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Video

Mabo: the native title revolution

This a multi-layered website about the life and times of Eddie Mabo and the part he played in Indigenous land rights, produced by the National Sound and Film Archive. There are section headings on: The Mabo film; Mer; The man; The case; Native title; Land rights; and Terra Nullius. Each heading has multiple subheadings ...

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Voting in Australia

The representatives elected to federal Parliament make decisions that affect many aspects of Australian life including tax, marriage, the environment, trade and immigration. This 28 page PDF document explains the history of Australia’s electoral system and how it works, Australia’s system of government and the role citizens ...

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Electoral pocketbook: an electoral education resource

The 2016 Electoral Pocketbook is a compact and comprehensive guide to the 2016 federal election, the largest election the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has ever delivered. The Pocketbook serves as a useful electoral education resource for teachers as it contains historical information about Australia’s electoral ...

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Australian Constitution online

Browse the complete text of the Australian Constitution with this easy-to use website. It includes a detailed overview by the Australian Government Solicitor and a 2:26 min video snapshot about the Constitution and its role in the governance of the Australian nation.

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Federation

Federation is the process by which six partly self-governing British colonies decided to form a new nation. Australia was created by peaceful means as an Act of the British Parliament—the result of much consideration and debate. This webpage provides a series of resources examining the path to federation. The page includes ...

Online

Indigenous Stories about War and Invasion

This is a website about Indigenous experiences of invasion and war during the British invasion, World War I and World War II. The resource is presented in three sections: Introductory information; Story Objects; and Story Education Resources. There are eight story objects that tell the stories of individuals, events and ...

Interactive

Discovering democracy: law

Interact with a slideshow of images and text to explore the struggles of Indigenous Australians for land rights. Look in particular at the early land rights petition of 1963 and the roles played by Vincent Lingiari and Eddie Mabo. Complete a related task.

Interactive

Laptop wrap – the Stolen Generations

A page with a focus on the experiences of the Stolen Generations with supporting activities and links to resources.

Video

Calls for recognition of Indigenous Australians

Discover why many Australians believe the time has come to change the Australian Constitution to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander histories. This program from January 2012 examines the debate about how this change might be achieved. It looks at the growing call for our constitution to recognise and advance ...

Video

Four Corners: Celebrating native title on Ruby Tuesday

Have you ever had to compromise to achieve a good result? When opposition to native title threatened to suspend the long-standing Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (RDA), former prime minister Paul Keating and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders had to compromise to save the RDA and native title. Watch as negotiations ...

Video

Four Corners: Native title: How to free your heart

Since the original Mabo decision was handed down by the High Court of Australia in 1992, acknowledging that the Meriam people of the Torres Strait had the right to hold native title over the Murray Islands, society's attitudes towards Native Title has evolved. In this clip, listen to the opinions of key players in the struggle ...

Video

Four Corners: Margaret Valadian interviewed in 1967

What is the role of interviewers who explore social issues? In this 1967 clip from Four Corners, Margaret Valadian is recognised as the first Aboriginal Australian graduate of the University of Queensland. Here, in the middle of the panel discussion she is questioned by Robert Moore about her personal and professional life.

Video

BTN: History of voting

Australia's first parliamentary election was in 1843. What was different about voting then? When and how did that change to resemble elections we have now? See if you can list the three significant dates in Australia’s history of voting and the changes that occurred on those dates.

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Four Corners: Adoption of Indigenous Australian children

Imagine being taken away from your family and forced to live with people from another language, place and culture. This interview, recorded a week before the 1967 Referendum, captures an the perspective of Margaret Valadian, a prominent young Aboriginal Australian, on the practice of adoption and the removal of Aboriginal ...

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ABC News: The Freedom Ride: there's a lot of work to be done

In February 2015 a busload of students and former activists left Sydney to retrace the journey of the original Freedom Riders, who, in 1965, visited northern New South Wales to observe and confront discrimination suffered by Aboriginal people. In this News clip, meet some of the original Riders, along with representatives ...

Video

Four Corners: Native title begins with an act of recognition

Following the recognition of native title by the High Court of Australia in June 1992, the establishment of a process for ensuring that it was awarded fairly and responsibly was needed. This process came to be enshrined in the Native Title Act of 1993. Listen as key players in the development of the Act explain its importance. ...

Assessment

Year 10 history assessment - Rights and freedoms in Australia

This is an assessment package that uses the Year 10 Australian Curriculum history achievement standard to gather evidence about how well students have demonstrated what they know, what they understand and what they can do for the depth study 'Rights and Freedoms (1945 – present)'. Students plan and deliver a spoken presentation ...

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Making a difference

This resource consists of four case studies which explore stories that illustrate issues of civics and citizenship at local, state, federal government and international levels. Students learn about active citizenship and plan their own, while covering content such as the Freedom Rides, Franklin Dam, Mabo, Wik and human rights.

Interactive

Resistance

This resource is a virtual tour of the Resistance exhibition at The National Museum of Australia showing different responses by Aboriginal people to British colonisation. See videos and enlarged views of objects and texts in the exhibition.

Video

The Drum: Encouraging an angry desire for self-determination

The Freedom Riders travelled through regional NSW in February 1965, challenging racist attitudes and practices they encountered. In this clip from the ABC current affairs program 'The Drum', original Freedom Rider Hall Greenland reflects on events in Moree and expresses his hopes for what students recreating the Freedom ...