History / Year 10 / Historical Skills / Explanation and communication

Curriculum content descriptions

Develop texts, particularly descriptions and discussions that use evidence from a range of sources that are referenced (ACHHS192)

Elaborations
  • developing a historical argument that identifies different possibilities in interpretation and argues a particular point of view, with consistent and specific reference to the evidence available
  • explaining the significance of the fall of Singapore (1942) in the changes in Australia’s military alliances and use of troops during World War II, using a range of sources (for example, accounts of prisoners of war, commanders such as General Gordon Bennett, politicians such as Prime Minister John Curtin, and Japanese and British sources)
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
  • Critical and creative thinking Critical and creative thinking
ScOT terms

Historical sources,  Creating texts,  Evidence,  Reasoning,  Explanations (Factual texts)

Video

Flashez: Teenage drinking in the 1970s

Do you think that Australian teenagers drink too much alcohol? If so, do you think this is a new problem? Discover what teenagers thought about such drinking back in the 1970s. This ABC program from 1977 looks at the issue of teenage drinking, some possible reasons for it and some of the social problems arising from it.

Video

The Fall of Singapore: The fall of Singapore, February 1942

Experience the shock and despair of Australian soldiers on the island of Singapore in February 1942, as Japanese forces invade what was held to be Britain's 'island fortress'. This video follows events from 8 February, when many thousands of Japanese launched attacks from the tip of Malaya, up to 15 February when the British ...

Video

Four Corners: Surfies, clubbies and a changing way of life

What effect did the rise of surfboard riding and its accompanying surf culture have on surf lifesaving? In the early 1960s, surf lifesaving was regarded as a model of the values that underpin the Australian way of life. This clip from 1964 explores the collision between the new surf culture and the traditions of the surf ...

Video

Four Corners: TV killed the radio star

Can you imagine a time when, instead of watching dramas at home on a screen, people listened to them on the radio - a time when the most popular of those dramas were made in Australia? This Four Corners program from 1964 examines the reasons for the death of Australian radio serials, the role played by television in their ...

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 ...

Online

History skills

This unit consists of teacher support materials and resources for students relevant to the development of a historical inquiry. Students will develop skills of historical research in their community leading to the creation of a digital history resource. The videos provided in the student resources highlight how a variety ...

Text

Historical Landmarks

In this unit, students engage with the knowledge shared by Elders and Custodians regarding their perspectives of the 26th January in Australia. They investigate how European colonists acquired land in the 1770s. They reflect on the Frontier Wars and how these may have shaped Australian society, with a focus on place names ...

Text

Work sample Year 10 History: Second World War

This work sample demonstrates evidence of student learning in relation to aspects of the achievement standards for Year 10 History. The primary purpose for the work sample is to demonstrate the standard, so the focus is on what is evident in the sample not how it was created. The sample is an authentic representation of ...

Text

Work sample Year 10 History: Building Modern Australia (Perspectives on an event)

This work sample demonstrates evidence of student learning in relation to aspects of the achievement standards for Year 10 History. The primary purpose for the work sample is to demonstrate the standard, so the focus is on what is evident in the sample not how it was created. The sample is an authentic representation of ...

Video

Five Australians: The rise of the media mogul Rupert Murdoch, 1967

What does it take to become a media mogul? The name of Rupert Murdoch, one of Australia's most successful businesspeople, has been a significant feature of the media industry since the early 1950s. In this clip, listen to Murdoch explain his plans to expand his media holdings across Australia and see how he was perceived ...

Video

This Day Tonight: Germaine Greer and women's liberation, 1972

Discover what it was like for women who spoke up for equal rights in 1970. Germaine Greer's 'The Female Eunuch' was first published in that year. It would inspire many to challenge traditional views of female and male roles. Listen as, in 1970, Greer expresses her ideas and several Australian women and girls say what they ...

Video

Pocket Compass, Ep 2: Women's liberation movement

The 1960s was a time of various social and political movements, including the women's liberation movement. The feminists of this movement were fighting for equality and liberation from predefined roles in society. Learn about some of the changes they were fighting for and how feminism has changed over the years.

Video

Belief: Christians in contemporary Australia

What is the most popular religion in Australia? If you said 'Christianity', you would be right. In the 2011 Census, more than 60 per cent of respondents indicated that they belonged to the Christian faith. In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in Christianity among Australia's youth. By focusing on a Christian ...

Video

Paul Keating's 1992 Redfern speech

On 10 December 1992, Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating delivered a speech in Redfern, Sydney at a celebration of the International Year of the World's Indigenous People. The speech addressed many of the injustices suffered by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the previous 200 years. Today, it is regarded ...

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

Weekend Magazine: The modern office workplace, 1960s style

How different was the Australia workplace half a century ago? This Weekend Magazine program from the mid-1960s looks at work in what was then the new Commonwealth Centre in Sydney, where 2,000 Commonwealth public servants were employed. It provides a glimpse of a world that has changed beyond recognition. As you watch the ...

Video

Nationwide: Franklin River campaign

How important is the environment in an election campaign? In this clip, explore the issue that changed Australia's conservation landscape forever: the fight to save the Franklin River. Watch how the Tasmanian Wilderness Society used political and media strategies to influence the outcome of the 1983 federal election in ...

Video

This Day Tonight: Chinese Australians and the Moon Festival, 1978

How have the cultural traditions of people from Asia enriched Australian society? The Moon Festival is one such tradition. In this clip from 1978, an ABC reporter visits Dixon Street in Sydney's Chinatown to discover what this celebration means to Chinese Australians and the wider community.

Video

ABC News: Luck of the draw: the Vietnam 'birthday ballot', 1965

How would you feel if your birth date was picked out of a barrel, lottery-style, and you were ordered to report for military duty? This was the fate that awaited the men whose birth dates were chosen in the Vietnam ballot. In this clip, watch the process the Australian government put in place to choose men for this life-changing ...

Video

Monday Conference: Alvin Toffler discusses women's liberation, 1972

How was Australian society affected by the women's liberation movement in the 1960s and 70s? One issue, the struggle for women to access the same opportunities as men, caused much uncertainty about the future of the family. In this clip, writer and futurist Alvin Toffler offers his unique take on women's liberation and ...