clinical or diagnostic intent. As with any aspect of teaching, pastoral care and health issues should be pursued in accordance with the school’s pastoral care policy (for example, referral to the school’s mental health worker or psychologist).

When developing courses, teachers must consider:

• duty of care in relation to health and safety of students in learning activities, practical work and excursions
• legislative compliance (for example, information privacy, student health records and copyright); sensitivity to cultural backgrounds and personal beliefs (for example, discussions related to external influences on behaviour)
• adherence to community standards and ethical guidelines (for example, maintaining confidentiality of personal details, environmental responsibility when undertaking fieldwork and observation of relevant protocols, sensitivities and ethical codes of conduct and practice when dealing with investigations involving human participants, including voluntary participation in learning activities and debriefing students after completing learning activities if learning activities require a component of deception)
• respect for persons and differences of opinion; sensitivity to student views on the use of animals in research (for example, providing alternatives to dissections).

For more detail regarding relevant acts and regulations about student safety and wellbeing and for codes and principles on ethical conduct, refer to pages 8–10 of the VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027.

Cultural sensitivity

Analysing their own cultural identify and beliefs and those of others in their school, family or school may be an effective way of developing an understanding of key knowledge but some students may not wish to share observations on their own cultural identifies and practices with others. Schools should ensure that students have provided informed consent if / when a teacher uses knowledge of a student’s cultural background in class as well as providing alternatives for students who do not wish to voluntarily undertake any activity requiring analysis and or sharing of their own experience. Teachers should also be aware of the potential for othering and take appropriate steps to minimise it. For further details about othering refer to: What Is Othering? (Kendra Cherry, Verywell mind)

Additionally, when learning about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural expressions, teachers must follow the protocols developed by the Department of Education and Training and the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Incorporated (VAEAI). These protocols seek to protect the integrity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural expressions in a way in which all Australians can engage respectfully and feel connected to this identity. 

Study of mental wellbeing

The VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027 allows for the exploration of mental health and wellbeing, focusing on ways of considering mental wellbeing and the psychological basis for developing and maintaining mental wellbeing. This involves a particular focus on how a biopsychosocial approach can be applied to mental wellbeing, in particular in Unit 1 through the consideration of factors that influence psychological development, brain plasticity and brain injury; in Unit 2 through consideration of prejudice, discrimination and stigma on wellbeing; in Unit 3 through consideration of stress as a psychobiological process, and Unit 4 through consideration of the importance of sleep to mental wellbeing and through a discrete area of study related to mental wellbeing, including the study of specific phobia.

It is important that teachers implement a strengths-based and culturally safe approach when considering topics related to mental wellbeing, and ensure that students are supported to develop skills and knowledge that nurture their own health and wellbeing in the framework of an academic study of psychology. Appropriate information regarding available supports and referrals for individual health and wellbeing should be provided to students at the beginning, and throughout, each unit of study. Teachers should ensure that students are not asked to disclose personal information or be asked to provide perspectives based on personal experiences, identity and / or cultural background.

Teachers are advised that for VCE Psychology the analysis of any mental disorders should be considered in conjunction with management options and that the psychological basis for the treatment of mental disorders should be considered from a biopsychosocial approach. Students should recognise that treatments are not mutually exclusive and are not always easily catergorised as being solely ‘biological’, ‘psychological’ or ‘social’.

For further advice regarding safety and wellbeing refer to pages 8 and 9 of the study design.

Each outcome in VCE Psychology draws on a set of key science skills for Psychology listed on pages 12 and 13 of the study design. The development, demonstration and application of the key science skills must be integrated into a teaching and assessment program and applied in a variety of contexts, including through practical work. A number of approaches to teaching and learning can support the development, demonstration and application of key science skills, including a focus on inquiry where students pose questions, explore scientific ideas, draw evidence-based conclusions and propose solutions to problems. An appropriate balance of theoretical and practical activities relating to the Units 1–4 Key science skills should be included in teaching and assessment programs.

Students should be expected to demonstrate progressively higher skill levels across Units 1 to 4. Teachers are encouraged to map the specific teaching and assessment of the Units 1–4 Key science skills across all units, ensuring that relevant key science skills are covered in the delivery of a program of study and that skills are covered at progressively higher level. Making explicit to students when and how they are developing each of the Units 1–4 Key science skills can also enable student-directed learning and encourage students to monitor their successful achievement of each skill.

Examples of teaching and learning activities that include the development, demonstration and application of key science skills integrated into key knowledge have been provided under Teaching and learning.

Literacy in VCE Psychology

VCE Psychology involves learning technical language and understanding data representations that allows students to critically evaluate the stories, claims, discoveries and inventions about science they hear and read in the media and to examine the relevance of science in their everyday lives.

Information sources related to psychology use a range of representations such as diagrams, tables, graphs, photographs, video sequences, simulations and text to describe psychological phenomena. Teachers are encouraged to support student learning of this multi-modal language by unpacking how each representation works to support students to be able to use multi-literacies (text and images) in developing explanations of psychological concepts.

Strategies for supporting students include:

• providing students with opportunities to read, view, write, speak and listen to a wide range of texts and media to source and compare information, including traditional textbooks and online journals in addition to news websites and blogs, videos and social media channels
• students generating representations and explanations that illustrate student thinking in ways that allow the teacher to clarify and provide feedback
• guiding and collaborating with students to construct different scientific explanations, illustrations and data representations, enabling students to compare and evaluate information from different sources to understand how ideas can be represented in different ways and to distinguish between scientific and non-scientific ideas
• using discussions to break down the meaning of terminology by looking for known sub-parts or meaning in other contexts
• creating opportunities for repeated exposure to new terminology in a range of different formats included written, oral and auditory
• encouraging students to create their own mnemonic devices in order to make terminology more personally meaningful and memorable.

Scientific literacy

Scientific literacy refers to peoples’ understanding of scientific concepts, phenomena and processes, and their ability to apply this knowledge to new and, at times, non-scientific situations (PISA, 2018). This involves students:

• being curious and asking, investigating or determining answers to questions generated from their observations about everyday experiences
• describing, explaining, hypothesising and making predictions about scientific phenomena
• critically evaluating the quality of scientific information and data on the basis of its source and the methods used to generate it
• identifying scientific issues underlying local, state and national issues and decisions, and expressing their own views that are based on scientific and technological understanding
• understanding and evaluating articles about science in the public domain and discussing the validity of the conclusions
• proposing arguments based on evidence and drawing valid conclusions from data.

Strategies for supporting students’ development of scientific literacy include:

• students working collaboratively and ethically in practical activities and discussing observations and results
• students participating respectfully in group discussions and debates
• teachers questioning and inquiring to encourage students to make observations, to question the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of science-related phenomena, and trying to make sense of them using their knowledge and research.
  

Teachers are advised to provide students with learning opportunities that allow them to critically evaluate the stories, claims, discoveries and inventions in science that they are exposed to in the media, and to examine the relevance of science in their everyday lives. For the purposes of VCE Psychology, contemporary science relates to research that has been reported within 12 months of its use in the classroom.

In particular, access to up-to-date information enables appropriate selection of topics for the student-directed research investigation in Unit 1 Area of Study 3 and background research into the practical investigations in Unit 2 and across Units 3 and 4.

Sources of information

Although original psychological research reports are accessible, many require subscription and most are written for a research audience. For the purposes of VCE Psychology, teachers and students may access reports, videos and summaries of contemporary psychological research and expert commentary through popular science publications (for example, Cosmos, The Scientist, Nature and Scientific American) as well as online science media outlets where areas of interest can be filtered (for example: Neuroscience News, New Medical Life Sciences, Psychology Today Australia, ScienceAlert, Science Daily, Science News, and The Conversation).

A range of other science organisations such as the Australian Psychological Society, ABC Science, CSIRO, Museums Victoria and National Geographic also provide access to contemporary scientific research via email subscription.
Other sources of information include:

• Current psychological science research and collaborative community-based projects can be accessed through the internet and are often reported in the media, particularly in the local press where updates on local government initiatives and projects are published.
• Search ’psychological organisations Australia’ and scroll through the list of organisations to select those of relevance to your teaching and assessment program.
• Regular media sources such as podcasts and webinars enable students to communicate with researchers and mental health professionals, enabling students to see the passion and skills scientists have for their field / research. Researchers and mental health professionals may discuss the practical challenges and solutions (if available) and the potential of their research or project findings.

Adapting contemporary scientific research for learning and assessment

Psychological research and innovations can be used in a variety of ways. Students can read and review the purpose, design, findings and interpretations of the selected research. Media reports or research communications provide adequate details for this to occur. Academic research articles can be sourced online and the abstract, findings and conclusions are often suitable for student interpretation.

Teachers should consider the following when adapting contemporary scientific research for classroom use:

• review information source: check the science, check the suitability for students, check the readability for students, check the availability (how will this medium be shared with students?); teachers may need to edit the information to make the readability and length manageable for students to access
• decide how to use the information resource or scientific research: as a role-play prompt (to explore stakeholder positions in a psychological issue), as a comparison to known information (for example, a new application of included key knowledge), as an example of high-quality investigation design or analysis strategies, or as secondary data for analysis and interpretation
• guide students to review information communications, checking reliability and authenticity while learning how to reference and acknowledge sources.

Teachers may adapt contemporary science research and reports to create assessment tasks; for example, case study analysis and evaluation, evaluation of research, response to a psychological issue or report using secondary data, where students are expected to apply their understanding of psychological concepts in unfamiliar situations. As the information sources are available in the public domain, schools must ensure that any assessment task developed is unique to the school and student cohort so that authentication risks are minimised. This may be achieved by selecting and adapting aspects of an information source as a basis for the stimulus materials used for the assessment task and / or altering type of assessment task generated from the stimulus material; for example, considering whether structured questions, a flowchart, an oral presentation or a sequence of PowerPoint slides may be appropriate for assessing the relevant key knowledge and key science skills.

Problem-based learning

A problem-based learning approach is conducive to linking scientific concepts to examining contemporary science-based issues in society. Scenarios can be developed from actual case studies reported in scientific journals, from local scenarios and issues or from a fictional case study or scenario. A problem-based learning approach can also be used to develop specific key science skills. The key science skills selected should link to relevant biological content.

The following steps are useful when using a problem-based learning approach:

Step 1: Define the question / scenario / problem carefully: what are you trying to find out?

Step 2: Refine the question / explore possible options.

Step 3: Plan the actual investigation / narrow your choices.

Step 4: Test ideas and obtain further information.

Step 5: Write a conclusion that draws upon discussions / research / experiments.
Problem-based scenarios do not necessarily have a single solution. A class problem-based learning approach can be used to generate different questions for students to investigate, particularly for experimental investigations.

For examples of how a problem-based learning approach can be included in a curriculum and assessment program, see Teaching and learning.

Consideration of ethical concepts and guidelines is important to support students in exploring ethical and moral conduct in psychological investigations as well as psychological issues that they may encounter as part of their daily lives. An ethical issue arises in situations where there are competing ways to respond to a situation and the best course of action is not always clear. An ethical issue becomes an ethical dilemma when it is not possible to act in a way that does not contravene a value or ethical principle, presenting us with a decision about which action or principle to prioritise over another (see page 20 and 21 of the VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027 for the ethical concepts and guidelines that should be considered).

Teaching ethical understanding often includes an emphasis on classroom and group discussion guided by a series of questions. The benefits of this approach are that it exposes each student to a wide range of ideas, values and perspectives and develops students’ ability to engage in psychological issues and dilemmas in a respectful and tolerant manner.

Teachers should use their own judgment to select psychological issues and learning activities that best suit their school and student cohorts, as well as to select the type of psychological issues that will best support discussion between students in their particular classroom. For a classroom discussion to be successful, the teacher needs to facilitate it carefully and in a positive, safe atmosphere. Some good suggestions for setting classroom norms and managing classroom discussions can be found in ‘Actually, it’s OK to disagree. Here are 5 ways we can argue better’ (Hugh Breakey, The Conversation) and the ‘Managing Classroom Discussions’ webpage of the Science Learning Hub – Pokapū Akoranga Pūtaiao (University of Waikato Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato). Project Zero’s thinking routines can also be useful when supporting student thinking and discussions related to psychological issues.

Students should also understand and be able to recognise that ethical concepts are general in nature and are separate to any codes or legislation that may inform the ethical conduct of scientific investigations involving humans and non-human participants. For example, the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research 2007 (updated 2018) identifies a set of values (respect, research merit and integrity, justice, and beneficence) that the Statement is organised around and expressed practically as a set of principles to guide the design, review and conduct of research involving human participants.

When undertaking scientific investigations involving human and non-human participants, teachers and schools have a legal and moral responsibility to ensure that students understand the codes and legislation that they need to adhere to in order to demonstrate ethical conduct when undertaking such activities (see page 9 of the VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027 for further information).

Ethical concepts

When considering psychological issues, teachers should note that ethical concepts and guidelines are often interrelated. For example, the concept of respect involves giving due regard to the welfare liberty and autonomy of both the individual and the collective, while informed consent procedures ensure that participants understand the nature and purpose of a particular treatment before agreeing to participate. This interrelatedness means that students can produce insightful and thoughtful analysis and evaluation of psychological issues through the consideration of ethical concepts alone, or by using one or more of the ethical concepts alongside the relevant ethical guidelines.

Teachers are encouraged to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and perspectives in the design and delivery of teaching and learning programs across all areas of study in VCE Psychology.

Teachers and students should understand that together the phrase ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ refers collectively to the group of nations, cultures and language groups that live across mainland Australia and throughout the Torres Strait. The use of word ‘peoples’ recognises that there are many different nations, cultures and language groups, not a single Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture or identify. The Australian Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) map shows the major language groups and their rough geographical boundaries. 

VAEAI is the peak Koorie community organisation for education and training in Victoria. VAEAI has produced the Protocols for Koorie Education in Victorian schools to support teachers and students to learn about local, regional, state, national and international Indigenous perspectives.

The VCAA has prepared on-demand video recordings for VCE teachers and leaders as part of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Perspectives in the VCE webinar program held in 2023 which was presented with the Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Inc. (VAEAI) and the Department of Education (DE) Koorie Outcomes Division.

In addition to the VAEAI protocols, teachers must follow the protocols, known as the Koorie-Cross-Curricular Protocols, developed by the Department of Education and Training (DET). These protocols seek to protect the integrity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural expressions in a way in which all Australians can engage respectfully and feel connected to this identity.

Teachers should ensure that students are supported to explore Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in a culturally safe and responsive way. It is important that any Aboriginal and Torres Islander students are not asked to identify themselves or ‘speak’ on behalf of their communities and/or other peoples’ cultures, histories or perspectives. Information regarding ethical conduct of research involving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities is available on page 9 of the VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027.

VAEAI provides Cultural Understanding and Safety Training (CUST) professional learning and resources for teachers to undertake when considering how they may best include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in their classrooms. AISTL also provides support and strategies for teachers when teaching Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

Lisa Daly from Cultural Minds also provides some useful advice when considering how to include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives in VCE Psychology, in particular noting that:

 ‘… It is important to understand there is a distinct difference between teaching Aboriginal culture and teaching about Aboriginal culture. It is not appropriate for a non-Aboriginal person to teach Aboriginal culture, that is the traditional or sacred knowledge and systems belonging to Aboriginal people. For these kinds of teaching and learning experiences it is essential to consult and collaborate with members of your local Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander community. It is appropriate, however, for a non-Aboriginal person to teach about Indigenous Australia, its history and its people in much the same way as a teacher of non-German heritage might teach about Germany, its history and its people … As teachers, the onus is on us to learn about Indigenous Australia, in just the same way we inform ourselves about any other subject we teach …’

Non-Indigenous teachers should also recognise that they will have experiences of, and been educated in, cultural traditions and perspectives that have different worldviews and ways of knowing than Indigenous peoples. Teachers should ensure that they approach content with an openness and willingness to listen and learn, to actively seek out information and to recognise and challenge their own biases. Teachers should also be aware of the potential for othering and take appropriate steps to minimise it. For further details about othering refer to: What Is Othering? (Kendra Cherry, Verywell mind)

Other resources when considering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives:

ABC Science, AIATSIS, Australian Indigenous Psychologists Association, Australian Psychological Society, Culture Victoria, Deadly and Proud, First Peoples – State Relations, Indigenous Psychological Services, Museums Victoria,  NITV, Victoria’s current Registered Aboriginal Parties and Transforming Indigenous Mental Health and Wellbeing.

Suggested activities that incorporate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives have also been provided for Units 1–4 under Teaching and learning.

Drawing evidence-based conclusions and evaluating claims involves the analysis of data and identification of sources of uncertainty and possible bias.

Students should be aware of possible bias when designing investigations or evaluating the investigations of others. Bias attributable to the investigation, sample, method or instrument may not always be completely avoidable, but students should consider possible sources of bias and how bias is likely to influence evidence.

The ‘Terms used in this study’ section of the study design (page 19) defines important measurement terms. These terms relate to student investigations as well as to evaluations of others’ investigations and scientific claims presented in the public domain. While these terms are consistent with the terminology used by scientists, they are adapted (i.e. simplified without deviation from internationally agreed definitions) for VCE Psychology.

The main reference sources are International Vocabulary of Metrology – Basic and general concepts and associated terms, VIM, 3rd edition, JCGM 200:2008, and Evaluation of measurement data - Guide to the expression of Uncertainty in Measurement.

Measurement terms related to the analysis and evaluation of quantitative data are defined on page 19 the study design. Students are expected to apply measurement terms to the analysis, interpretation and evaluation of their own and others’ investigation data. Unpacking the terminology for VCE Psychology – Data and Measurement (insert link here) provides further advice and examples.

Processing and evaluation of data

In processing, evaluating and discussing their own and others’ data VCE Psychology students may be required to:

• distinguish between qualitative and quantitative data, and between primary and secondary data
• use a calculator for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division, and to calculate and recognise ratios, percentages, percentage change and mean
• understand the use of decimal places and rounding to the nearest quoted decimal place
• recognise and use numbers in decimal and standard form
• interpret negative numbers in calculations
• make estimations of the results of calculations
• select and use the most appropriate units for recording data and the results of calculations
• record data in a suitable table, with appropriate units in the row or column headings
• record data from experiments to an appropriate and consistent precision
• translate information between graphical and numerical forms
• construct and interpret diagrammatic representations of data, including pie charts, line graphs, scatter graphs and bar charts, using both technology and hand-drawing (with an appropriate lead pencil)
• recognise and use the most appropriate form of diagrammatic representation of data
• record and interpret tally charts, and transform information into other forms of data presentation
• plot scatter diagrams to determine whether there is a correlation between two variables, and distinguish between a positive correlation, a negative correlation and no correlation
• understand the difference between correlation and causation and that a correlation does not necessarily imply a causative relationship
• understand the concept of representative sampling.

Representation of data

To explain the relationship between two or more variables investigated in an experiment, data is presented in such a way as to make any patterns and trends more evident. In drawing conclusions, students examine patterns, trends and relationships between variables with the limitations of the data, methodology and method in mind. Conclusions drawn from data must be limited by, and not go beyond, the data available.

Tabular presentation of data

• Each column of a table should be headed with the physical quantity and the appropriate unit; for example, time (seconds).
• The column headings of the table can then be directly transferred to the axes of a constructed graph.

Graphical representation of data

Although tables are an effective means of recording data, they may not be the best way to show trends, patterns or relationships. Graphical representations can be used to more clearly show whether any trends, patterns or relationships exist.

The type of graphical representation used by students will depend on the type of scientific investigation methodology and the type of variables investigated:

• pie graphs and bar charts can be used to display data in which one of the variables is categorical
• scattergrams can be used to show an association between two variables
• line graphs can be used to display data in which both the independent and dependent variables are continuous
• lines, or curves, of best fit can be used to illustrate the underlying relationship between variables
• sketch graphs (not necessarily on a grid; no plotted points; labelled axes but not necessarily scaled) can be used to show the general shape of the relationship between two variables.

When drawing graphs, students note that:

• not all controlled experiments will show a correlation between variables and that correlation between variables does not necessarily indicate causation; it is possible that another variable causes them both or the correlation may be attributable to chance alone
• the existence of a correlation does not necessarily establish that there is a causal relationship between two variables
• unless instructed otherwise, or unless other conventions or usefulness apply, the independent variable should be plotted on the x-axis (horizontal axis) while the dependent variable should be plotted on the y-axis (vertical axis)
• all graphs should have a title that includes reference to the independent and dependent variables
• all graph axes should be labelled with the physical quantity and the appropriate unit; for example, time (seconds)
• the scales for the axes should be appropriately spaced to allow more than half of the graph grid to be used in both directions
• points on a graph should be clearly marked: students may use crosses (×), dots (Ÿ) or circled dots (¤)
• a line of best fit (trend line) should be a single, thin, smooth straight line or curve and does not need to coincide exactly with any of the points; a roughly even distribution of points either side of the line over its entire length should be drawn
• pie charts should be drawn with the sectors in rank order, largest first, beginning at ‘noon’ and proceeding clockwise
• pie charts should preferably contain no more than six sectors
• bar charts should be drawn when one of the variables is not numerical
• bar charts should be made up of narrow blocks of equal width that do not touch, as opposed to histograms that do touch as the variables are not discrete  
• points that are clearly anomalous should be further investigated in order to ethically deal with data; if possible, the experiment to generate the data point should be repeated.

Practical work is a central component of learning and assessment in each unit. Practical activities may be used to introduce and consolidate understanding of a psychological concept and to develop scientific skills. Practical activities may also be used to develop assessment tasks, such as the production of a scientific report or poster based on logbook records, reflective annotations from a logbook of practical activities and the analysis of data / results including appropriate graphical representations and formulation of generalisations and conclusions. They also provide an important opportunity to develop 21st-century transferrable skills and capabilities, with post-secondary educational institutions and future employers looking for critical thinkers who can process and understand data and problem-solve.

A ‘practical activity’ refers to any teaching and learning activity which, at some point, involves students in observing or manipulating the objects and materials they are exploring. Teachers should ensure that at least one practical activity for each sub-heading of key knowledge is included in their curriculum and assessment plan. Practical activities might take place in a school laboratory or classroom but could also occur in out-of-school settings such as the student’s home or in the field. Practical activities are not limited to experiments, as this is often relates to the testing of a prior hypothesis. While some practical work is of this form, other examples are not. The methodologies listed on pages 9 and 10 of the VCE Psychology Study Design 2023-2027 include those that provide opportunities for practical work across Units 1–4 specifically: classification and identification; controlled experiments; correlational studies; fieldwork; modelling; product, process or system development; and simulations.

It is important that students are provided the opportunity to engage with all of the scientific investigation methodologies (listed on page 14) across Units 1–4. The VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027 does not specify the methodologies, methods or materials required to complete practical activities in each area of study since each school has a unique resourcing capacity. In addition, different methodologies may best suit the key knowledge and relevant key skills in each areas of study; therefore, teachers should use the flexibility afforded in the study design to decide when students will develop, use and demonstrate their understanding of each of the scientific investigation methodologies.

Simulations, remote experiments and virtual experiments may be used as the basis for experiments where physical resources (for example, equipment, facilities or access to appropriate sites) are limited. Students may also be provided with sample experimental data, where physical resources are not available, so that students may represent the data in chart and / or graph form, analyse the results and report their conclusions.

While maintaining a logbook is standard scientific practice for recording primary data, for the purposes of VCE Psychology the use of logbooks has been extended to include note-taking by students related to the collation of secondary data. This also assists teachers to authenticate and assess students’ work.

The presentation format of the logbook is a school decision and no specific format is prescribed. Its purposes may include:

• providing a basis for further learning; for example, contributing to class discussions about demonstrations, activities or practical work
• reporting on an experiment or activity
• responding to questions in a practical worksheet or problem-solving exercise
• writing up an experiment as a formal report or as the basis of a scientific poster.

Data contained in a student’s log book may be qualitative and / or quantitative and students’ logbook may include the results of guided activities or investigations; planning notes for experiments; results of student-designed activities or investigations; personal reflections made during or at the conclusion of demonstrations, activities or investigations; simple observations made in short class activities; links to spreadsheet calculations and other student digital records and presentations; notes and electronic or other images taken on excursions; database extracts; web-based investigations and research, including online communications and results of simulations; surveys; interviews; and notes of any additional or supplementary work completed outside class.

The logbook may be maintained in hard copy or electronic format. All logbook entries must be dated and in chronological order. Investigation partners, expert advice and assistance, and secondary data sources must be acknowledged and / or referenced.

For school-assessed coursework in Unit 4 Area of Study 3, the student’s logbook entries are assessed as well as their scientific poster. Teachers may also choose to assess students’ logbook entries as part of satisfactory completion of an outcome and / or as part of other assessment tasks across Units 1–4.

For more information and advice regarding the assessment of Unit 4 Outcome 3, see Assessment.

The VCE Psychology study provides students with the opportunity to engage in a range of learning activities. In addition to demonstrating their understanding and mastery of the content and skills specific to the study, students may also develop employability skills through their learning activities.

The nationally agreed employability skills* are: Communication; Planning and organising; Teamwork; Problem solving; Self-management; Initiative and enterprise; Technology; and Learning.

*The employability skills are derived from the Employability Skills Framework (Employability Skills for the Future, 2002), developed by the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Business Council of Australia, and published by the (former) Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training.

The VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027 is structured as a series of curriculum-framing questions that reflect the inquiry nature of the discipline. These questions are open-ended to enable students to engage in critical and creative thinking about the psychological concepts identified in the key knowledge and to encourage students to ask their own questions about what they are learning. In responding to these questions, students demonstrate their own conceptual links and the relevance of different concepts to practical applications.

Using a scientific inquiry approach enables students to:

• engage with science-based questions
• prioritise evidence in responding to questions
• formulate explanations from evidence
• connect explanations to scientific knowledge
• communicate and justify explanations.

Teachers are advised to use the flexibility provided by the structure of the study design in the choice of contexts (both local, national and global) and applications for enabling students to work scientifically and answer questions. Opportunities range from the entire class studying a particular context or application chosen by the teacher or agreed to by the class, through to students nominating their own choice of scenarios, research, case studies, fieldwork activities or psychological issues.

At the end of a unit or on completion of an outcome, students should be able to respond to the relevant curriculum framework questions. Teachers may consider using these as the basis for an assessment task.

Unit 1 Area of Study 3, Unit 2 Area of Study 3 and Unit 4 Area of Study 3 enable students to demonstrate their learning through scientific inquiry. Students may undertake scientific inquiry individually or as part of a group or class to complete an inquiry but work submitted for assessment must be assessed individually. If optional assessment tasks are used to cater for different student interests, teachers must ensure that they are comparable in scope and demand.

Levels of student independence in scientific inquiry

Scientific inquiry can be scaffolded to support students in developing key science skills. The level of scaffolding and support provided to students when choosing teaching approaches that focus on scientific inquiry depends on the type of scientific inquiry selected and students’ level of experience in designing and undertaking scientific investigations.

Five different types of scientific inquiry can be used.

• A confirmation / prescription inquiry involves students confirming a principle through an activity when the results are known in advance; students are provided with the question, method and results, and are required to confirm that the results are correct.
• In a structured inquiry the students investigate a teacher-presented question through a prescribed procedure; students generate an explanation supported by the evidence they have collected.
• In a guided inquiry the teacher chooses the question for investigation; students work in one large group or several small groups to work with the teacher to decide how to proceed with the investigation. This type of inquiry facilitates the teaching of specific skills needed for future open-inquiry investigations. The solution to the guided inquiry should not be predictable.
• A coupledinquiry combines a guided-inquiry investigation with an open-inquiry investigation: the teacher chooses an initial question to investigate as a guided inquiry and students then build on the guided inquiry to develop an extension or linked investigation in a more student-centered open inquiry approach.
• An open inquiry most closely mirrors scientists' actual work and is a student-centered approach that begins with a student's question, followed by the student (or groups of students) designing and conducting an investigation or experiment and communicating results.

As well as being able to remember and understand psychological concepts, applying concepts in complex or new ways is an important aspect of learning in VCE Psychology. When students are engaged in their learning through practical work that evokes conceptual learning, critical and creative thinking and / or ethical understanding, they are more likely to understand and apply concepts in meaningful ways.

The principles of fair testing through controlled experiments are important in science, but may not always enable students to understand scientific ideas or concepts, answer their questions or appreciate how scientists work or the nature of science. At this level, different scientific investigation methodologies and / or practical activities that generate primary data may instead be used.

Common to different scientific investigation methodologies and practical activities are three key aspects that are central to the study design's inquiry focus:

• asking questions
• testing ideas
• using evidence.

Teachers are encouraged to include a range of scientific investigation methodologies and associated practical activities in their teaching and learning programs across Units 1–4. Practical activities may be used to introduce and / or consolidate understanding of a particular methodology, psychological concept or to develop related scientific skills.

Some scientific investigation methodologies may lend themselves more readily to particular key knowledge and key science skills in VCE Psychology. Examples of teaching and learning activities that use different scientific methodologies have been identified for each unit in the Teaching and learning activities.

Scientific investigations are integral to the study of VCE Psychology across Units 1–4 and teachers should ensure that students are provided with opportunities to undertake each of the scientific investigation methodologies across both Units 1–2 and Units 3–4. The choice of scientific investigation methodology will be determined by the question under investigation. There should be congruence between the question under investigation and the chosen methodology. The selected method and associated data collection techniques should also be congruent with the chosen methodology..

Scientific investigation phases

The following diagram represents a general process for undertaking scientific investigations:

Image description

Student-designed investigations

Depending on the outcome, some scientific investigations will be student-designed and / or adapted by students. Teachers must approve all student investigations to be undertaken. Not all planned student investigations can proceed due to issues including safety, equipment availability, time constraints and / or management of large student numbers.

Due to the potential scope of scientific investigations, students must be practical and realistic when deciding on investigation topics. Teachers need to be equally pragmatic when counselling students about their choice of research topic and when guiding them in the formulation of the research question. Appropriate teacher intervention not only minimises risks but also serves as important feedback for students. Schools should have in place approval mechanisms – either through ethics committees or approval authorities within the school – to ensure that students undertake appropriate research.

For further advice about the management and scope of the student-designed practical investigations in Unit 2 Area of Study 3 and Unit 4 Area of Study 3, refer to Assessment.

Scientific posters are wide​ly used in academia, research and in the general scientific community as a visual means of communicating the outcomes of scientific investigations. They are not designed to simply replicate a scientific report in that they provide a different means by which science information is communicated, particularly to peers and the school community. Teachers may elect to include the requirement for an oral presentation to accompany a scientific poster.

Scientific poster sections

Scientific poster sections (see page 15 of the study design), specifically the communication statement reporting the key finding of the investigation as a one-sentence summary, title, introduction, methodology and methods, results, discussion, conclusions, references and acknowledgments, are mandated for the scientific poster that is constructed as part of Unit 4 Outcome 3. Within the mandated sections, some tailoring of organisational elements is optional.

Scientific poster templates may be used provided that the mandated poster sections are included. The use of a template can help minimise many common communication faults by keeping column alignments logical, including mandated sub-headings that provide clear cues as to how readers should travel through poster elements, and maintaining sufficient 'white space' so that clutter is reduced.

There is no mandated VCAA style for the use of person or voice in writing a scientific poster, since the scientific community has not reached a consensus about which style it prefers. Increasingly, using first person (rather than third person) and active (rather than passive) voice is acceptable in scientific reports, because arguably this style of writing conveys information more clearly and concisely. However, this choice of person and voice brings two scientific values into conflict – objectivity versus clarity – which may account for the different viewpoints in the scientific community. A useful principle in the context of VCE Psychology would be to use past tense when describing something that has already happened and present tense when describing something that still exists.

The 600-word limit for the scientific poster requires that students carefully consider what should be included to ensure effective science communication. Teachers may assess some components of the investigation through logbook entries, particularly some of the background information, data manipulation and discussion of results. Poster title, student name / identification number, tables, graphs, flowcharts, figure captions, references and acknowledgements are not included in the poster word count.

Further consideration of the new poster format for Unit 4 Outcome 3 in the VCE Psychology Study Design 2023–2027 can be found at: How to create a better research poster in less time (#betterposter Generation 1) - YouTube.

Design principles for scientific posters

Key design principles for effective scientific poster communication for the purposes of VCE Psychology include:

• logical sequencing and easy identification on the poster of the hypothesis or question, aim and conclusion, and other key parts of the investigation
• inclusion of only the essential details for conveying what was done in the investigation and what was discovered (for example, only the key aspects of an experimental procedure should be outlined)
• use of a range of visual aids (for example, tables, photographs, diagrams and graphs) to reduce the amount of text required and to avoid overcrowding of the poster
• use of font, font size and colours that will be easily read by all those viewing the poster
• careful editing of text – terminology and spelling should be checked; wording should be simplified; acronyms should be defined; and phrases or bullet points, rather than sentences, should be used. A test is that others with little or no background in the area under investigation should be able to understand the language and identify the key points of the investigation
• clear labelling of all images (for example, diagrams or photographs of the experimental set-up or results)
• graphs drawn with clear, relevant scales, grids, labels and annotations
• editing of graphs derived directly from spreadsheet programs so that graphs do not have coloured backgrounds, grid lines, or boxes and that, in cases where multiple graphs are shown on the same set of axes, each graph is labelled rather than requiring a reader to use a key
• axis labels formatted in sentence case (Not in Title Case and NOT IN ALL CAPS)
• calculations presented in a clear, non-repetitive manner (for example, one sample calculation can be shown and then the results of similar calculations can be displayed in a table) and appropriate units must be shown
• all references stated and appropriate acknowledgments provided.