History |
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Our Years 11 and 12 students may choose to study Ancient or Modern History. Ancient History involves the study of the disciplines of Archaeology and History in Year 11, including Case Studies and research into Ancient Societies. Through essays, research tasks, oral presentations, primary and secondary source analysis, and group work students may discover King Tutankhamun’s Tomb, the Bog People, Masade, Pompeii, or Lake Mungo. In their H.S.C. year students may move from the Near East or Egypt, to Greece or Rome and back again, studying individuals, societies and historical periods, all the while developing skills which will assist them in any career they choose to pursue upon leaving school. A wise man once wrote that "to forget the past forever condemns us to repeat it" and the study of the modern world from 1789 to the present day explores the forces, events, and personalities that have shaped the world as we know it. In the Preliminary course students can explore case studies from the Terror in France when many lost their heads to being a passenger on the Titanic or the Luisitania as they were swallowed by an unforgiving cold sea in questionable circumstances. From exploration of sources, eyewitness accounts and analytical response we explore why momentous events occurred and the ramifications they had for the development of our world. From a single opportunist shot to the horrors of the trenches until the signing of the Versailles Treaty. World War 1 is the case study for the HSC course. From diaries, texts and maps, and silent film we unravel why Australians fought for the 'old country' in such hideous conditions, fearing not only enemy bullets, but the rats, fleas and flies which infested the trenches of France and Gallipoli. Students will also study one national study and one significant individual who played a part in the twentieth century history of that country, possibly examining Indonesia, Japan, China, India, Germany under Hitler, the Soviet Union and the rule of Joseph Stalin or even the United States or Australia. The final part of the course international studies in peace and conflict allows the students to explore the nature of conflict and the attempts to resolve them up to the present day, ranging from the Cold War to the role of the United Nations, Anglo-Irish relations, or the conflict of Indo-China from 1954 - 1979. The modern history course provides students with the capacity to work together with others and to provide them with the skills to analyse events occurring around them with an appreciation of the context of why they have happened. With the capacity to manage their own learning, students become full and active participants as citizens with a respect for the cultural diversity and contemporary Australian society. Studies of Religion is an H.S.C. course completed in Years 11 and 12, studies as either a one unit or a two unit course. The basis of the course is comparative religion, examining the philosophy of religion, primitive religions and the five major religious traditions of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism. The Year 11 preliminary course looks at religious traditions, their teaching and practice. In Year 12, two or more religions are compared in such areas as ritual, ethics, texts, ways of holiness, or women. Another important aspect of the course is its emphasis on religion in Australia and its impact on society. The Course is invaluable to increase awareness of other cultures and ideas and to promote tolerance and understanding.
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