The Future of History
Living on the Edge, Public and Private Lives, A Sense of Belonging,
Intruders and Resisters, The Unwanted, the Seekers and the Achievers,
Persecution and Hope . . .
These are some of the topics that can be studied by students
of the new Stage 2 History subjects - Modern History and Australian
History - to be taught as part of the South Australian Certificate
of Education (SACE) in 2002.
Convincing students that the study of history is valuable in
this age of the immediate is not an easy task. Therefore, our new
SACE History subjects focus on the future - on the importance of
understanding where we have been, in order to understand what we
are doing in the present, and more importantly, where we might head
in the future.
What we want to impress on students is the importance of the
study of history to their contribution as future workers and citizens.
We want to provide them with opportunities to experience the lives
of other people in different times and different places, and foster
greater understanding of themselves as global citizens.
So, what will be taught in the new History subjects, and how
will the study of History be approached? Some of the topics have
already been mentioned. The new subjects have a mix of some favourites,
such as 'The War to End All Wars', and 'Indigenous Australians and
the Colonial Experience', with some new areas for learning, such
as 'Forced and Free Migration', and 'Life in Australia's Coastal
Cities'.
The approach taken in the study of these topics differs from
that of the past in at least three ways.
First, the subject matter of history is seen as the investigation
of human experience. The topics therefore focus on areas such as
power and its disruption; social relationships; how people in society
treat each other; the influence of individuals on decision making;
the influence and control of governments over individuals; who and
which institutions make the rules, and who interprets them; who enforces
the rules and who resists them.
Second, the new subjects encourage students to see what is occurring
around them, to place their learning in a wider, international context.
It shows them that what concerns them, concerns others across societies,
across continents.
Students will study topics such as 'Immigrants, Displaced Persons,
and Refugees', and see connections across social classes, nations,
and time. Comparative study is encouraged- it takes students across
state borders, across national borders. The Modern History subject,
for example, allows for the study of South African, Iranian, or Chilean
History for the first time. The Australian History subject requires
comparisons to be drawn across Australian States and Territories,
and across time.
Third, the new subjects remind students that the study of history
is not only about the study of the influence and contribution of
rich men, but that it is the study of how ordinary children, women,
and men lived, acted, died in different parts of the world, and made
their contributions to that world.
We believe that students will enjoy these new subjects, and
that they will see relevance in the study of History to the present
and the future.
The subjects have been designed to make the point that when
the past is forgotten, its power over the present is hidden from
us, and our capacity to influence the future is severely restricted.
Some would say that 'without history, there is no future'.
Dr. Janet Keightley
Chief Executive
Senior Secondary Assessment Board of South Australia |
