Humanities News

By Jayne Carrigg - Faculty Coordinator: Humanities

Term 2 Recap

The Humanities faculty has engaged with the wider world in Term 2, even so far as making connections across the world. While our students have been productive and focused on their classes there have been moments where the learning has happened in different places. Students have participated in the Australian Geography Competition and the History Competition. The Unit 3 Sociology students, as part of their study of Ethnicity and Culture, visited the Greek Orthodox Church in Humffray Street North, Ballarat and met with one of the Church elders.

In an exciting first for the Unit 3 History Revolutions students, they engaged in an online virtual session with the Museum of the American Revolution located in Philadelphia, United States. The students got to work with an expert guide from the Museum, Amanda, online and benefit from her expertise and insights about the American Revolution. While it was 9am in Ballarat for Amanda it was 7pm in Philadelphia and yet she was an enthusiastic and passionate presenter even after having worked all day. It was a valuable learning opportunity for both students and staff.

By Ruby Bradshaw and Tarah Argus - Year 12

'Earlier this term, the year 12 Sociology class spent the afternoon at The Greek Orthodox Church of St Nicholas with Angelo Christofi as part of our depth study of Greek Australian culture. At the church, Angelo told us about his experience immigrating as a young adult, his uncle who owned Steve’s fish shop, the blending of Greek and Australian culture and how he raised a family in Ballarat. We had an opportunity to ask Angelo questions such as ‘how Australian media can enable or prevent his connection to his culture’, which furthered our understanding of cultural hybridity. We are so grateful for this experience, and to Angelo, for what we’ve learnt which we will take with us to the end of year exam.' Ruby - Unit 3 Sociology

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'In Term 2, the VCE Revolutions class was fortunate enough to take part in a lesson with a specialist from the American Museum of Democracy in order to support our study of the American Revolution. During the double, we were able to collaborate with Amanda and learn about 4 key African American individuals who's experiences helped put our studies into context, which helped to refine our knowledge and enhance our understanding regarding the experiences of minority groups in the American Revolution. We were able to see some primary artifacts which were from the era of the revolution. Overall, it was a truly beneficial experience which every student got a lot out of.’' Tarah - Unit 3 History Revolutions.