Curriculum Resource

Activity 1: Immersion

In this activity, you will explore how today’s Australian culture may be different from our assumptions. You should then be able to provide some good answers to the first key question:

• Key inquiry question: How have Asian cultures contributed to Australian society?

Instructions

Use a See • Think • Wonder routine to view these two images with an overall question in mind:

1. Consider these questions:
   
   • What non-traditional Australian foods can people eat at food courts and restaurants around the country?
   • Which come from Asian cultures?
2. What do you see that's inspired by the two images?
3. Brainstorm all the Aussie foods you can think of and then do the same for any Asian foods a person could buy in our markets, malls and restaurants.
4. What do you think is going on with this change?
5. What do you think made this change start and continue?
6. What does it make you wonder?
7. What questions do you have about this change, especially as it relates to your interests? Think particularly about the type of work or careers you are interested in and whether these are (or will be) impacted by Asian influences?
8. Complete this activity collaboratively using a shared Google Doc or Primary Pad.
9. After everyone completes the three questions above, pairs of students can describe to each other what they have seen and learned through a detailed Think • Pair • Share exercise.

Extension

In you are very interested in cooking and the food industry, explore this link and add more information to your See • Think • Wonder brainstorming.

• List of Asian cuisines – from Wikipedia which represents a communal view of its topics. See if you've missed any Asian foods that you’ve seen in Australia.

Activity 2: Analysis

Use the topic of Asia's influence on Australian cuisine as a springboard for wider analysis and reflection. Besides food, where else do you see an Asian influence?. Think about as many aspects of Australian culture and then write a reflection on the first key question:

• Key inquiry question: How have Asian cultures contributed to Australian society?

1. Before reflecting, look over Population Composition: Asian-born Australians (from the Australian Bureau of Statistics) to see if this gives you some evidence for what you might have noticed on your own.
2. Also review the growing number of migrants coming from Asian nations as reflected in the graphic.
3. Write at least one paragraph (and up to a page) that thoughtfully analyses and reflects on the question.

Activity 3: The Challenge

Now that you have some ideas about how Asian cultures have contributed to Australian society, you should take a look into areas that are particularly interesting to you, things you might want to pursue for a career or pastimes in your future. This means you’re ready to tackle the second key question:

• Key inquiry question: How have things that interest you been influenced by this infusion of Asian influences?

In this part of the activity, you will join into small teams to help each other explore the many ways different Asian cultures contribute to work that people do and that you might be interested in.

1. Divide into smaller teams of five (or ten students if working in pairs).
2. Your team is to engage in quick research into 5 different aspects of Australian society and work. As a team you will collect information that compares and contrasts what is distinctly Australian, what is Asian and what might be shared. 
3. Either one person or a pair will explore each of the five topics and their links below. Use the prompting questions and ideas for research for each topic to help guide your research. But most importantly, look for things that you think are interesting to you or might be to your peers.
4. Use a shared document (Google Doc or Primary Pad) or brainstorming app (MindMup or Padlet) to gather everyone’s ideas. Be specific about information, quotations, statistics or other evidence and keep track of where you got it from in case someone on your team wants to use this later.

Food & Tourism

As you have already seen, what Australians eat has been influenced greatly by Asian cultures. Explore the links below to get ideas for what you think are the best approaches for building on this trend in the future. Look especially for things that give clues about how to be successful in this field in the coming years.

• TripAdvisor – Best Restaurants in Australia – Explore your city from this launch page. Then click the cuisine icon and view any of the subcategories of Asian cooking styles.
• Tourism Australia – Official Web site – especially the booklets, Gourmet Tourism is Growing and Planning for Inbound Success.

Fashion & the Arts

Like all aspects of culture, Australian and Asian cultures come together in the worlds of arts, fashion and design. Use these links to gain inspiration and note good examples of how Australians are adapting to and building on a connection with Asia. Look for things that spark ideas about how to succeed in these fields in the coming years.

• Case Study: The Honeycombers – from Building an Asia-Capable Australia, AsianLink

Business & Trade

Perhaps the source of most worked related to Asian comes in the areas of business and trade. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade focuses on developing economic relationships, but many individuals have done the same. Explore the links below to gain insights into ways that young people might find careers working globally in our region

• Asia Skills Videos – more than 30 videos from the Asia Education Foundation
• China-Australia Free Trade Agreement Key Outcomes and Factsheets on Different sectors, from DFAT

Media & Sports

Sport is very popular in Australia. Explore how our place in the Australasian region is changing both traditional Australian sports, but also expanding what’s on offer. Look for areas of growth where a sports-minded person could follow a career in this expanding area.

• The Asian Cup History 2015 (with video) and Australia’s Team
• List of Sports from the Olympic Council of Asia
• Sport Asia, explore the big menu of sports and check the News, by Higgie Media Limited (Hong Kong)

Social Work & Volunteering

The Australian government, non-government organisations and charities provide funding and support for many countries in the Asian region. You or your peers might be interested in a career in this field or could find volunteering a very rewarding pastime. Take note of how a person could get involved in some aspect of helping in Australia or the region.

• Where can you Go? - Australian Volunteers for International Development program

Group Work

After everyone completes their part of the research, meet as a team so each person can share what he or she has learned. Remember to highlight both what you found interesting and what you think might appeal to others your age. All students should use the Venn diagram (DOC, PDF or Google Doc) to put together what they hear of value from teammates. In other words, the Venn diagram is your personal tool for organising what you learn; each student will complete his or her own Venn diagram.

Reflection

Use your Venn diagram as the springboard for your reflection. This will help you with specific ideas you can use to answer the following question:

• Key inquiry question: How have things that interest you been influenced by this infusion of Asian influences?

You should write at least one page that thoughtfully reflects on this question.

Activity 4: Conclusions

Now that you have some ideas about:

• how Asian cultures have contributed to Australian society, and
• how things that interest you have been influenced by this infusion of Asian cultures,

you’re ready to tackle the final key question:

• Key inquiry question: How might your future evolve as Australia continues to be influenced by Asian cultures and increases its connections with the region?

In this part of the activity, you will think deeply about your own interests and combine this with patterns that you see developing into the future and how consideration of Asian opportunities could benefit you.

1. Skim through AsiaLink’s Australians in Asia, which profiles dozens of Australians living and working in Asian countries.
2. Find 1-3 profiles that match up with your interests.
3. Using what you have already explored with your team and the new ideas you might get from the profiles, do your best to draw conclusions about the final key question. Here are two resources on Drawing Conclusions if you need them:
   • Drawing Conclusions – from a textbook author and teacher
   • Rhetorical functions in academic writing: Drawing conclusions – skip to the tables that model ways to state conclusions.
4. Put your conclusion into a presentation that you can share. Consider using Google Slides, Prezi or an InfoGraphics App (http://easel.ly/ or http://infogr.am/) to “package” your conclusions.
5. Be guided for success by the Rubric: How Asian is Australia