VCE Australian History Sample Programsbased on Unity and Diversity: Australia Since 1850

Unity and Diversity: Australia Since 1850

VCE Australian History Sample ProgramsBased on Unity and Diversity: Australia Since 1850

Unit 3, Area of Study 2From Colony to Nation: 1850–1901

Focus topic: Federation

Outcome 2

On completion of this unit, the student should be able to analyse the development and evaluate the effects of a significant economic, social, cultural or political trend, movement or event in colonial Australia from 1850–1901.

Key knowledge

The student should demonstrate knowledge of:

· a significant, social, cultural or political trend, movement or event from the period

· the central ideas which underpinned this economic, social, cultural or political trend, movement or event

· the short-term and long-term effects

· the way this trend, movement or event was represented by artists, writers, politicians, critics, organisations or participants from the period.

Key skills

The student should demonstrate ability to:

· analyse written and visual evidence

· critically apply a range of primary and secondary sources to support an argument

· compare and analyse different representations of the trend, movement or event

· synthesise evidence to draw conclusions

· present material using historical conventions such as quotations, footnotes and bibliography.

CONTENT / TEACHING/LEARNING STRATEGIES / PAGES IN TEXT
Overview of period 1851–1901
The significance of the achievement of federation—obstacles and motives—the 2001 centenary of federation / Group work: how would Australia’s history in the twentieth century have been different if federation had not been achieved? / 1–5
Economic factors as motives and obstacles to federation:
· significance of wool industry, export economy
· impact of the gold rushes on population, investment, politics
· transport and communications / Case study: ‘Iron rails and telegraph wires’ / 7–8
· the ‘tyranny of distance’
· the 1880s boom and 1890s depression / Primary and secondary source analysis / 6–11
· the western gold rush
Political factors and national consciousness
· factions, pressure groups and political parties / Internet research
Case study: Votes for women / 12–13
13
· the ‘bush ethos’
· racism / Source studies / 13–15
· nationalism
Perceptions of the outside world
· imperial loyalty / Source studies / 15–18
· racial fears
· defence
The quest for unity / Internet research / 18–25
· early attempts at forms of federation / Research/further reading / 25
· the 1891 National Australasian Convention / Film study: Federation / 25–26
· the 1897 Convention
· influence of Parkes and others
· voting for federation
· factors influencing voting / Source studies: Using primary sources to form hypotheses / 28–31
Representations of federation / Assessment:
· conflicting views, ideas and values / · skills test / 22–24
· federation essay / 21
· short answer test / 24
Short- and long-term effects of federation: the Australian Constitution, Aboriginal voting rights, women’s suffrage, the ‘New Protection’, Commonwealth reforms, economic changes, nationalism and Australian identity, ‘white Australia’, federal parties and politics / Source studies, film studies, further reading and Internet research / 27–54

Unit 4, Area of Study 1Everyday life in the twentieth century: 1900–1945

Focus group: Aboriginal Australians

Outcome 1

On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse the influence of a major event on the everyday life of the selected group or groups under study during the period 1901 to 1945.

Key knowledge

The student should demonstrate knowledge of:

· a feature or features of everyday life experienced by Aboriginal Australians

· an event which changed their patterns of life

· an evaluation of the extent and impact of this change on the everyday life of Aboriginal Australians.

Key skills

The student should demonstrate ability to:

· formulate questions and locate relevant sources

· analyse a range of written and visual evidence

· synthesise evidence to draw conclusions

· construct a coherent report

· present material using historical conventions such as footnotes, quotations and bibliography.

CONTENT / TEACHING/LEARNING STRATEGIES / PAGES IN TEXT
Overview of experiences of Aboriginal people from 1788–1900 / Internet research / 26
· falling population, dispossession, impact of loss of land, massacres, white laws and settlement. Aboriginal and white perceptions, racism / Film study: ‘White Australia has a black history’
Further reading: books of Henry Reynolds / 54
Overview of Australian history 1901–1939: the early Commonwealth, World War I, the inter-war period—to provide broader context for study of Aboriginal experiences. / Reading, note-making, film studies, source studies / 27–118
The reforming Commonwealth and the belief in a ‘workers’ paradise’: why were Aboriginal Australians excluded from this ideal? / Case study: Aboriginal voting rights and the Commonwealth Franchise Bill / 33–34
· inequality
· missions and reserves / Internet research / 33
· protection policies / Source studies / 37–38, 41
· removal of children from families
Discrimination in recruiting during World War I—changes due to falling enlistments / Source studies / 69–72
Aboriginal Australians in the 1920s and 1930s / Internet research / 92, 95
· denial of war service benefits to Aboriginal soldiers
· alienation of Aboriginal reserve land for soldier–settlers
· massacres in the north and west: Kimberley and Coniston massacres / Film study: ‘The Killing Times’ (documentary) / 118
· impact of increased removal of Aboriginal children
· denial of access to relief during the Great Depression
· forcing of Aboriginal people back onto reserves in 1930s / Source studies
Internet research / 92–95
· growth of the protest movement
· the Day of Mourning, 1938, and the role of the Aborigines’ Progressive Association
The impact of World War II on Aboriginal Australians / Source studies
Internet research
Film studies / 119–150
· overview of World War II, Australia’s role and impact on the home front
· impact on Aboriginal protest movement / Case study: Aboriginal Australia: Diggers and discrimination / 144–146
· discrimination in enlistments
· experiences of Aboriginal service personnel
· granting of conditional citizenship rights
· demobilisation
Revision: Assessment of extent of changes that were experienced by Aboriginal people from 1900 to 1945, especially due to World War II / Assessment: Report on the impact of World War II on the lives of Aboriginal Australians

Unit 4, Area of Study 2Towards a changing society: 1945–present

Focus topic: The Vietnam War and Australia

In this program, this unit focuses on the Vietnam War and the way in which it created debate and division in Australian society.

Outcome 2

On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse an event, issue or campaign which created debate or division in Australian society during the period 1945 to the present day.

Key knowledge

The student should demonstrate knowledge of:

· an event, issue or campaign which resulted in debate and division among Australians from 1945 onwards

· ideas and values which underpinned the position of differing groups during this event, issue or campaign; for example, nationalism, anti-communism, feminism, patriotism

· the extent to which the issue was resolved or remains open

· the way the event has been interpreted and understood by historians and commentators over time

· concepts of division, resolution, ideology.

Key skills

The student should demonstrate the ability to:

· analyse written and visual evidence of the event, issue or campaign under study

· synthesise evidence to draw conclusions

· use the key concepts of division, resolution, ideology accurately in constructing an argument

· analyse and compare different representations of the event, issue or campaign

· present material using historical conventions such as footnotes, quotations and bibliography.

CONTENT / TEACHING/LEARNING STRATEGIES / PAGES IN TEXT
The Vietnam War experience in modern memory—myths, media and interpretations. Why was the conflict so divisive in Australia? / Class discussion based on feature films (e.g., ‘Platoon’. ‘Full Metal Jacket’, ‘Born on the 4th of July’) and documentaries on its divisive effects within Australia (e.g., ‘Power to the People’) / 230
The historical context: Tensions and conflicts in the post World War II world:
· decolonisation in Asia / Source studies, case studies, Internet research / 155–170
· the Cold War, conflicts
· anti-communism in Australia / Source studies and skills exercise: Menzies and anti-communism / 181–189
· the conservative dominance of Australian politics from 1949 to 1972
· foreign policy of the Menzies Coalition government
· Australia’s relationship with Asia, Britain and the USA in the 1950s, 1960s / Source-based essay on political uses of anti-communism in Australia / 189
· the growth of dissent, activism and youth rebellion. / Source studies
Role play, source analysis / 173–175
190–200
Origins of the Vietnam War / Reading and source analysis / 200–202
· French colonial rule and its impact on the people of Vietnam
· the Viet Minh and the effect of World War II
· the first Indo-China War, Dien Bien Phu and the Geneva Accords
US intervention and beginnings of the Vietnam War / Analysis of written and visual sources / 202–212
· the Saigon Regimes and corruption in the South / Source studies:
Synthesising evidence to draw conclusions / 202–212
· US involvement in backing the South and sabotage against the North
· formation of the NLF and ‘Vietcong’ / Analysing and comparing different representations of the issue / 202–212
· guerilla war
· the domino theory and escalation 1955–1965
Australian involvement
· official motives
· conscription
· roles of Australian forces
· withdrawal
The anti-Vietnam War Protest Movement / Case study: Anti-Vietnam war protests / 207–210
· motives and values of protestors, divisions within the protest movement
· forms of protest
· beliefs of supporters of the war
Effects of the issue within Australia, extent to which the issue has been resolved or remains open / Reading, research, source analysis, synthesising sources to draw conclusions / 213–262
· 1972 elections / Assessment: essay
· consequences for Vietnam veterans
· implications for foreign policy / Source-based analytical exercise : The decision to commit Australian troops to the Vietnam War / 211–213
· radicalisation, distrust of government, growth of other protest movements
· changes in Australia’s relations with emerging nations of Asia

Unit 4, Area of Study 2Towards a changing society: 1945–present

Focus topic: The Cold War and anti-communism in the Menzies era.

In this program, this unit focuses on attempts to ban the communist party of Australia and the way in which the issue of communism and anti-communism created debate and division in Australian society.

Outcome 2

On completion of this unit the student should be able to analyse an event, issue or campaign which created debate or division in Australian society during the period 1945 to the present day.

Key knowledge

The student should demonstrate knowledge of:

· an event, issue or campaign which resulted in debate and division among Australians from 1945 onwards

· ideas and values which underpinned the position of differing groups during this event, issue or campaign; for example, nationalism, anti-communism, feminism, patriotism

· the extent to which the issue was resolved or remains open

· the way the event has been interpreted and understood by historians and commentators over time

· concepts of division, resolution, ideology.

Key skills

The student should demonstrate the ability to:

· analyse written and visual evidence of the event, issue or campaign under study

· synthesise evidence to draw conclusions

· use the key concepts of division, resolution, ideology accurately in constructing an argument

· analyse and compare different representations of the event, issue or campaign

· present material using historical conventions such as footnotes, quotations and bibliography.

CONTENT / TEACHING/LEARNING STRATEGIES / PAGES IN TEXT
The collapse of communism in the late 1980s to early 1990s, and the end of the Cold War. What was the significance of this change? Why were communism and anti-communism such divisive issues in the 1950s and 1960s? / Groups work/class discussion
This historical context:
Overview of: / Research, reading, source studies, overviews / 87–153
· the first Cold War era (from the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution to the outbreak of World War II)
· the cessation of the Cold War during World War II
· the beginning of a new Cold War in the late 1940s
The Chifley Labor Government, the post-War World and the issue of communism, internally and externally / Source analysis and comparison of representations
Case study: The1949 Coal Strike: analysis of evidence, synthesis of evidence to draw conclusions / 158–161
165–166
162–165
Cold War foreign policy in the Menzies era / Source studies and internet research / 166–170
· propaganda
· flashpoints
· Korean war
· alliances and treaties
The ‘Australian way of life’
· Why did communism lack substantial support in Australia? Evaluation of extent to which anti-communism was based on real or imagined threats in 1950s Australia / Source analysis and film studies
/ 171–178
· increasing American influences in Australia
Conservative politics and the uses of anti-communism / Source analysis / 182–189
The CPA Dissolution Bill
The CPA Dissolution Referendum / Students analyse and compare arguments for and against banning the CPA / 184–185
Role of individuals: Menzies, Evatt, Santamaria / Film study: ‘Doc: A Portrait of HV Evatt, 1894–1965’ (documentary) / 190
The Petrov Affair / Assessment:
Analytic exercise—Menzies and anti-communism / 184–189
The DLP and the Labor split
Influences of religion, ideology, democratic values, political advantage and expediency
Ongoing effects of the issue within Australia; extent to which the issue was resolved or remains open / 192–263
· Vietnam War and 1960s radical protests
· defeat of coalition and election of Labor Government in 1972
· changing issues in world and Australian politics / Students analyse and compare election issues and propaganda in the 1950s with those of today